One of my favorite things about becoming a mental health CEU provider is that you can get started relatively quickly using the knowledge, business structure and connections you already have. Providing mental health CEUs will help you get out of the therapy chair while giving back to the profession you love!
5 Steps to Becoming a CEU Provider
You don’t need to work for a giant educational corporation to teach CEUs- you can do it in your own therapy business! Becoming an approved mental health CEU provider can be a bit complex, but don’t let that deter you. The steps are doable, and teaching CEUs is rewarding and fun.
If you take the process one step at a time, stay motivated and stick with it- you CAN teach CEUs!
Stage 1: Plan
I start out my Therapist Educators Academy students by choosing which CEU-approval organization they want to apply to BEFORE they start planning their courses. This is because there are so many different organizations based on licensure and location, and most have very strict guidelines about what can and can not qualify for CEUs. I would hate to have you build out your entire beautiful, creative course only to find out that your topic is not eligible.
For instance, as a social worker I am NOT able to provide courses about business or professional development, and courses about self-care (my favorite topic!) are iffy.
You’ll want to decide on the organization, outline your course and have all of your documents ready before you apply, and definitely before you start building your course.
Stage 2: Build
Once you have your approval, start building out your teaching points and thinking about your setting and audience. As your CEU course date gets closer, you’ll want to build out your slides and handouts. And remember to practice!
Stage 3: Fill
When delivering CEUs on your own as opposed to for an established mental health CEU provider, you will need to market your training so the people who need it, know about it! Your existing therapist networks are a great place to start and there are plenty of other marketing tactics you can try as well.
Stage 4: Deliver
You’ve planned it, gotten approval, filled and built your CEU course, and now it’s time to deliver your amazing content! Mental health CEUs can be delivered in person or online, live or on-demand. After the course is delivered, you’ll need to complete any follow-up steps like course evaluations, post-tests and certificates.
Stage 5: Repeat!
This is the easy part! Most mental health CEU courses are approved for 1-2 years, and you can present the course as many times as you like.
You may want to offer it in a different setting, or offer the course an as asynchronous online training for a passive income stream!
When you hit a bump in the road to becoming a CEU provider for mental health:
There are times when your process of becoming a mental health CEU course provider doesn’t turn out the way you thought.
Some examples of potential hiccups include:
- Your state doesn’t approve mental health CEUs
- Your professional organization doesn’t approve mental health CEUs (I’m looking at you, AAMFT!)
- Your topic gets denied for the type of CEUs you want to offer (been there!)
That’s OK! Pivot, but don’t give up.
Make this the year you become a CEU provider for mental health, and start growing your income and impact beyond the therapy chair.
Need some additional help? I got you!
Start by grabbing my free
CEU Course Planning Checklist HERE.