School Psychology Licensure & Professional Development Requirements

Illinois School Psychologist Continuing Education Requirements

Illinois school psychologists practice under a Professional Educator License (PEL) with a School Support Personnel endorsement in School Psychology. The standard renewal requirement is 120 professional development hours during each five-year renewal cycle. Illinois also provides an important alternative for eligible school psychologists who maintain a current NCSP credential.

120 Professional Development Hours

5 Years PEL Renewal Cycle

NCSP Can Satisfy the Full 120-Hour Requirement for Eligible School Psychologists

Important for Illinois school psychologists: The normal requirement is 120 professional development hours during each five-year PEL renewal cycle. However, a school psychologist who is employed and performing school psychology services in an Illinois public school and holds a current Nationally Certified School Psychologist (NCSP) credential is deemed to have satisfied all 120 professional development hours.

Illinois School Psychologist Requirements at a Glance

Credential

Professional Educator License (PEL) with School Support Personnel endorsement in School Psychology

Licensing Authority

Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE)

Renewal Cycle

5 years

Standard PD Requirement

120 professional development hours during each 5-year cycle

PD Conversion

1 clock hour of attendance = 1 professional development hour

NCSP Alternative

An eligible school psychologist working in an Illinois public school who holds a current NCSP is deemed to have completed the entire 120-hour PD requirement

PD Reporting System

Educator Licensure Information System (ELIS)

120 Professional Development Hours Every Five Years

Illinois requires educators holding a Professional Educator License endorsed in a teaching or school support personnel field to complete 120 clock hours of professional development during each five-year renewal cycle.

School psychology is a school support personnel endorsement, so school psychologists fall under this requirement unless they qualify for one of Illinois' specific alternatives.

Illinois generally awards professional development credit on a one-for-one basis: one clock hour of attendance equals one professional development hour.

NCSP Can Satisfy All 120 Illinois PD Hours

Illinois provides a particularly valuable renewal rule for nationally certified school psychologists.

A licensee who:

Holds an Illinois PEL with a school support personnel endorsement;
Is employed and performing services on that endorsement in an Illinois public school; and
Holds a current Nationally Certified School Psychologist (NCSP) credential

is considered to have satisfied the full 120-hour Illinois professional development requirement.

This is more than a partial credit: the current NCSP is treated as satisfying the entire 120-hour professional development requirement for an eligible Illinois public school psychologist.

Who Can Use the NCSP Renewal Option?

The NCSP provision is not written as a blanket exemption for every person who happens to hold an Illinois school psychology endorsement.

Illinois specifically ties the provision to a licensee who is employed and performing services on the school support personnel endorsement in an Illinois public school.

Important: A school psychologist who holds the NCSP but is not currently employed and performing school psychology services in an Illinois public school should not assume the NCSP automatically replaces the 120-hour renewal requirement. The individual's circumstances should be checked against current ISBE renewal rules.

Illinois Clinical Psychologist License Alternative

Illinois also provides a related professional-license option for school support personnel.

A school psychologist who holds a current and active professional license issued by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation that is related to the school psychology endorsement may also be deemed to have satisfied the 120-hour professional development requirement.

For school psychologists, Illinois identifies a license issued under the Clinical Psychologist Licensing Act as the related professional license.

School Psychology Renewal Alternatives

Eligible Illinois public-school school psychologists may satisfy the 120-hour requirement through:

A current NCSP; or
A current qualifying Illinois clinical psychologist license.

What Professional Development Can Count in Illinois?

For educators completing the 120-hour route, Illinois accepts professional development that meets the state's professional development standards and is offered through an approved pathway.

ISBE identifies several broad sources of acceptable professional development:

Illinois-Approved PD Providers

Professional development activities offered through an Illinois-approved professional development provider may generate renewal credit when the activity meets Illinois statutory criteria.

Higher Education Coursework

Coursework completed through qualifying higher education institutions may also generate professional development credit for renewal.

Relevant Professional Development for School Psychologists

Professional development should improve professional knowledge, competence, or practice and align with the requirements governing Illinois educator professional development.

Appropriate school psychology topics may include:

Psychoeducational assessment
Academic intervention
Behavior assessment and intervention
Special education law
Section 504
School psychology ethics
Data-based decision making

School mental and behavioral health
Consultation and collaboration
Trauma-informed practice
Family-school collaboration
Culturally responsive practice
Evidence-based interventions
Schoolwide prevention and support systems

Does Any Outside CE Course Automatically Count?

No. Illinois maintains a specific approved professional development provider system for direct PEL renewal credit.

Illinois administrative rules state that professional development offered through an Illinois-approved provider generates renewal credit when it satisfies the applicable professional-development criteria.

