The Licensure Professor · thelicensureprofessor.comNot affiliated with NBCC. Confirm exam details in the current NBCC handbook.

The Licensure Professor · Free study plan

Sixteen weeks to the NCE.

One domain at a time, starting with assessment, where candidates most often score lowest, then the two heaviest domains. Two floating weeks so life can happen, and two full-length simulations. Each week pairs the lessons with the free flashcards and practice sets on the site.

Weekly shapeTwo content sessions. One retrieval session (flashcards, blank-page recall). One practice session with review of every miss. Ten minutes of due cards daily.

HoursAbout 20 minutes a day, most days, plus one longer practice block on the weekend. Short and daily beats long and occasional; protect a slot you can defend.

RuleLog what you did, not what you intended. If you miss the same session three weeks running, move it. The schedule serves you.

Week	Focus	On the site
01	Baseline, then assessmentTake the free 25-item baseline before you study and note your two weakest domains. Read the current NBCC candidate handbook. Then start Intake, Assessment and Diagnosis: reliability and validity, norms, standard scores and the normal curve.	Practice: the 25-item baseline. Flashcards: Assessment, first pass.
02	Assessment II: intake and instrumentsThe biopsychosocial intake and the mental status exam, suicide risk and substance use screening, and the major intelligence, achievement and personality tests.	Flashcards: Assessment, due. Practice: 25 items, Assessment, Study mode.
03	Assessment III: diagnosis and statisticsHow the DSM-5-TR is built, descriptive and inferential statistics, research designs, and which statistical test fits which question. Enough to answer the items, no more.	Flashcards: Assessment, due. Practice: 50 items, Assessment, Exam mode.
04	Skills I: the relationship and the classic theoriesMicroskills and the stages of the helping relationship, then psychodynamic (Freud, Adler, Jung), person-centered, existential and Gestalt. Build a two-column table: term on the left, theorist on the right.	Flashcards: Skills, first pass. Practice: 25 items, Skills, Study mode.
05	Skills II: cognitive and behavioralBeck, Ellis and Meichenbaum, learning theories and behavioral techniques, reality therapy, solution-focused, narrative and motivational interviewing. Add to the table.	Flashcards: Skills, due. Practice: 25 items, Skills.
06	Skills III: families, crisis and groupsFamily systems, crisis and suicide intervention, group stages, types of groups, Yalom's therapeutic factors and leadership.	Flashcards: Skills, due. Practice: 50 items, Skills, Exam mode.
07	Professional Practice and EthicsRead the ACA Code of Ethics start to finish and learn its structure. Confidentiality and its limits, informed consent, boundaries, records and technology, testing ethics, consultation and the decision-making models.	Flashcards: Ethics, first pass. Practice: 50 items, Ethics, Exam mode.
08	Floating weekUse it if you fell behind. If you are on schedule, clear every due flashcard and take a 50-item mixed set across the three domains so far.	Flashcards: all domains, due. Practice: 50 items, mixed, Exam mode.
09	Clinical Focus I: the disordersDepressive and bipolar, anxiety, obsessive-compulsive and trauma-related, substance use, psychotic, personality and neurodevelopmental disorders. Durations and rule-outs on cards.	Flashcards: Clinical focus, first pass. Practice: 25 items, Clinical focus, Study mode.
10	Clinical Focus II: development and life eventsFreud and Erikson, Piaget and Vygotsky, Kohlberg and Gilligan, attachment; children and adolescents, grief and family transitions, and specific populations. Build the one-page stage table.	Flashcards: Clinical focus, due. Practice: 25 items, Clinical focus.
11	Clinical Focus III: adulthood and careerAdult development and aging, trait-factor and Holland, Super, Gottfredson, Roe and Ginzberg, Krumboltz, and career assessment.	Flashcards: Clinical focus, due. Practice: 50 items, Clinical focus, Exam mode.
12	Treatment Planning, Core Attributes, then Form AMeasurable objectives, levels of care, revising, referring and ending treatment; empathy, genuineness, multicultural competence and identity development. End the week with Form A of the full-length simulation.	Practice: Full-length simulation, Form A, reviewed over the next two days.
13	Weak domainsGo back to the two weakest domains from Form A and the baseline. Lessons again for anything under 70 percent, practice items for the rest. Rebuild your tables from memory on a blank page.	Practice: Confidently wrong set, Smart set, and 50 items from your weakest domains, Exam mode.
14	Floating weekSecond floating week. Catch up if you need to. If you are on schedule, a 100-item mixed sitting, reviewed over the next two days.	Flashcards: all domains, due. Practice: two 50-item mixed sets back to back, Exam mode.
15	Full-length simulation, Form BEarly in the week, take Form B under real conditions: same start time as your appointment, phone off, the scheduled break. Review every miss over the next two days, not the same day.	Practice: Full-length simulation, Form B. Flashcards: due only.
16	TaperNo new content. Light flashcard review of due cards. One 25-item mixed set midweek. Two full nights of sleep before the exam. Arrive early.	Flashcards: due only. Practice: one 25-item set, Exam mode.

