If you’re looking for a career that is both challenging and rewarding, becoming a Registered Behavior Technician may be the perfect option for you! RBTs play a crucial role in providing ABA Therapy to children and adults who are living with autism or other developmental disabilities.
In addition to the rewarding feeling you get from helping children with autism or other disabilities, becoming an RBT will help boost your chances of finding a job in the growing field of ABA Therapy.
This blog post will help you navigate the process. But first, let’s look at what the requirements are to becoming an RBT.
Requirements:
- Must be 18 years old
- An education level of a high school diploma or higher
- A clean background check
- 40-hour training (see below)
- Competency assessment (see below)
If you meet these requirements, you are well on your way to becoming an official RBT on the BACB’s registry (https://www.bacb.com/services/o.php?page=101135).
Now that you know what it takes to become an RBT from a high level. Let’s take a deeper look at what the 40-hour training looks like and what will be included in the competency assessment.
What is the “40-Hour Training”?
If you’ve been doing any research before this on how to become an RBT you have no doubt come across references to the 40-Hour Training requirement. This training can be completed online through websites like: https://www.onlinerbttraining.com or https://www.autismpartnershipfoundation.org/product/rbt/
What Will You Learn?
- Evidence-based behavior intervention techniques and strategies for individuals. These strategies include Data Measurement, Assessment, Skill Acquisition, Behavior Reduction, Documentation and Reporting, Professional Conduct and Scope of Practice.
- The training will give you all of the information you will need relating to subtasks in the RBT Task List
- All of the relevant ethical requirements
How Long Do I Have to Complete Training?
The RBT training will take you at least 40 hours, however, you can complete the 40 hours at your own pace as long as the training is completed within 180 days (6 months).
What is the “Competency Assessment” Like?
The Competency Assessment will be conducted by a BCBA (Board Certified Behavior Analyst). The BCBA will be able to provide you with real time feedback as they evaluate what you’ve learned from your online training. One thing to keep in mind is that the BCBA must also have completed an 8-hour training in order to offer the competency assessment. The assessment may be conducted over the course of one or more sessions in person or through live video, as well as recorded video
The assessment can be done by the BCBA in the following three ways:
- With a client: the BCBA can observe you performing the task with an actual client.
- Role-play: the BCBA assesses you performing a task in a scenario that could potentially occur with a client, but in this case, you would have someone else pretending to be the actual client.
- Interview: the BCBA can conduct a live interview in person or over the internet. The BCBA would ask the applicant to describe or discuss certain concepts and be able to give examples to show that they can apply what they have learned over the course of their training
The final portion of your Competency Assessment will be the documentation that will be completed by the BCBA who conducted the assessment for you. Once the proper documentation has been completed, you can officially submit your Initial Competency Assessment along with your certification application to the BACB. Please note, the BACB will not accept any Non-BACB forms.
Exam
Once you have completed and submitted all of the proper documentation you will need to schedule your official RBT exam through the BACB’s partnership with Pearson (https://home.pearsonvue.com/bacb). Once this is scheduled you will receive an e-mail from the BACB with information regarding your exam. Try our RBT Mock Exam to help prepare you for the exam, Since COVID these exams have taken place online with very specific guidelines. If you pass the exam the BACB will send you an e-mail with your official RBT certification!
Bonus
If you’re still nervous or have any hesitations about completing assessment portion of the certification process, you’re in luck. The BACB has the questions that the BCBA will be testing you on posted on their website (https://www.bacb.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/RBT_Competency_Assessment_Initial-210412.pdf). By using this link you’ll be able to get familiar with what you’ll be tested on so you can have the confidence to pass with flying colors and be well on your way to a new and promising career!>/p>
Related Stories