Important for your course catalog: NASP Approved Provider status should not by itself be described as making every course an Illinois-approved PEL professional development activity. Illinois has its own approved-provider requirements for courses being applied directly to the 120-hour state PD requirement.

Do NASP-Approved Courses Count in Illinois?

NASP-approved courses are directly useful for maintaining the NCSP.

This creates a particularly useful relationship in Illinois because an eligible school psychologist who maintains a current NCSP is deemed to have fulfilled the state's entire 120-hour professional development requirement.

NASP-APPROVED PROVIDER

Child & School Psychology CE

Child & School Psychology CE is a NASP Approved Provider, Provider #1152.

Qualifying courses may be used toward applicable NCSP continuing professional development requirements.

Illinois specifically recognizes the NCSP as satisfying the 120-hour state professional development requirement for eligible school psychologists who are employed and performing school psychology services in Illinois public schools.

A school psychologist wishing to apply an individual course directly to the Illinois 120-hour PEL requirement instead of maintaining the NCSP should confirm that the activity is offered through an Illinois-approved professional development provider or another accepted Illinois pathway.

Can Online Continuing Education Count in Illinois?

Online professional development can count when it meets Illinois professional-development requirements and is offered through an accepted provider or other recognized pathway.

The delivery format itself is not the only issue. The key questions are whether the provider is eligible to award Illinois PD credit and whether the activity meets the state's professional-development standards.

NCSP Route

Qualifying NASP-approved online professional development may count toward NCSP renewal under NASP's current requirements.

Direct Illinois PEL Credit

The online activity must qualify under Illinois' approved professional development provider or other accepted PD pathway.

Reporting Professional Development in ELIS

Illinois educators completing professional development for PEL renewal use the Educator Licensure Information System (ELIS).

Before renewal, a licensee generally records information for each professional development activity, including:

Name of the professional development activity
Date of the activity
Location or delivery information
Number of professional development hours earned
Name of the professional development provider

Licensees must retain evidence of completion and provide it if requested by the regional superintendent, ISBE, or as part of an appeal.

How Is the NCSP Entered for Illinois Renewal?

Illinois rules permit a qualifying national certification to be entered as a professional development activity in ELIS for eligible school support personnel.

School psychologists should maintain documentation showing that the NCSP is current and valid for the applicable renewal period.

Can Extra Illinois PD Hours Carry Over?

Generally, professional development hours used to satisfy the minimum requirement for one renewal cycle cannot be reused for another cycle.

Illinois does provide a limited exception for extra professional development completed near the end of a renewal cycle.

April 1 – June 30 Carryover

If a licensee earns more than the required number of professional development hours, additional hours earned between April 1 and June 30 of the final year of the renewal cycle may be applied to the next renewal cycle, subject to current Illinois rules.

What Happens If the Required PD Is Not Completed?

Illinois law provides a limited opportunity to cure a professional development deficiency.

A licensee who has not completed the required professional development by the end of the renewal cycle may complete the missing hours before September 1 of that year.

Failure to meet the renewal requirements can make the educator ineligible to register the license and may require an appeal or reinstatement process.

Illinois School Psychologist Renewal Options Compared

Standard PEL Route

120 professional development hours during the five-year cycle

Current NCSP

For an eligible Illinois public-school school psychologist, satisfies the full 120-hour requirement

Illinois Clinical Psychologist License

A current related professional license may also satisfy the 120-hour requirement for eligible school support personnel

Direct Outside Course Credit

Must satisfy Illinois professional development provider and activity requirements

Online Continuing Education for Illinois School Psychologists

Child & School Psychology CE provides self-paced online professional development designed specifically for school psychologists and related professionals.

Courses address assessment, intervention, behavior, ethics, special education law, Section 504, student mental health, data-based decision making, and evidence-based school psychology practice.

We are a NASP Approved Provider, Provider #1152. Qualifying courses may be used toward applicable NCSP continuing professional development requirements.

Maintaining a current NCSP is particularly valuable in Illinois because eligible school psychologists working in Illinois public schools may use the current NCSP to satisfy the state's entire 120-hour PEL professional development requirement.

View Online CE Courses

Maintaining Your NCSP?

Illinois specifically recognizes the NCSP as an alternative to completing 120 separate state professional development hours for eligible Illinois public-school school psychologists.

School psychologists using this option should keep the NCSP current by completing NASP's applicable continuing professional development requirements.

View NCSP CPD Requirements

Official Illinois Resources

Licensure and professional development requirements may change. School psychologists should verify current requirements with the Illinois State Board of Education before renewing a Professional Educator License.

Requirements reviewed September 2026. This page is provided for informational purposes and is not a substitute for current guidance from the Illinois State Board of Education.