BECOME A CERTIFIED ACADEMIC THERAPIST

ASDEC offers the only nationally certified Academic Therapy training program in the Washington, DC area. Our certified teachers and therapists work with children and adults with learning differences, assisting them with reading, writing, spelling, study skills, and executive function skills.

 

	REQUIREMENTS
	Degree		Bachelor’s required, Master’s Recommended
	Courses		200 hours (four courses)
	Practicum		500 hours
	Direct observations		20
	CEUs		30 hours/3 years

 
Therapy Level Certification
Academic Therapists complete 200 hours of graduate-level coursework and receive 500 hours of supervised teaching. Those seeking national recognition as Certified Academic Language Therapists (CALT) complete a total of 700 hours of supervised teaching. The exam provides a measure of an individual’s knowledge of and skills in Multisensory Structured Language Education (MSLE) and verifies that the individual has achieved the highest level of competency in the field of dyslexia education. Full certification takes a minimum of two years to complete.

Qualifications:
Applicants must hold a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution , Master's degree is recommended.

Required Courses:

Neuro-psychology of Learning Differences and Disorders
Fall Semester Saturdays: 45.5 hours

Language 1: Sounds in Syllables Multisensory Structured Language Education
Summer Session – two-week intensive course – 60 hours

Language 2: Advanced Mutlisensory Structured Language Education
Summer Session – two-week intensive course – 50 hours

Study Skills
Winter session – Saturdays – 45.5 hours

Participants may earn 3 graduate credits for each of these courses from Catholic University of America through the Fund for Education for an additional fee.

Practicum Requirements:
Participants must teach one pro-bono practicum student for a minimum of 60 hours. This may be met through participation in the 4-week Summer Program. Interns not participating in the Summer Practicum must complete 80 hours of pro bono supervised teaching hours.

Supervised Teaching Meetings:
20 Monthly meetings (three times per month for 60 – 90 minutes)