Catherine Gray Deering, PhD, ABPP
 

Welcome to the website of the American Board of Clinical Psychology (ABCP).  ABCP is the largest of the fifteen specialty boards within the American Board of Professional Psychology (ABPP).

Our Board has two main functions: 1) to maintain standards, develop examination processes, and administer examinations for board certification, and 2) to serve as an academy of peers who provide education and training to examiners and members and work to promote the attainment of board certification as a way of assuring quality services to the public and professional credentialing boards.

If you are a psychologist interested in seeking board certification in Clinical Psychology, please take time to review the latest version of our Clinical Examination Manual in the ABCP Document library. This manual is designed to demystify the application process by providing explicit instructions for each stage of the exam, from the initial qualifications to the written and oral phases. The exam process is rigorous and comprehensive, but we expect that most clinical psychologists can attain board certification. Moreover, we believe you will find the examination process to be a valuable opportunity for evaluating your growth as a clinician, the evidence base for your work, and the integration of ethical principles into your practice.

For those of you who are doctoral students, interns, or residents, you may be eligible to start the board certification process through the ABPP Early Entry Option program, with application fees significantly discounted and access to mentoring. We are pleased to collaborate with the Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards (ASPPB) to process applications through their Credentials Bank which will collect, verify, and securely store the documentation of your education, training, and experience.

If you are already Board Certified in Clinical Psychology, your willingness to serve as an examiner in your region is one way to continue your commitment to the organization.  We encourage you to volunteer as an examiner by contacting your Regional Coordinator under our Specialty Board Officers page.  A sincere thank you to those already actively engaged in doing exams and in mentoring candidates. 

We also encourage our board certified members to become involved with our Board through committees, including our outreach efforts through education, marketing, and membership services. We strive to provide current training and education to our examiners and members, and to promote the overall growth and influence of board certification in clinical psychology. To learn more about opportunities for working with the Board, see our Officers page.

We hope you will find us to be an energetic and responsive group of psychologists who do our best to promote both clinical excellence and collegiality. I encourage you to contact me directly with input for the Board and/or if you have any questions about the board certification process.

Sincerely,

Catherine Gray Deering, PhD, ABPP

Board Certified in Clinical Psychology
President, American Board of Clinical Psychology
kittydeering@clayton.edu