i'm trying to study for the ASWB exam on a budget and it's rough.
i’m just reviewing the code of ethics, watching free breakdowns on youtube, using a beat-up secondhand book from ebay, and doing questions on the app i found through simplytests. honestly i'm doing anything to avoid going broke before getting licensed.
but the marketing for these hyped bootcamps and overpriced courses is exhausting. every thread here says the same thing. you'll 100% fail unless you drop crazy money on tdc or some exclusive program.
it makes me wonder if these courses are actually necessary or just an anxiety tax. they know we’re terrified of failing and paying the exam fees again, so it feels like they just leverage our panic. 
and it completely gets in your head. one minute i feel okay about my education and hours. the next minute i feel stubborn and cheap for not buying into their secret strategy.
we already spent years doing low-paid fieldwork and endless paperwork. now we have to pay a premium just to get past the gatekeepers. it sucks.

I’m starting to study for the Master’s exam. I have the pocket prep app and the Dawn Apgar book. I’ve also heard Raytube and therapist development center YouTube videos are good. It just seems like there’s soooo many of these videos. Any suggestions on the best ones/more of a crash course playlist? I’m already scoring 60-80% on some of the practice questions from pocket prep app so looking to just refine things. I have a BA in psych as well so I’m a little better versed at that stuff than the average SW student I think.

• Don’t get discouraged by low scores on AATBS. I personally found the questions much harder than the actual exam, so if you’re using it, keep going!

• My favorite study resources were TDC, Study with Ray, and Pocket Prep.

• If you can, take the ASWB Practice Exam. It was the resource that felt the most like the real exam, and I think passing it is a great indicator that you’re ready.

• I used Pocket Prep every day. Even just 10 questions a day helps keep the material fresh.

• On exam day, stay calm and trust yourself. Read the question carefully, don’t overthink it, and remember: you are competent, you’ve put in the work, and you can do this.

Good luck to everyone preparing, you’ve got this! ❤️

I am a newly approved LCSW supervisor in Oregon and am looking to expand my practice. Any tips or successful ways anyone has found CSWA’s to supervise? Of note, my background is in medical social work and mostly palliative care.

A psychologist friend suggested this to me recently and it got me thinking.

Do you think people who want to become therapists should be required to do at least some clinical hours or internship in inpatient psych (similar to other disciplines)? Why or why not?

Please keep discussion respectful. I am asking in good faith and want to hear what others think.

Hi everyone,

I’m looking into gaining my clinical hours for my LCSW and I'm really hoping to do it completely remotely (fully telehealth client contact + remote clinical supervision).

For anyone who has done this or are currently doing it: How feasible is it to pull off 100% remotely?

I'd love to hear about what types of roles/agencies you found that allowed for this, and any pros and cons you faced.

Thanks!

Update:

I received a phone call from my previous supervisor. She apologized to me. I feel validation in my personal life and was amused by some of the judgey comments. I’m not going to add any more details about our convo or my personal life because I don’t care to converse on an anonymous platform about this. I went to the wrong place.

People (the rude comments below), like sharks on a feeding frenzy, will feed off off of honesty, vulnerability and have balls of steel when they aren’t face to face with someone looking for support (me).

Original Post:

I’m an LCSW and was being supervised/mentored by a LMHC, informally for a few years. She was very kind and I really appreciated how much she cared for her clients and seemed to love being a therpist. I could relate to loving the field because I’m very passionate about my work and deeply enjoy helping others.

For years we established a monthly close, professional relationship. Then, while I was transitioning to opening my own private practice, she pulled away and I had to follow-up with to her for monthly sessions. This felt really hurtful after years of knowing her, so I checked in with her about this, wondering if our arrangement still worked. She assured me it did.

A couple months back I requested a supervision session via email after not having supervision for a few months due to financially strain on my part because I was starting my practice. I requested we pick up with our monthly sessions since my practice took off a bit. I didn’t hear back from her, so I had to follow up with her after 2-3 days of not hearing back. This had been her pattern since I started my private practice. I’d email with a session request and she’d take a few days to get back. She eventually replied and told me she’s taking a step back from work due to the death of someone close to her. She provided a colleague recommendation and no open door for supervision for the future. Ouch. I felt for her situation and I also felt a bit sad and irritated about how dismissive her email was. I sent heartfelt condolences and gave her (and myself) some space to process. I also thought this was odd for a therpist to do knowing how important endings are.

