TPC Journal-Vol 9 Issue 3-FULL

260 The Professional Counselor | Volume 9, Issue 3 documentation as proof of the legitimacy of their graduate program compounded their experiences. Echoing other participants, Kathy, for example, reflected on how when a counselor graduates from a CACREP-accredited program “you check a box here instead of having to go through and fill out all this [extra paperwork] . . . so that was a positive that saved me a lot of steps.” Conversely, Amy described having to jump through a lot of hoops when first licensed in Colorado because she did not attend a CACREP-accredited program and had to send all her syllabi to an organization in North Carolina to evaluate her education. Although graduating from a CACREP-accredited program did not entirely prevent participants from facing challenges during the licensing process, it appears that graduating from a CACREP-accredited program positively impacted their portability experiences. Participants reported graduating from a CACREP-accredited program reduced the volume and time required to complete the process. Participants from non–CACREP-accredited programs needed to submit course syllabi and, in some cases, take extra classes required by the state. Clinical Hours All counseling licenses require the completion of a certain number of clinical hours, both during the master’s program and following graduation. The requirements can vary widely from state to state, as depicted in Table 1. Direct hour requirements for states in this study ranged from 1,000 to 3,000, and overall hours varied between 2,000 and 4,000. Participants described the issues encountered based on differences in state requirements. The deductive category of clinical hours was further defined as applying for an additional license is tracking hours of client contact and supervision with varying requirements . Participants described a variety of logistical issues related to required clinical hours, such as needing to complete additional supervised hours in their new state because the state they moved from required fewer hours. Some participants highlighted that the additional hours were required despite having been endorsed and “fully” licensed in the previous state. Multiple participants indicated that differences in clinical hours and years needed to practice led to challenges when relocating. Aside from the challenge of having to complete additional clinical hours, multiple participants described difficulty with obtaining verification of hours from previous supervisors. Challenges getting documentation completed included difficulty accessing supervisors, time that had passed since they had been supervised by these individuals, and overall inconvenience of tracking down previous supervisors and asking for verification. Licensure Exams All states require a licensure exam as part of the requirements for obtaining a counseling license. Participants described the ease or difficulty this caused in the process of obtaining a counseling license in a second state. Table 1 illustrates the different exam requirements among the RMACES states, where some accept either the NCE or the NCMHCE, some require both exams, and others additionally require their own state-specific counselor exam. For example, the exam requirements differ between states without expectation that the exam be reliable and valid according to state law, but rather applicants need to have passed “an equivalent exam” that is subjectively determined by current members of a state board (ACA, 2016, p. 108). The deductive category of licensure exams included the description applying for an additional license is sending the scores to each state board and potentially taking another exam . Participants described the logistical difficulties of moving to another state and in addition to having to fill out the application for licensure, having to take another exam in order to be eligible. Participants reported a lack of uniformity between states regarding the required licensure exam, which further complicated their ability to obtain a counseling license in another state. Both Colorado participants described the