A few free options for getting those mandatory CE credits in Pennsylvania

By Karen Carnabucci, LCSW, TEP

I’m always on the lookout for free continuing education courses. For me and for you. It’s a selfish thing – after you save money by taking these free courses, you have extra money in your wallet to take classes with me. (Insert smiley face emoji!)

Since it’s CE gathering season for social workers, licensed counselors, marriage and family therapists and others in my home state of Pennsylvania, I’m sharing my findings with you.

That said, it's my opinion that the best CE classes involve in-person teaching with a chance to interact with and query the trainer and practice new skills and receive feedback, inspiration and support in a community of learners. However, in a pinch, these online CE classes will get the job done:

Child abuse reporting

In Pennsylvania, two organizations offer free online classes to meet the mandatory child abuse requirement.

One is the School of Social Work at the University of Pittsburgh, which offers its free class through its Child Welfare Resource Center and Continuing Education Program. The online class provides three credit hours. Info and registration here. 

More free classes on child abuse reporting come from the Pennsylvania Family Support Alliance, which offers several live webinars, with several dates available. Info here.

CE businesses​

Many commercial CE businesses offer a chance to sample a  class at no charge, and you can search classes on topics of the two required classes for Pennsylvania helpers -- suicide prevention and ethics. These classes typically involve reading an article or book chapter or listening to a podcast, then answering a short multiple choice test.

Ethics and Boundary Issues is a free class offered online by CE4less.com, which focuses on ethical dilemmas, with a focus on boundary violations and crucial topics like informed consent, confidentiality, mandated reporting, and HIPAA. Details here.

Person Centered Tech offers one legal and ethical free credit on HIPAA Security Compliance in Mental Health, available at its site here.
Another business, Ce-credit.com gives you the opportunity to test drive a free CE course of your choice. I picked the one-hour "Ethical Aspects of Mental Health Care for Lesbian, Gay, Bi-, Pan-, Asexual, and Transgender People" because it’s a topic where I'd like to build more awareness, and other ethics topics are available.  Details here.

Another, Clearly Clinical, offers several free CE classes, including one one-hour class relating to ethics. Find info here.

Therapists.com, which offers a variety of services, offers free access to a  CE class. The process takes a bit longer -- your professional credentials must first be verified, then you will receive a voucher code to create an account and redeem for your class. Find info here.

Care for veterans

Check out VHA TRAIN’s learning programs that support the professional development needs of public health and health care providers, with a focus on veteran patient care.

The website’s catalog will direct you course catalog where you can search for free classes on topics of ethics as well as suicide. Multiple topics are available, and many offer CE credits. Info here.
 
You will find multiple options for a two-day Military Cultural Awareness and Suicide Prevention Training, with first program in November 2024 and other dates to follow. Info and schedule here.

Other options

Quantum Units Education offers limited number of free CE classes, although not on mandatory class topics. Check the site anyway if you need to supplement your files with an hour or two.

Optum Health Education offers a long list of online trainings with CE credits for social workers and other disciplines. From my quick viewing, most are one-hour classes. Click here for more info.
 
Find a list of free or low-cost suicide prevention training online classes here, from the state of Oregon, which may meet your needs.  

Classes with CE credits, both virtual and in-person, are frequently posted on the Capital Networking Group, a national discussion list based in the greater metropolitan DC area. Contact moderator to subscribe here.
 
As you would when considering any continuing education class, read the course description carefully to make sure that it offers the correct number of credits that you want, fit your learning interests, meets licensure requirements and dates you are available. Some require pre-registration or list other standards or deadlines so you will want to note those.

Details on requirements

Social workers, LMFTs and licensed counselors must have a total of 30 CE credits due at the end of February 2025. A good place to check the status of continuing education requirements in Pennsylvania is the Association of Social Work Boards’ list of social work regulations, which you may check here.

Psychologists in Pennsylvania have until Nov. 30, 2025 to prepare for their license renewals by collecting CE credits. See this page for more info.

About Karen

Karen Carnabucci, LCSW, TEP, is a nationally board-certified practitioner of psychodrama, sociometry and group psychotherapy and the founder and director of the Lancaster School of Psychodrama and Experiential Psychotherapies in Lancaster, Pa., which offers online and in-person classes with CE credits. You may keep updated on her schedule and subscribe to Karen's e-letter here.