(a) An applicant seeking licensure as an audiologist shall possess a doctorate in audiology earned from an educational institution approved by the board. The board may, in its discretion, accept qualifications it deems to be equivalent to a doctoral degree in audiology. The board shall not, however, accept as equivalent qualifications graduation from a master’s program that the applicant was enrolled in on or after January 1, 2008.
(b) In addition to meeting the qualifications specified in subdivision (a), an applicant seeking licensure as an audiologist shall do all of the following:
(1) Submit evidence of the satisfactory completion of supervised clinical practice with individuals representative of a wide spectrum of ages and audiological disorders. The board shall establish by regulation the required number of clock hours of supervised clinical practice necessary for the applicant. The clinical practice shall be under the direction of an educational institution approved by the board.
(2) Submit evidence of no less than 12 months of satisfactorily completed supervised professional full-time experience or its part-time equivalent obtained under the supervision of a licensed audiologist or an audiologist having qualifications deemed equivalent by the board. This experience shall be completed under the direction of a board-approved audiology doctoral program. The required professional experience shall follow completion of the didactic and clinical rotation requirements of the audiology doctoral program.
(3) Pass an examination or examinations approved by the board. The board shall determine the subject matter and scope of the examination or examinations and may waive an examination upon evidence that the applicant has successfully completed an examination approved by the board. Written examinations may be supplemented by oral examinations as the board shall determine. An applicant who fails an examination may be reexamined at a subsequent examination upon payment of the reexamination fee required by this chapter.
(c) This section shall apply to applicants who graduate from an approved educational institution on and after January 1, 2008.
(Added by Stats. 2009, Ch. 307, Sec. 10. (SB 821) Effective January 1, 2010.)