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AASECT Requirements for Sex Therapist Certification

Note: The requirements page has a new look as of May 2025. The requirements have stayed the same. Any future changes to the requirements will be tracked with the requirements version number.

Requirements version: 2025.T.1

AASECT Certified Sex Therapist® Application

The American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors and Therapists (AASECT) has established that the following educational and experiential activities define the requirements for Sex Therapist Certification.

1. Membership in AASECT

The applicant will hold Early Career Professional, Professional, Retired or Emeritus/Emerita/Emeritix Membership in AASECT.

The AASECT Office will verify your membership upon receipt of your application.

A check-box in the application will ask you to confirm that you are a current AASECT member, and that you remained a current member throughout your AASECT Supervision.

2. AASECT Code of Conduct

The applicant will have read the AASECT Code of Conduct for Certified Members. By signing the certification application form, the applicant agrees to be bound by the AASECT Code of Conduct.

Be sure to read the AASECT Code of Conduct for Certified Members. By submitting your application, you agree to adhere to this Code of Conduct.

There will be a signature line in the application verifying that you have read and understood the AASECT Code of Conduct for Certified Members.

3. Academic Experience

The applicant will have earned an academic degree from an accredited college or university.

Only coursework from regionally accredited colleges or universities, nationally accredited faith-based institutions, and/or AASECT sponsored (offered by AASECT) or AASECT approved (offered by an AASECT CE provider) trainings will be accepted to fulfill this requirement for certification.

You can determine if a college or university is accredited by searching the institution’s website for “accreditation.”

Visit this link for more details on regional vs. national accreditation: www.edsmart.org/regional-vs-national-accreditation/

The applicant will have earned an advanced clinical degree that included psychotherapy training from an accredited college or university and the following clinical experience:

  1. Master’s degree plus two years of post-degree clinical experience.

    -OR-
  2. A doctoral degree plus one year of post-degree clinical experience.

Applicants from outside the United States must document equivalent academic experience.

A copy of your official academic transcripts. Digital versions are accepted and do not need to be sent directly to AASECT from your college or university.

4. Professional Sex Therapy Clinical Experience

Applicants will have accumulated at least 1-2 years of post-degree clinical experience based on the level of their graduate degree.

Applicants with a master’s degree must have two (2) years of professional experience at the time of application. Applicants with a doctoral degree must have at least one (1) year of clinical experience at the time of application.

Clinical experience will include, but is not limited to, the diagnosis and treatment of psychosexual functions (diagnoses included in the “Psychosexual Disorders” section of the DSM).

It is expected that the applicant will function as the sole or primary therapist with patients/clients. This clinical experience will have exposed the applicant to a variety of the listed psychosexual disorders and will have included therapy with patients/clients of all genders and with couples.

Upload a current resume or CV.

5. Clinical Certification & Licensure

The applicant will hold a valid state regulatory license or certificate for the jurisdiction(s) in which the applicant practices, and be able to practice psychotherapy independently in one of the following disciplines: psychology, medicine, social work, counseling, nursing, or marriage and family therapy.

Applicants from Canada, Mexico, and Israel will document how their licensure or certificate to practice in their jurisdiction meets or compares to the requirements for AASECT Certification.

A copy of your valid professional license or certificate. This can be a photo of a physical card or a screenshot of your verification page on your licensing board website. It must show an expiration date.

6. Human Sexuality Education: Core Knowledge Areas

The applicant will have completed a minimum of ninety (90) clock hours of academic coursework in sexuality education, covering general knowledge in the Core Knowledge Areas (CKAs) listed below. Of these ninety (90) clock hours of Core Knowledge, fifteen (15) hours must be earned through synchronous (in person or virtual) education. The remaining seventy-five (75) hours can be earned asynchronously. Education should be from an accredited university or college, may include some AASECT CE credits, or be a combination of both academic coursework and AASECT CE credits.

When documenting the ninety (90) hours, it is expected that the applicant will document at least three (3) clock hours per CKA (one (1) clock hour = sixty (60) minutes). The remaining hours can be spread as desired among the CKAs, with a maximum of twenty (20) hours in any one area.

