New Jersey School Psychologist Continuing Education Requirements
Review current New Jersey school psychologist professional development requirements, annual PDP expectations, qualifying professional learning, online courses, and how NASP-approved professional development may fit.
New Jersey School Psychologist Requirements at a Glance
Hours Per Year
Active educators covered by New Jersey's professional development rules generally complete at least 20 hours of qualifying professional development each year.
Annual PDP
Professional learning is guided by an individual Professional Development Plan that is reviewed and updated each year.
Permanent Certificate
The New Jersey standard educator certificate is a permanent certificate rather than a credential that expires on a fixed renewal cycle.
New Jersey eliminated the former 100-hour, five-year professional development cycle. Active educators now participate in professional learning through an annual PDP process, with at least 20 hours of qualifying experiences generally required each year.
New Jersey School Psychologist Professional Development Overview
Does a New Jersey School Psychologist License Expire?
New Jersey's standard educator certificate is a permanent certificate. This differs from states that require a school psychologist to renew a state credential every two, three, or five years.
As a result, New Jersey school psychologists do not complete a traditional certificate-renewal process based on accumulating a certain number of CE hours before an expiration date.
Instead, active educators participate in New Jersey's ongoing professional development and evaluation system.
New Jersey Model
20 Hours of Qualifying Professional Development
New Jersey's professional-development regulations define active "teachers" broadly for this purpose to include staff whose positions require an educational services certificate. School psychologists hold an educational services certificate and therefore fall within this professional-development framework.
The 20-hour requirement may be prorated for part-time employment or qualifying periods of absence.
What Can Count Toward New Jersey Professional Development?
Professional development must support improved professional practice and be aligned with student learning, educator development needs, and school or district improvement goals.
New Jersey recognizes a broad range of professional learning, including collaborative learning and external professional development opportunities.
External professional learning may include in-person, virtual, and remote courses, workshops, institutes, professional networks, and conferences.
Examples
Can NASP-Approved Courses Count in New Jersey?
New Jersey allows professional development from outside organizations and expressly permits virtual and remote courses, workshops, institutes, networks, and conferences.
NASP-approved professional development designed for school psychologists can therefore be a strong fit for New Jersey professional learning, particularly when the course addresses goals in the school psychologist's individual Professional Development Plan.
Unlike states with a list of state-approved CE providers, New Jersey's professional-development framework emphasizes the quality, relevance, and alignment of professional learning with educator and student needs.
NASP Approved Provider #1152
NCSP Is an Initial Certification Pathway in New Jersey
New Jersey explicitly recognizes the Nationally Certified School Psychologist credential as one pathway to obtaining the standard School Psychologist certificate.
Additional New Jersey Professional Development Requirements
New Jersey statutes and regulations require certain professional development topics for particular groups of school employees in addition to the general professional-development framework.
Requirements may depend on a professional's assignment, school, district, and responsibilities.
Two Hours of Suicide Prevention Training Every Five Years
New Jersey requires teaching staff members to receive two hours of suicide prevention instruction per five-year period.
The instruction must be provided by a licensed health care professional with training and experience in mental health issues.
Can New Jersey School Psychologists Take Online CE Courses?
Yes. New Jersey's professional-development rules specifically contemplate virtual and remote professional learning.
Child & School Psychology CE offers structured, asynchronous, NASP-approved professional development developed specifically for school psychologists and related professionals.
Courses provide certificates documenting completed professional development hours that can be retained as evidence of participation and reviewed with the school psychologist's supervisor as part of the annual PDP process.
Online CE for School Psychologists
Explore self-paced professional development in assessment, behavior, mental health, ethics, legal issues, data-based decision making, and school psychology practice.
Browse CE CoursesDocumenting Professional Learning
New Jersey requires school districts and supervisors to monitor professional-development progress and maintain documentation related to individual professional-development plans.
NASP-Approved Hours May Support Both Professional Goals
NCSP renewal requirements are separate from New Jersey's annual professional-development framework. NASP-approved courses may, however, potentially support both NCSP continuing professional development and a New Jersey school psychologist's individual PDP when the activity satisfies the requirements of each system.
Official New Jersey School Psychologist Information
New Jersey school psychologist certification and professional development requirements are administered by the New Jersey Department of Education. Requirements can change, and individual district professional-development plans may include additional expectations.
View New Jersey School Psychologist Certification Information ↗View New Jersey Professional Development Information ↗