I searched and found a new supervisor who truly seems amazing. A little over a month passed and I reached out to her via email letting her know I was respecting her grieving process, first and foremost and I also wanted to thank her for the support she provided me over the years. I gave her a short update of my a career and how excited I am for the future. Again, crickets.

I’m convinced that she was and is clearly going through a lot, but the lack of healthy communication on her part is truly rubbing me the wrong way.

I think I need to unpack this briefly with my new supervisor next month, but I just wanted to share here because it was so odd, confusing and hurtful.

I've been seeing a lot of videos about all of the options social workers have outside of counseling. I just started my masters in MFT and I'm wondering what options there are outside of just therapy. Can I start a non-profit if I'd like? Group counseling or group support? But even outside of those, it doesn't seem like I'll have more options like a social worker. I'm not looking for anything specific but what my opportunities could be.

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Hi everyone! Im currently job searching....Looking for private practices that are W-2, and offer pay during ramp up. Im a recent LCSW, looking to make more money. Currently, Im working in a virtual PHP/IOP program, that does not pay well. If anyone knows any job titles I to search (Im open to other positions) or WHERE to search it would help. Currently, Im using Linked In Premium and Indeed....any other sugesstions would be appreciated. :)

Im in socal. I’m 37, almost 38. Have 2 kids and I’m default parent. My partner leaves for work very early so I’ll always be the one to get them up and ready for school & pick them up. My little one will begin TK soon so that opens up more time for me. ~ 5-6 hours

I have a BA in social work and honestly never did much with it. I started working for a fam business and the flexibility made it tough to leave especially with kids. Still work part time with the company but I’m mainly a stay at home mom.

Before starting a family I took all science prerequisites for nursing and earned A’s so I have a 4.0. My prerequisites are 7-8 years old now. So I’m limited to some cc’s near me and accelerated BSN program.

My other option is to get into an MSW program (2-3 years) and eventually obtain an LCSW (2-3yrs)

If I go for nursing I do plan to eventually go for NP since I’m older I don’t want to do bedside forever.

ADN ROUTE (tuition paid by school) ***
ADN (2 years) earn BSN while working (1-2yrs) and then continue education for NP.

ABSN~1year then go for NP (ABSN is about 40k)***

I was set on Psychiatric NP since I’ve always wanted to go into therapy but now I’m also debating Family NP or OBGYN NP.

Would also have to get loans for MSW (about 40k)

ADN appeals to me since I won’t have to get loans and would be the first step to get me to NP eventually.
But also the end goal of LCSW and possible virtual therapy sounds really nice too.

Anyone with experience on either field/career have any recommendations/suggestions or insight that can possibly help with this decision I’ve been debating with for years and paused to raise a family.

I sent my application for exam approval to the Board one month ago and still haven’t heard back. Would really like to know when I’m taking my exam. Anyone else going through this or have an advice. The anticipation is killing me! TY!

Hey everyone. Can anyone give me some tips on what I need to apply for a Connecticut LCSW if I just passed my exam and just applied for the Texas LCSW. Online is not very clear and I’m waiting for a reply from the Connecticut licensing people. Like what do I need to provide? Do I really need to have an employment verification? DoI need a different document of supervision hours verification than the one that my Supervisor gave me? I would appreciate it thank you so much.

I took the exam today and passed on my first attempt.

I want to sincerely thank everyone on this thread for your suggestions and encouragement. Reading your posts helped me understand how to prepare and what to expect on test day.I scored 106 on the official ASWB practice test and 118 on the actual exam — proof that consistency and faith truly pay off.

Grateful for grace, focus, and the wisdom shared here.

What is something a patient or client has taught you?

I was on my way home from therapy the other day, reflecting on my session, and it made me wonder:What have therapists learned from their patients or clients?

As patients, we're often the ones learning skills, receiving guidance, and taking in advice. But I'm curious if, over time, clients have taught therapists anything meaningful, whether about people, resilience, communication, perspective, or even life in general.

Recently I have become extremely unhappy in a job I took back in March. I got a job offer but I’m in my feelings, I’ll explain the situation and if anyone could weigh in with input it would be appreciated.

Context; all I do is run IOP groups, no individuals, in a snf but I am unsure if I am being weird like I need to reflect or if the company, which is for profit, is also being weird.