All candidates must have knowledge of the following as they relate to sexual health and pleasure:

  1. Ethics and ethical behavior.
  2. Developmental sexuality from a bio-psycho-social perspective across the life course.
  3. Socio-cultural, familial factors (e.g., ethnicity, culture, religion, spirituality, socioeconomic status, family values), in relation to sexual values and behaviors.
  4. Issues related to sexual orientation and/or gender identity: heterosexuality, issues and themes impacting lesbian, gay, bisexual, pansexual, asexual people; gender identity and expression.
  5. Intimacy skills (e.g., social, emotional, sexual), intimate relationships, interpersonal relationships and family dynamics.
  6. Diversities in sexual expression and lifestyles, including, but not limited to, polyamory, swinging, BDSM and tantra.
  7. Sexual and reproductive anatomy/physiology.*
  8. Health/medical factors that may influence sexuality, including, but not limited to, illness, disability, drugs, mental health, conception, pregnancy, childbirth & pregnancy termination, contraception, fertility, HIV/AIDS, sexually transmitted infection, other infections, sexual trauma, injury and safer sex practices.*
  9. Range of sexual functioning and behavior, from optimal to problematic, including, but not limited to, common issues such as: desire discrepancy, lack of desire, difficulty achieving or maintaining arousal, sexual pain, penetration problems and difficulty with orgasm.
  10. Sexual exploitation, including sexual abuse, sexual harassment and sexual assault.
  11. Cyber sexuality and social media.*
  12. Substance use/abuse and sexuality.*
  13. Pleasure enhancement skills.
  14. Learning theory and its application.
  15. Professional communication and personal reflection skills.
  16. History of the discipline of sex research, theory, education, counseling and therapy.
  17. Principles of sexuality research and research methods.

*Please note: CKAs G,H,K,L are time sensitive and should have reasonable up to date information and training.

Coursework from accredited academic institutions will be accepted towards the Core Knowledge Area requirements at a 1 clock-hour to 1 AASECT CE credit hour calculation. For example, a 3-credit college or university course on a semester cycle is calculated at 45 clock hours.

AASECT sponsored or approved CE credit trainings will also be accepted to fulfill content required for AASECT Certification, with one (1) hour equaling one (1) AASECT CE credit hour.

All other professional trainings that offer CEs from other certifying bodies (e.g., APA, NCHEC, ACCME) are considered ‘non-AASECT CE credits.’ These CEs will apply at half value, with two (2) non-AASECT CE credits equalling one (1) AASECT CE credit hour.

Acceptance of coursework, AASECT sponsored/approved CE credits or non-AASECT sponsored/approved CE credits is at the discretion of the AASECT Certification Committee member reviewers.

More information about alternate methods of earning credits can be found here.

If you completed a comprehensive training program for sex therapists (all Core Knowledge Areas), submit the transcript, certificate of completion, and/or any other relevant documentation.

If you did not complete a comprehensive training program, submit documentation such as certificates of completion, syllabi, course outlines, etc.

7. Sex Therapy Skills Training

The applicant will have completed a minimum of sixty (60) clock hours of training how to effectively carry out (do) sex therapy with patients/clients whose diagnoses include the “Psychosexual Disorders” described in the current edition of the Diagnostic and Statistics Manual (DSM) of the American Psychiatric Association.

Of these sixty (60) hours, it is required that thirty (30) hours be completed synchronously (in person or virtually) through an academic (college or university) program in sex therapy, a comprehensive sex therapy program, or AASECT approved sex therapy training. The remaining thirty (30) hours can be earned asynchronously.

Applicants are required to document at least three (3) hours in each content area listed below, with a maximum of twenty (20) hours in any one content area A – F below.

  1. Theory and methods of sex-related psychotherapy, including several different models.
  2. Techniques of sex-related assessment and diagnosis of the “Psychosexual Disorders” described in the current edition of the DSM.
  3. Theory and methods of approach to intervention in relationship systems experiencing sex and intimacy problems. Therapists with no documented graduate or post graduate training in couples counseling must acquire sixteen (16) hours of couples counseling training as part of the sixty (60) hours of Sex Therapy Training. **
  4. Theory and method of approach to medical intervention in the evaluation and treatment of psychosexual disorders. **
  5. Principles of consultation, collaboration, and referral.
  6. Ethical decision-making and best practice.

**Please note: Content areas C and D are time sensitive and should have reasonable up to date information and training.

The difference between the requirements in Section 6 (Human Sexuality Education: Core Knowledge Areas) and this section is that the education requirements in Section 6 are directed at general knowledge about human sexuality, while the training requirements in this section are directed at specific skills in sex therapy. The two categories of requirements are sufficiently different; therefore, documentation is necessary in each.

Sex therapy training must involve the learning of specific sex therapy techniques and interventions, not just theory. The training may be achieved through attending a specific sex therapy training program, taking graduate level academic courses that are specific to sex therapy techniques or by attending AASECT workshops which outline specific sex therapy techniques and how those may be applied to working with individuals and couples. As an example: you might attend a workshop on Sensate Focus and learn the theory of this particular therapeutic technique.

An additional workshop would be required on how to present this technique, what kind of language to use, how to time and pace the specific assignments, and in which order the assignments are given. Additionally, you would learn how to deal with clients who resist doing the assignments, how to help them deal with being blocked and how to deal with couples where one wants to do the assignments and the other partner does not.

