Friday, February 18, 2011

Continuing Education for MFTs - Using Technology to Increase Effeciency

You endured 6 plus years getting through your bachelor's degree and master's degree. You then tackled the task of clocking all of your supervised hours of clinical treatment. You studied vigorously and passed the oral and written exams. You are now a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. You conquered the mountain! That's it, right? Not really. Each state board expects a certain number of continuing education credits to be earned during each renewal period. So now you are probably asking yourself if this means experiencing the college scene all over again. Fortunately, no it does not.

With time comes change and adaptation. This is true with the attainment of continuing education credit. The internet has made attaining CE units simple, quick and convenient. Currently there is still a mix in most states of courses allowed to be taken online and courses that need to be attended in person. The internet is a powerful tool. A tool that will continue to be growing source for those seeking continuing education.

The current trend is to travel less and get more done online. This is seen with the various ads for "GoToMeeting", or "GoToMyPC", etc. Online tools are creating solutions that meet people's changing needs. The expectation to travel to another city every time a meeting is required or more training is needed is being diminished. Not abolished yet, but diminished significantly.

So, now lies ahead the task of selecting the right online CE provider. Online providers will differ in many crucial areas, such as, their state and national approvals, their overall format, their pricing structure, and their level of customer service. In order to select the right choice have these areas in mind and ask the following questions of each provider.

Is the provider approved in my state for MFTs?

Can I find what I am looking for? Or, do I struggle with the layout of their website?
What is their fee structure? Do they offer discounts for greater number of CE credits needed?
What venues do they have to receive customer support? (phone, email, etc)

You may want to have a sheet of paper with these questions already written down for each provider you decide to research. This will allow you to have similar areas of information to compare the various providers. This will require more effort and time on your part in the beginning, but can save you time and money in the long run. Not all providers are on the same level. This analysis will benefit you for years to come. Your license renewal will come up over and over again. You will need a source for earning your CE beyond today.

Aspira Continuing Education is a leader in providing MFT CEUs. Aspira is approved to offer courses in most states for MFT Continuing Education. Aspira offers many course options in an user-friendly format. Visit Aspira at http://www.aspirace.com.

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