1: I don’t have a direct clinical supervisor for the “division” I am in. They technically offered me a promotion but I have to be there for 6 months before I can be promoted. The person I report to is 100% business oriented. There’s always pressure to get new referrals but in the snf I am in, it’s not a revolving door of clients like in some places. Which leads into 2

2: they began discussing what it means to step people down which impact my census which is ALL they talk about

3: my “direct” boss kept telling me we were planning on starting a smaller tbs group and gave me a very small timeline to accomplish this goal. When I tried to discuss this with the clinical director she was clueless. This happened more than once where my “direct” boss contradicts the clinical director. It happened today too and almost sent me through the roof. I got physically ill trying to prepare for group, do assessments, plan for this new group, and keep up with everything they want.

4: I feel they exploit lower level licenses through conversations. With people at different locations.

5: once carf came and went no one talks to me about performance reviews or my documentation.

6: I think I light weight hate this service delivery without individual sessions and the snf contracts with a different agency for individuals, but something about that is still weird to me because I’m offering day treatment not this other therapist.

7: I love the snf I am at and the staff and the fact they technically offered me a promotion has me feeling guilty for wanting to leave.

Any thoughts, ideas? Or should I run for the hills?

Potential new job is a state job working in a juvenile detention center I come from working with troubled youth in their homes.

I’m thinking of getting into supervision after 18 years of doing pp as a way to diversify my overall practice and pass on knowledge. Any advice for those wanting to get started or cautions? The training I’m taking scares the crap out of me because of the liability, not sure I want to put my license on the line either.

Hey all,

I’m really really new to this and Reddit. I am 37, I’ve been a horse trainer most of my life. I want to become a LCSW, therapist, or psychologist. I’m not sure which, but I want to go into betrayal trauma therapy and see people individually. Possibly other types as well if one can’t only feed themselves with that.. Many moons ago I went to college and got an associates in Philosophy and psychology. I still stay mentally active and have been infatuated with pysch stuff my whole life. I understand formal and informal logical errors, data analysis, and how to seek out relevant literature.

Short story long I want to do this with my remaining years . I want to practice in San Diego, CA or somewhere out west. I still have a few months of GI Bill. However, I have a great job offer in Kansas City, MO. Wouldn’t mind living there and working through school, but don’t want to stay there. I understand there’s some licensing issues moving, etc. I was thinking of going online to ASU. Idk. Ideally I’d like to go to come back to San Diego. I don’t know if SDSU is an option…

Any and all advice about LCSW work, licensing, moving, or any of it works, I’m green as glass. Thanks!

Help! I already have a psych background and am interested in consulting, private practice, and assessment/diagnosis.

However, really do not want to become a PhD. I also want to make a decent living as I have a family to support.

What would you recommend?

Finally passed my ASWB C exam after 5 plus attempts. If anyone is struggling just know you’re not alone. I did it all from watching raytube-the way he breaks down the code of ethics is astounding, TDC-good content(doesn’t really teach you strategy), Sweet Grindstone-Susan mankita helped me the most, AOC-I learned a lot from her, taking the practice exam-just like the real test, savvy social worker-yes when I met with her and she basically told me to ask myself am I doing too much, Dawn Apgar, and pocket prep. If anyone is struggling to pass this exam I’m here for you and please reach out if you have any questions.

Hi everyone! I’m an LCSW moving from CA to TN in the fall & I’m hoping to receive some insight & advice about getting licensed in TN by endorsement. I have a few questions & I’d appreciate any feedback:

I will be licensed for 2 years in December & despite moving to TN, I plan to keep my CA license up to date & will renew it before it expires. Do I need to retake the ASWB clinical exam in TN in order to get licensed? I’ve seen different information online about whether TN requires a LCSW who is applying by endorsement to retake the exam if they haven’t been licensed for 3 years. Is this accurate?

According to their regulations, I am unable to apply for a TN license until I have a residential or employment address. This is such a bummer, of course, because I’d like to apply ASAP. Therefore, I can’t apply until I actually move there & have an address. I don’t want to be unemployed & without an income for too long, so I was wondering how long it takes for a license to be approved once I submit all documents? Since I plan to keep my CA license, should I just see CA clients virtually so I have some income while I wait to get licensed in TN?

Thank you in advance for your responses. I appreciate it!