If you completed a comprehensive training program for sex therapists (all Sex Therapy Skills Training content areas), submit the transcript, certificate of completion, and/or any other relevant documentation.

If you did not complete a comprehensive training program, submit documentation such as certificates of completion, syllabi, course outlines, etc.

8. Attitudes and Values Training Experience

The applicant will have participated in a minimum of fourteen (14) clock hours of structured group experience in which the major focus is on a process-oriented exploration of the applicant's own feelings, attitudes, values and beliefs regarding human sexuality and sexual behavior (e.g., a Sexuality Attitude Reassessment [SAR]).

Applicants must submit a record of these hours as well as a 1-page therapy philosophy as part of their application.

Such training may not be personal psychotherapy or an academic experience in which the primary emphasis is on cognitive information. It is strongly recommended that this experience occur early in the applicant's training to be most beneficial.

If counting SAR hours, the applicant must have been an attendee in the SAR and not been functioning as a facilitator or co-facilitator in any capacity. The SAR requirement can be fulfilled either virtually or in-person.

The SAR must be AASECT sponsored or approved.

  • A certificate of completion or similar documentation for the 14 hours of experience.
  • A one-page comprehensive statement of the applicant’s professional philosophy and goals of sex therapy, which must include how this attitudes and values training experience affected this philosophy.

9. Supervision

The applicant will have completed a minimum of fifty (50) hours of supervision with an AASECT Certified Sex Therapist Supervisor. Of those fifty (50) hours, a minimum of twenty-five (25) must be individual (one-to-one) supervision, with twenty (20) hours being completed with a Primary Supervisor. The remaining 25 hours of supervision may be acquired in an individual or group context.

The applicant will have been in supervision at least 18 months.

Supervised clinical work is the crux of AASECT certification. It is the therapy milieu in which competency is demonstrated.

The applicant will have completed a minimum of three hundred (300) hours of clinical treatment of patients/clients who present with sexual concerns while in a supervision contract with an AASECT Supervisor.

Individuals starting supervision must hold active AASECT memberships at the time supervision contract begins and must maintain AASECT membership throughout the supervision period. This supervised experience must be started only after the applicant is enrolled in graduate school.

Supervision must occur over a minimum eighteen (18) months, with a maximum of six (6) hours allowed per month, across which a supervisee has provided 300 hours of clinical treatment.

Any hours of AASECT supervision accrued prior to signing a supervision contract with an AASECT certified supervisor will not count toward certification.

The following examples do not qualify as supervision:

  • Personal psychotherapy or counseling.
  • A process that is primarily didactic, such as a workshop or seminar, in which the primary focus is teaching rather than the raw data of the supervisee’s clinical practice.
  • Management and/or administrative meetings with an organizational director or executive.
  • Peer supervision.
  • Co-therapist supervision.
  • Supervision from a family member or significant other person.
  • Supervision from a colleague with whom one is involved in a partnership.

We acknowledge that some supervision may include some didactic training. We continue to support that concept. However, if you have the need, you can complete a maximum of five (5) additional hours of supervision to meet the requirements in Section 7. Sex Therapy Skills Training. Please note that these five (5) hours cannot be double counted toward the minimum of fifty (50) hours of supervision required in this section.

  • Disaggregated hours of clinical treatment provided while in supervision with an AASECT certified supervisor entered in a table supplied in the application:
    • Position title, start and end date, setting, and total hours.
    • List of presenting issues and psychosexual disorders.
    • Number of cases of sex therapy with the following: couples, adult males, adult females, children, families, and gender diverse persons.
  • Supervisor Endorsement Form and Letter of Recommendation from the primary supervisor.
  • Supervisor Endorsement Form and Letter of Recommendation (when applicable) from any additional supervisors.
  • First Professional Colleague Endorsement Form and Letter of Recommendation from a professional colleague.
  • Second Professional Colleague Endorsement Form and Letter of Recommendation from a professional colleague.

These letters should comment on the applicant’s professional responsibilities, professional ethics, and overall ability as a sex therapist.

Group supervision should contain no more than four (4) supervisees per individual supervisor and, when possible, should be extended beyond one (1) hour. If two (2) supervisors meet together to do group supervision, they may have five (5) to eight (8) supervisees in the group.

Group supervision must provide the equivalent of thirty (30) minutes per individual in the group. Therefore, a group with two (2) supervisees can be no shorter than one (1) hour, a group with three (3) supervisees can be no shorter than ninety (90) minutes, and so forth.

