CE FAQs
This page is intended as a quick guide to our most commonly asked questions, not a substitute for reading COMAR Title 10.36.02 – Continuing Education. If you have further questions or require clarification of COMAR Title 10.36.02, please call MPA at 410-992-4258 or the Board of Examiners of Psychologists at 410-764-4787.

If you have questions about a workshop that is not hosted by MPA, please call the Board of Examiners or the event's sponsoring organization.
Live vs. Homestudy: What's the Difference?
Not sure whether a course counts as "live" or "home study"? It comes down to one simple question: can you interact with the presenter in real time?
Home or Independent Study
If you're completing a course on your own schedule (watching a recording, listening to a podcast, or working through materials online) it's considered home or independent study (this is the official COMAR term as well). There's no live interaction with an instructor.
To earn credit for home study, you'll typically need to complete a post-test on the material and receive a certificate of completion
Good to know: You can count up to 20 hours of home study toward your CE requirement every 2 years (10 hours if you're a psychology associate). Anything beyond that won't count, so plan your mix of live and home study accordingly.
Browse MPA's home study courses:
Live Broadcasts
If you can ask the presenter questions and get answers in real time (just like sitting in a classroom), it counts as a live course (COMAR calls this simply a "course"). This includes attending in person or joining a live Zoom session at a scheduled time.
Live courses count toward your CE requirements as long as the presenting organization is one of the Board's approved sponsors (see COMAR 10.36.02.06). MPA is one of them, along with a handful of other national and state organizations.
Live courses also require a post-workshop evaluation form to receive credit.
Webinar vs. Webcast
These two words sound alike, but they're not the same thing, and it matters for your credit.
Webinar: live and interactive. This counts as a live course.
Webcast: one-way and often pre-recorded. This counts as home study.
Many organizations use these terms loosely or interchangeably, so don't assume. Always confirm with the event host what format you're actually signing up for before you register. Getting this wrong could mean your credits don't count the way you expected.
For the full regulatory text, see COMAR 10.36.02 – Continuing Education.
When in doubt, ask the event host to confirm.
Approved CE Sponsors
The following organizations and their approved CE sponsors are authorized sponsors of continuing education acceptable to the Board (per COMAR 10.36.02.06):
- A. American Psychological Association
- B. Association for Psychological Science
- C. American Medical Association
- D. National Association of Social Workers
- E. National Association of School Psychologists
- F. Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH) — now the Maryland Department of Health (MDH)
- G. National Institutes of Health
- H. Accredited academic institutions
Sometimes there are a few levels of sponsors. For example, MPA is approved by APA, so our workshops qualify. Or a workshop is held by an organization approved by the Board of Social Work Examiners; since that Board sits within the Maryland Department of Health, that workshop will also qualify.
See
COMAR 10.36.02.06 for the full text.
Maryland Licensure Mandated Subject Areas
Per COMAR 10.36.02.04, all licensed psychologists must include the following within their 40 CE hours every 2-year reporting period (psychology associates have similar requirements within their 20-hour total; see below):
- 3 CE hours in activities designed to enhance competence in the provision of psychological services to culturally diverse populations.
- 3 CE hours in activities whose content area is laws pertaining to the practice of psychology; ethics and professional conduct in the practice of psychology; or managing risks associated with the practice of psychology.
- 3 CE hours in activities designed to enhance competence in the provision of clinical supervision — required only if the psychologist supervised psychology associates during the reporting period.
Note: Psychology associates are also required to complete the culturally diverse populations and laws/ethics/risk management hours above, but the clinical supervision requirement applies to licensed psychologists only.
MPA hosts workshops that meet these needs throughout the year.
Check out our upcoming continuing education or home study courses.
See
COMAR 10.36.02.04 for the full text.
CEs and License renewal- Renewing Early
Each 2-year reporting period ends on March 31, and the new accrual period never begins before April 1, regardless of when you submit your renewal.
This means: if you renew your license in February, any CE credits you take in March will not count toward your new accrual period. They'll still count toward the reporting period that's ending, but the new period doesn't officially start until April 1, no matter how early you file.
Please remember: you are earning CE Credits, not CEUs.
Download this information and additional questions below: