South Carolina Code of Laws
Chapter 63 - Social Workers
Section 40-63-240. Licensure requirements; Independent Social Worker-Clinical Practice.

(A) To be licensed as an Independent Social Worker-Clinical Practice, an applicant must:
(1) have submitted a written application in the form prescribed by the board;
(2) be at least twenty-one years of age;
(3) be of good moral character;
(4) have received a masters or doctorate degree in social work from a program accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting body for social work programs, or from a social work program whose standards are at least equivalent to the minimum standards required by the nationally recognized accrediting body as approved by the board;
(5) course work content from a program accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting body for social work programs or from a social work program whose standards are at least equivalent to the minimum standards required by the nationally recognized accrediting body as approved by the board shall include forty-five academic contact hours each of:
(a) psychopathology;
(b) psychodiagnostics;
(6) demonstrate to the board the satisfactory completion of three thousand hours of social work practice under clinical supervision, which meets the following criteria, or demonstrate to the board's satisfaction equivalent supervised experience in the practice of Clinical Social Work. The board may review extraordinary circumstances related to supervised practice. Supervised practice under clinical supervision shall meet the following requirements:
(a) must have occurred after licensure as a Masters Social Worker and over a minimum two-year and maximum four-year period;
(b) must include face-to-face meetings between the approved clinical supervisor and the supervisee for a minimum of one hundred hours of direct clinical supervision equitably distributed;
(c) be documented by a plan for clinical supervision, filed with the board before beginning the period of supervision, (properly amended by submission of a notice of the end of supervision and a termination evaluation if a supervisory change is made) and submitted to the board with a termination evaluation at the end of the supervisory period;
(7) have obtained fifteen academic contact hours or twenty continuing education contact hours in professional ethics during the course of the professional supervision period, or have completed a board sponsored specialty course in professional ethics;
(8) have successfully passed an examination prescribed by the board;
(9) have paid all applicable fees specified by the board.
(B) To be licensed as an Independent Social Worker-Advanced Practice, an applicant must:
(1) have submitted a written application in the form prescribed by the board;
(2) be at least twenty-one years of age;
(3) be of good moral character;
(4) have received a masters or doctorate degree in social work from a program accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting body for social work programs, or from a social work program whose standards are at least equivalent to the minimum standards required by the nationally recognized accrediting body as approved by the board;
(5) course work content shall include ninety academic contact hours of course work in advanced social work practice with communities and organizations;
(6) demonstrate to the board the satisfactory completion of three thousand hours of social work practice under advanced practice supervision, which meets the following criteria, or demonstrate to the board's satisfaction equivalent supervised experience in the practice of advanced practice social work. The board may review extraordinary circumstances related to supervised practice. Supervised practice under advanced practice supervision shall meet the following requirements:
(a) must have occurred after licensure as a Masters Social Worker and over a minimum two-year and maximum four-year period;
(b) must include face-to-face meetings between the approved advanced practice supervisor and the supervisee for a minimum of one hundred hours of direct advanced practice supervision equitably distributed;
(c) be documented by a plan for advanced practice supervision, filed with the board before beginning the period of supervision, (properly amended by submission of a notice of the end of supervision and a termination evaluation if a supervisory change is made) and submitted to the board with a termination evaluation at the end of the supervisory period;
(7) have obtained fifteen academic contact hours or twenty continuing education contact hours in professional ethics during the course of the professional supervision period, or have completed a board sponsored specialty course in professional ethics;
(8) have successfully passed an examination prescribed by the board;
(9) have paid all applicable fees specified by the board.
(C) The qualifications for an Approved Advanced Practice Supervisor are that the licensee must:
(1) be a Licensed Independent Social Worker-Advanced Practice;
(2) have successfully passed an examination prescribed by the board;
(3) have a minimum of four thousand five hundred hours of advanced practice earned over a period of not less than three years beyond receipt of an LISW-AP;
(4) have obtained forty-five academic contact hours or forty-five continuing education contact hours in supervision.
(D) The qualifications for a Clinical Practice Supervisor are that the licensee must:
(1) be a Licensed Independent Social Worker-Clinical Practice;
(2) have successfully passed an examination prescribed by the board;
(3) have a minimum of four thousand five hundred hours of clinical practice earned over a period of not less than three years beyond receipt of an LISW-CP;
(4) have obtained forty-five academic contact hours or forty-five continuing education contact hours in supervision.
HISTORY: 2002 Act No. 189, Section 1.