Clinical Supervision Requirements in Arkansas

Licensing Board Overview

Arkansas regulates mental health professions through two primary boards, both attached to the Arkansas Department of Health. Social workers are governed by the Arkansas Social Work Licensing Board. Counselors and marriage and family therapists are governed by the Arkansas Board of Examiners in Counseling, which calls itself the Board of Examiners in Counseling and Marriage & Family Therapy on its website.

LCSW: Licensed Certified Social Worker (Arkansas)

In Arkansas, LCSW stands for Licensed Certified Social Worker. Supervision is governed by the Social Work Licensing Board's rules at 17 CAR § 100-106. Candidates hold a Licensed Master Social Worker (LMSW) credential while accruing supervised experience.

Supervised Experience Requirements

• Total supervised experience: 4,000 hours in a supervised master's-level social work position under an LCSW. Board guidance calls for a clinical position
• Timeframe: At least 24 months
• Supervision hours: At least 100 hours of direct supervision, with no more than 2 hours credited in any one-week period. The board's plan form and guidelines call for 1 hour of supervision each week
• Group supervision: No more than 4 supervisees in a group, and group time may be no more than half of total supervision
• Supervision plan: The supervisee submits a plan co-signed by the LCSW within 60 days of starting supervision. If the plan arrives later, hours count only from 60 days before the board received it
• Exam: ASWB Clinical Examination

Supervisor Qualifications

• Must hold an active Arkansas LCSW license, or be a social worker the board finds equivalent
• Must have been fully licensed for at least 3 years (the plan form says as an LCSW)
• A supervision course is not currently required, though the board strongly suggests one

LPC: Licensed Professional Counselor (Arkansas)

Arkansas's LPC supervision rules are in the Board of Examiners in Counseling Rules, 17 CAR §§ 75-401 to 75-404, revised effective July 9, 2026. Candidates hold a Licensed Associate Counselor (LAC) credential while accruing hours.

Supervised Experience Requirements

• Total supervised experience: 3,000 client contact hours and 175 hours of supervision
• Direct client contact: At least 2,000 hours must be direct client contact. Up to 1,000 indirect hours may count, but only after the first 500 direct hours
• Supervision ratio: 1 hour of supervision per 10 client contact hours for the first 500 direct hours (Level 1), then 1 per 20 for the remaining 2,500 (Level 2)
• Group supervision: A group is 3 to 6 supervisees with the contracted supervisor, and group time may be no more than half of the 175 hours. Supervision with 2 supervisees is recorded as individual
• Timeframe: No minimum duration is set in rule or statute
• Exam: NCE (National Counselor Examination) or NCMHCE (National Clinical Mental Health Counseling Examination), plus the Arkansas Jurisprudence Exam

Supervisor Qualifications

• Must hold an active Arkansas LPC license
• Must have been fully licensed in Arkansas for 3 years
• Must hold board-approved supervisor status (often called "LPC-S," though the rules do not use that title)
• Must complete a three-semester-hour post-master's graduate course in clinical supervision that included 18 hours of supervised experience in supervision, and pass the jurisprudence exam and an oral interview
• May hold no more than 12 supervision agreements at any one time

LMFT: Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (Arkansas)

Arkansas's LMFT supervision rules are in the Board of Examiners in Counseling Rules, 17 CAR §§ 75-401 to 75-404. Candidates hold a Licensed Associate Marriage and Family Therapist (LAMFT) credential while accruing hours.

Supervised Experience Requirements

• Total supervised experience: 3,000 client contact hours and 175 hours of supervision
• Direct client contact: At least 2,000 hours must be direct client contact, including at least 1,000 hours in family, relational, or group therapy. Up to 1,000 indirect hours may count, but only after the first 500 direct hours
• Supervision ratio: 1:10 for the first 500 direct hours, then 1:20, with the same group rules as LPC
• Timeframe: No minimum duration is set in rule or statute
• Exam: AMFTRB National Examination, plus the Arkansas Jurisprudence Exam

Supervisor Qualifications

• Must hold an active Arkansas LMFT license
• Must have been fully licensed in Arkansas for 3 years
• Must hold board-approved supervisor status (sometimes called "LMFT-S")
• Must complete a three-semester-hour post-master's graduate course in clinical supervision that included 18 hours of supervised experience in supervision, and pass the jurisprudence exam and an oral interview
• May hold no more than 12 supervision agreements at any one time

Arkansas-Specific Details

Board-Approved Supervisor Status

Arkansas requires counselors and MFTs to obtain board-approved supervisor status before they can provide clinical supervision. This requires an application process, a graduate supervision course, the jurisprudence exam, and an oral interview. Supervisors then complete 6 CE hours in supervision each renewal period. Social work has no separate supervisor approval.

Associate Licenses

Arkansas utilizes a tiered licensure system. Candidates must first obtain the associate level license (LMSW, LAC, LAMFT) before they can begin accruing hours toward the independent clinical level license. Counseling and MFT associates also need a board-approved supervision agreement before seeing any client. Hours count only from the date the board approves it.

Six-Month Reports (Counseling and MFT)

LACs and LAMFTs file a supervision report every six months, counted from the license issue date, even if no hours were earned. There is a 30-day grace period. The rule leaves later reports to the board's discretion, but in 2026 the board refused reports filed after the grace period, and hours from those periods were lost.

Compacts

Arkansas began issuing Counseling Compact privileges on July 30, 2026. Only LPCs are eligible. Arkansas enacted the Social Work Licensure Compact (Act 639 of 2025), but multistate social work licenses are not yet being issued.

Virtual Supervision in Arkansas

For counseling and MFT, supervision may be "face to face or through telemedicine," and since July 9, 2026 there is no percentage cap on technology-assisted supervision. The rules require supervisors to take appropriate precautions to protect confidentiality. For social work, the rules set no limit on virtual supervision, and the board's optional supervision record form has boxes for in person and telehealth.

Key Arkansas Board Contact Information

• Social Work Licensing Board: healthy.arkansas.gov
• Board of Examiners in Counseling (Counseling and Marriage & Family Therapy): healthy.arkansas.gov

How to Become a Clinical Supervisor in Arkansas

Supervisor requirements in Arkansas start with 3 years of full licensure. Counseling and MFT supervisors also need board-approved supervisor status. Always confirm current standards with the respective board.

Becoming an LCSW Supervisor

• Hold an active Arkansas LCSW license
• Be fully licensed for at least 3 years
• A supervision course is strongly suggested but not currently required
• There is no supervisor registration. The supervisee submits a Supervision Plan co-signed by the LCSW within 60 days of starting supervision

Becoming an Approved LPC or LMFT Supervisor

• Hold an active Arkansas LPC or LMFT license
• Be fully licensed in Arkansas for 3 years
• Complete a three-semester-hour post-master's graduate course in clinical supervision, including 18 hours of supervised experience in supervision
• Pass the Arkansas jurisprudence exam and an oral interview
• Apply to the Board of Examiners in Counseling for board-approved supervisor status

How Guidara Helps Arkansas Supervisors

Guidara keeps hour logs and timesheets with running totals, signed supervision notes for every supervision meeting, and timesheet approvals, all stored with timestamps and audit trails. That makes it easier to pull together the six-month reports and evaluations Arkansas asks for. Guidara does not fill in or submit board forms, but you can export PDF records to use when completing them.