Psychologists for Evaluations

Alta California Regional Center (ACRC) is currently recruiting licensed psychologists to provide psychological evaluations to existing clients and applicants for eligibility determination purposes. Vendored psychologists of ACRC complete evaluations with children and/or adults to consider diagnoses of intellectual disability (ID) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) as part of the ACRC eligibility process. In addition to standardized measures, evaluations include a review of records, obtaining pertinent history, and a consideration of differential diagnoses. Experience with autism spectrum disorder and/or intellectual disability evaluations is required. Below are the minimum skill requirements of a qualified applicant.

Intellectual Disability Evaluations

• Have a PhD or PsyD in psychology, and hold an active license with the California Board of Psychology (BOP)
• Have demonstrable expertise in psychological assessment. A minimum of 2 years of professional experience regularly performing psychological testing for the purposes of DSM-5 diagnostic evaluation would also be expected in order to have attained the necessary level of assessment expertise required
• Be proficient in administering and interpreting standardized intelligence tests (e.g., most recent updates of the Wechsler scales, Stanford-Binet, or Differential Abilities Scale)
• Be proficient in administering and interpreting standardized adaptive measures (e.g., most recent updates of the Adaptive Behavior Assessment System or Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales)
• Be proficient in clinical differential diagnosis and familiarity with the current edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5-TR)

Autism Evaluations

In order to receive referrals for autism spectrum disorder evaluations, vendored psychologists must possess all the qualifications listed under Intellectual Disability Evaluations above, AND:

• Have training and/or professional experience that includes exposure to individuals with autism spectrum disorder in the age group(s) from which the psychologist desires to receive ACRC referrals.
• Be proficient in administering and interpreting the current version of the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS). Attending a 2-day clinical workshop (or completing the video training package) is a necessary (required) part of establishing clinical competence for ACRC vendored psychologists, but such attendance is not a sufficient exposure to gain competence with this tool (WPS ADOS-2 Manual, p. 6). ADOS proficiency typically requires months of supervised professional experience with a licensed psychologist who regularly uses the ADOS in clinical practice. Being able to reliably administer and interpret all the ADOS modules is not required for ACRC vendored psychologists (e.g., only being proficient with Modules 3 or 4 can be acceptable).

Learn more about application materials, eligibility, and other important resources with this document.

Please email requested materials to Camelia Houston, Director of Intake and Clinical Services at chouston@altaregional.org. Questions may also be directed to Camelia Houston at (916) 978-6278.