Q: Do I need a license to practice psychology?
A: As you may know, I'm a Social Psychologist. So I thought I would leave this answer to the experts in this area. This answer is provided verbatim from the APA website:
"To practice psychology in a state, province or territory of the U.S. or Canada, an individual must be licensed as a psychologist according to the laws and regulations outlined by that particular governmental entity. The Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards (ASPPB) has a website that provides information about the general requirements in education (which may include graduation from an APA accredited program), examinations, and supervised experience: www.asppb.org.
The ASPPB website also has links to state Psychology Boards. Requirements for license to practice in psychology are not standardized across states. Licensure for the practice of psychology in most states requires a doctoral degree, and two years of supervised training experience, usually one year during the doctoral program (internship in most cases) and an additional year after receipt of the doctoral degree (post-doc residency)."
This is all great information, but don't forget that to be a licensed psychologist you need to first receive your PhD or PsyD. You then have to complete a 1500-2000 hour internship. This is then followed (in most states) by an additional 1500-2000 hour work experience that is supervised by a licensed psychologist.
Then, in most states, there is a national exam called the EPPP (200 multiple choice questions) that one has to achieve a passing score, and in many states this is then followed-up by a specific oral or written examination. All in all the process of becoming licensed usually takes about two years after receiving the doctorate.