An applicant with a minimum of ten (10) years of post-degree clinical experience providing sex therapy for an average of twenty (20) hours per week (including workshops with couples) will require twenty-five (25) hours of supervision. Fifty percent (50%) of that supervision must be individual supervision, and the eighteen (18) month minimum length of supervision still applies. An endorsement of clinical skill history by an AASECT Certified Sex Therapist will be required.

The applicant will need to document the work they have done with specific DSM / ICD-10 Diagnoses. This also includes writing a summary of their work to date that includes:

  • A statement on the theoretical orientation on the sex therapy the applicant has been practicing.
  • The types of couples therapy the applicant has been trained in.
  • The location of the therapy the applicant has provided (such as in person, in clinic, telehealth, etc.).
  • The types of client cases treated (including sex therapy specific cases).
  • Teaching or lecturing experience (if any).
  • Training received that allows the applicant to provide these services (such as sex therapy programs, CE trainings, university courses, etc.).
  • Membership in other professional organizations.
  • Other types of cases the applicant has worked that full under the sex therapy categories of:
    • Survivors of sexual trauma;
    • Out of Control Sexual Behaviors;
    • Issues in the LGBTQ Community.

The Supervision Endorsement Letter must state the supervisor’s knowledge of the ten (10) years of experience.


Note:

Applicants will be held to the requirements in effect at the time they enter into a supervision contract. They may also choose to abide by the most recent requirements.

Application Fee:

$300 USD. Instructions for payment of the application fee will be emailed to the applicant upon the AASECT Office’s receipt of the application.

All application documentation will become the property of AASECT.

It is recommended that you keep a copy of the complete application for your records

Approval Process:

Upon receipt of a complete application package, AASECT will forward the application to the Sex Therapist Certification Committee for review. If the reviewers have questions or need additional information, the applicant will be contacted. Applicants may be asked to re-submit application material for clarity. When all criteria are met and approved by the Committee, the applicant will receive notification of the approval.

Upon approval from the Sex Therapist Certification Committee, the successful applicant will receive a certificate in recognition of having met AASECT requirements for certification in the area of Sex Therapy. Certification must be renewed every three (3) years. A new certificate will be sent when renewal criteria are met. (Click here for Certification Renewal Criteria)

Each AASECT Certified Sex Therapist will be listed in the AASECT Membership Directory and will be eligible to receive referrals from the AASECT website

Membership in AASECT must be maintained on an annual basis to retain the AASECT Certification status. If membership in AASECT lapses, certification will also lapse. (Click here to find the policy for reinstatement after certification lapse.)

Alternative Method of Acquiring Hours for the Core Knowledge Areas:

AASECT will consider accepting any of the following alternative mechanisms for meeting some of the ninety (90) hours of Core Knowledge.

  1. Publication of a sexuality related book. The book must meet AASECT criteria as determined by the Certification Steering Committee. Each book = up to ten (10) AASECT CE Credits, depending on the subject, content, and length of the book, as determined by the Certification Steering Committee. If there is more than one book, each book has to be about a completely different sexual related topic.
  2. Publication of a paper in a professional journal or a chapter in a text book. The content must be about some aspect of human sexuality, and the journal or book must meet AASECT criteria as determined by the Certification Steering Committee. Each article or chapter = up to five (5) AASECT CE Credits. If there is more than one paper or chapter, each of them has to be about a completely different aspect of the sexual related topic.
  3. Editing of collected works, books, or journals about sexuality related issues. The Certification Steering Committee will determine if the edited work meets AASECT criteria. Each edited work = up to ten (10) AASECT CE Credits. If there is more than one edited work, each work has to be about a completely different sexual related topic.
  4. Master’s thesis about some aspect of human sexuality. Up to ten (10) AASECT CE Credits.
  5. Doctoral dissertation about some aspect of human sexuality. Up to fifteen (15) AASECT CE Credits.
  6. Designing and conducting a sexuality related training or sexuality enrichment program for AASECT members (sponsored or approved by AASECT). Up to a maximum of fifteen (15) hours of presentation. One (1) hour = one (1) AASECT CE Credit.
  7. Designing and conducting a sexuality related training or sexuality enrichment program for a non-AASECT setting, or one not sponsored by AASECT. The Certification Steering Committee will determine whether the teaching experience meets AASECT criteria. Up to a maximum of ten (10) CE Credits of presentation.
  8. Specified AASECT Committee Service - up to five (5) AASECT CE Credits. The Board recognizes and rewards AASECT’s countless volunteers for their work, without which AASECT could not serve its members at the current standard of quality. To these ends, Committee Chairs for Certification, Communication, Treasurer, PESC, PRMA, Outreach, Personnel, Bylaws, Ethics, Nominating, VP of Membership and Strategic Plan, may award up to 5 credits total every two years for leadership, service, or organizational support on an AASECT-approved/sponsored committee, task force, national conference, open house, etc.