Continuing Education for Licensed Master Social Worker - FAQ

Yes. Any continuing education that is designed for the sole purpose of personal development, marketing, business practices, and maximizing profits for the practice of a LMSW or LCSW will not be considered by the Department as acceptable continuing education.

Similarly, a licensee who undergoes treatment through the use of self-hypnosis for smoking cessation could not count such treatment as continuing education. However, a licensee who takes coursework to develop skills in training clients to engage in self-hypnosis from a Department-approved provider could count such coursework as continuing education.

No. Independent study or informal group "study clubs" will not be acceptable for satisfying the continuing education requirement for LMSWs or LCSWs. Only formal courses or self-study courses offered by Department-approved providers may be counted toward the continuing education requirement. Formal and self-study courses offered by Department-approved providers assure relevant course content, effective evaluation, and recordkeeping by the provider.

Self-study courses are acceptable. They are structured study, offered by a Department-approved provider that are based on audio, audio-visual, written, on-line and other media. Self-study courses do not include live instruction (transmitted in person or otherwise) during which the student may communicate and interact with the instructor and other students. Please note that there is a limitation of 12 continuing education hours in a 36-month registration period, or one-third of the hours for a registration period other than 36 months, for self-study courses as described above.

Yes. There is no limit on the number of hours of acceptable continuing education you may take on-line through a Department-approved provider, when the course includes live interaction with the instructor and other students.
 

In order to receive credit for in-service and training programs provided by an employer, the employer must be a Department-approved provider of continuing education for licensed social workers. Additionally, the in-service training must be clearly related to the enhancement of social work practice, skills, and knowledge and the health, safety, and/or welfare of the public.

To become an approved provider, the employer must meet all the requirements in the Education Law and Commissioner’s Regulations, which, include, but are not limited to, submitting an application, with the required fee, to the Department. The application to become a Department-approved provider can be found at https://www.op.nysed.gov/professions-index/social-work.

While professional development activities may be required by a school social worker’s employer, such activities would only be considered acceptable for continuing education requirement purposes if they are offered by a Department-approved provider and clearly relate to the enhancement of social work practice, skills, and knowledge.

To become a Department-approved provider, a school district, board of cooperative education services (BOCES), or other qualified organization must meet all the requirements in the Education Law and Commissioner’s Regulations, which, include, but are not limited to, submitting an application, with the required fee, to the Department. The application to become a Department-approved provider can be found at https://www.op.nysed.gov/professions-index/social-work.

All courses/educational activities must be taken from a Department-a pproved provider. As part of the provider approval process, the State Board for Social Work will review proposed courses/educational activities in the areas listed above that may be offered by a prospective provider of continuing education for New York LMSWs and LCSWs. Please refer to Question 25 for more information.

Additionally, the above-referenced topics and offerings in other disciplines may be acceptable continuing education for social workers, if the course or courses clearly relate to the enhancement of social work practice, skills, and knowledge and the health, safety and welfare of the public and are offered by a Department-approved provider.

Providers must issue a Certificate of Completion to licensees who complete courses for continuing education hours. Licensees must retain, in their records, information regarding completed acceptable continuing education for six years from the date of completion of the coursework/educational activity.

A Certificate of Completion should include the following information:

• name of licensee and license number;
• title of the course or program, subject area, and any identification number assigned to it by the provider;
• number of hours completed;
• the provider's name and any identifying number;
• verification by the provider of the licensee’s attendance or participation;
• the date and location of the course or activity; and
• a statement indicating that the organization is recognized by the New York State Education Department’s State Board for Social Work as a Department-approved provider of LMSW and LCSW continuing education.

The provider must also retain records for at least six years from the date of completion of the coursework/educational activity, in case the licensee or the Department requests verification of a course or educational activity offering.

You are responsible for providing documentation of other educational activities that are defined as acceptable continuing education under the regulations. The following examples are a non-exhaustive list:

• course descriptions, handouts and brochures that may document the licensee’s first-time preparation and teaching a course offered by an approved provider of continuing education to social workers;
• article published for the first-time in a peer-reviewed journal, or a chapter in a book; or
• syllabi, power point slides, and examinations that are part of a course that was prepared and taught for the first time in a higher education institution or psychotherapy institute, as defined in section 74.10(a)(2) and (3) of the Commissioner’s Regulations.

You will be required to attest on your Registration Renewal Document that you completed the required continuing education hours. If you did not complete the required hours, you will have to apply for a conditional registration. Please refer to Question 38 for more information.

No. However, you must retain your continuing education records for six years because you are required to make your continuing education records available for inspection by the Department upon its request. Random samples of mandatory continuing education records are audited by the Department to ensure compliance with the continuing education requirement.

The Department randomly audits a percentage of licensees each month, as well as those licensees who applied for a conditional registration and those who previously failed an audit. You must provide the Department with your Certificates of Completion for each approved continuing education course or records for other educational activities, when requested. In no cases will self-reporting forms be acceptable.

You may be subject to disciplinary proceedings for professional misconduct. According to Section 29.1 of the Rules of the Board of Regents, willfully making or filing a false report constitutes unprofessional conduct. Penalties for such misconduct may include censure and reprimand, fine, and/or suspension or revocation of your license.

The Department, at its discretion, may issue you a conditional registration if you request one. The conditional registration is valid for one year only and is not renewable. To be granted a conditional registration you would have to:

• agree to complete the required hours of continuing education from the previous registration period during the period of conditional registration,
• complete the regular continuing education requirement at a rate of one hour per month for the one-year conditional registration period,
• complete any additional education which the Department may require,
• complete and submit the Registration Remittance Addendum, and
• pay the fee for the conditional registration, which is equal to the amount of the regular registration fee ($179) and the continuing education fee ($45) for a total fee of $224.

At the end of the conditional registration period, you must submit your Certificates of Completion to the Department, certifying that you have completed the required continuing education and pay the regular registration fee ($179) and the continuing education fee ($45) for a total of $224.

Conditional registrations are valid for no more than one year and are not renewable. This means you MUST meet the requirements by the end of the conditional period. You will not be issued a registration for the remaining two years until you meet the requirements. Remember - if you are not registered you may not practice your profession in New York.

Yes. You may have a third-party, such as a professional association, maintain your continuing education records. In the event of a Department audit or at the end of a conditional registration period, you would have to request that the third-party provide you with Certificates of Completion for the courses or educational activities that were completed during the time period in question.

Please note: if the third-party cannot provide you with such documentation, you could face charges of unprofessional conduct for failure to maintain and produce continuing education records.

Please contact the Office of the State Board for Social Work, New York State Education Department, Office of the Professions, State Education Building - 2nd Floor East Wing, 89 Washington Ave., Albany, New York, 12234, by phone 518-474-3817 ext. 450, by fax 518-486-2981, or by e-mail swbd@nysed.gov.