Week

Focus

On the site

Baseline, then assessmentTake the free 25-item baseline before you study and note your two weakest domains. Read the current NBCC candidate handbook. Then start Intake, Assessment and Diagnosis: reliability and validity, norms, standard scores and the normal curve.

Practice: the 25-item baseline. Flashcards: Assessment, first pass.

Assessment II: intake and instrumentsThe biopsychosocial intake and the mental status exam, suicide risk and substance use screening, and the major intelligence, achievement and personality tests.

Flashcards: Assessment, due. Practice: 25 items, Assessment, Study mode.

Assessment III: diagnosis and statisticsHow the DSM-5-TR is built, descriptive and inferential statistics, research designs, and which statistical test fits which question. Enough to answer the items, no more.

Flashcards: Assessment, due. Practice: 50 items, Assessment, Exam mode.

Skills I: the relationship and the classic theoriesMicroskills and the stages of the helping relationship, then psychodynamic (Freud, Adler, Jung), person-centered, existential and Gestalt. Build a two-column table: term on the left, theorist on the right.

Flashcards: Skills, first pass. Practice: 25 items, Skills, Study mode.

Skills II: cognitive and behavioralBeck, Ellis and Meichenbaum, learning theories and behavioral techniques, reality therapy, solution-focused, narrative and motivational interviewing. Add to the table.

Flashcards: Skills, due. Practice: 25 items, Skills.

Skills III: families, crisis and groupsFamily systems, crisis and suicide intervention, group stages, types of groups, Yalom's therapeutic factors and leadership.

Flashcards: Skills, due. Practice: 50 items, Skills, Exam mode.

Professional Practice and EthicsRead the ACA Code of Ethics start to finish and learn its structure. Confidentiality and its limits, informed consent, boundaries, records and technology, testing ethics, consultation and the decision-making models.

Flashcards: Ethics, first pass. Practice: 50 items, Ethics, Exam mode.

Floating weekUse it if you fell behind. If you are on schedule, clear every due flashcard and take a 50-item mixed set across the three domains so far.

Flashcards: all domains, due. Practice: 50 items, mixed, Exam mode.

Clinical Focus I: the disordersDepressive and bipolar, anxiety, obsessive-compulsive and trauma-related, substance use, psychotic, personality and neurodevelopmental disorders. Durations and rule-outs on cards.

Flashcards: Clinical focus, first pass. Practice: 25 items, Clinical focus, Study mode.

Clinical Focus II: development and life eventsFreud and Erikson, Piaget and Vygotsky, Kohlberg and Gilligan, attachment; children and adolescents, grief and family transitions, and specific populations. Build the one-page stage table.

Flashcards: Clinical focus, due. Practice: 25 items, Clinical focus.

Clinical Focus III: adulthood and careerAdult development and aging, trait-factor and Holland, Super, Gottfredson, Roe and Ginzberg, Krumboltz, and career assessment.

Flashcards: Clinical focus, due. Practice: 50 items, Clinical focus, Exam mode.

Treatment Planning, Core Attributes, then Form AMeasurable objectives, levels of care, revising, referring and ending treatment; empathy, genuineness, multicultural competence and identity development. End the week with Form A of the full-length simulation.

Practice: Full-length simulation, Form A, reviewed over the next two days.

Weak domainsGo back to the two weakest domains from Form A and the baseline. Lessons again for anything under 70 percent, practice items for the rest. Rebuild your tables from memory on a blank page.

Practice: Confidently wrong set, Smart set, and 50 items from your weakest domains, Exam mode.

Floating weekSecond floating week. Catch up if you need to. If you are on schedule, a 100-item mixed sitting, reviewed over the next two days.

Flashcards: all domains, due. Practice: two 50-item mixed sets back to back, Exam mode.

Full-length simulation, Form BEarly in the week, take Form B under real conditions: same start time as your appointment, phone off, the scheduled break. Review every miss over the next two days, not the same day.

Practice: Full-length simulation, Form B. Flashcards: due only.

TaperNo new content. Light flashcard review of due cards. One 25-item mixed set midweek. Two full nights of sleep before the exam. Arrive early.

Flashcards: due only. Practice: one 25-item set, Exam mode.

How much each domain is worthCounseling Skills and Interventions 30 percent, Areas of Clinical Focus 29, Professional Practice and Ethics 12, Intake, Assessment and Diagnosis 12, Treatment Planning 9, Core Counseling Attributes 8. Study in proportion. NBCC publishes the exact item counts in the current handbook.

Your toolsFlashcards, printable card sheets and practice tests are free with a member account at thelicensureprofessor.com/join. Missed cards come back on a schedule; practice results are scored by area.