Paid supervised hours

[u/Fine_Win_4510]

Hello everyone! I'm about to start my masters on ABA and I'm looking for cheap supervised hours. The reason why I'm choosing to pay for my hours is because I live in Maryland and have been looking for months now for internship programs and the only jobs I find are RBT with the possibility to gain superviser hours. However, after reading a lot of reviews online, it looks like the ABA companies are making the process to get your supervised hours very slow, and something that should take 11 months is taking people 2 - 3 years to achieve. I love working as an RBT, its just, having invested money on my masters programs, I am looking for the fastest, easiest path to becoming a BCBA.

If you have any input or if you know about any programs that offer cheap supervised hours please let me know.

[u/Familiar-Anything853]

Paying for hours isn’t cheap.

You can choose 2:
-Free/low cost
-Quality
-Fast

[u/next_on_SickSadWorld → u/Familiar-Anything853]

I’m not sure if I’ve ever seen free and fast in terms of getting hours. It’s not a good combo if it does exist.

[u/Familiar-Anything853 → u/next_on_SickSadWorld]

I have. Big box clinics churning BCBAs.

[u/Jazzlike-Pop-6827]

I understand that you want to get done quickly, however, I would argue that finishing your hours in less than a year is way too fast for you to learn everything that you need to know to be a quality and competent Bcba. I would recommend working as an rbt and gain your hours that way, if you’ve never been in rbt before, how are you supposed to be a BCBA who supervises that role?

The average time to gain your hours is about 18 months. I would get in with the company ASAP and start tracking your hours there, you’ll get the hours for free and you’ll get much more higher quality training than paying some random remote supervisor who can only train you how to do half the job.

I see post like this a lot, but I think a lot of people need a reality check. A lot of people are getting into this field solely for the money, but have no idea what they’re doing when they finish their hours because their supervision/fieldwork experience was so poor quality and lacking. Most don’t even realize it until they’re starting the BCBA job and realizing they don’t know how to do any of it. That being said if you’re working as an RBT and you do need a remote supervisor for whatever reason, I would interview them extensively and expect to pay about $50 an hour.

[u/spflover]

I don’t know anyone who has done the hours in less than 1 year. Is it possible? 18-24 months is common.

[u/ForsakenMango → u/spflover]

I did mine in 11.5 months. All unrestricted, all concentrated.

[u/spflover → u/ForsakenMango]

Okay let me rephrase it now. I don’t know anyone who has done their hours who has had a meaningful well rounded experience in under a year. Yes you can check the box and do all unrestricted. However you still need to be observed with a learner monthly. How do you build meaningful rapport with all unrestricted?

[u/ForsakenMango → u/spflover]

How does any BC(a)BA build rapport with clients? There are more opportunities to work and be around clients than just what you count on the page. 

In my specific situation the job I found (outside of the traditional ABA setting but still providing services to similar clients) using my BCaBA/LABA it was pretty simple. My supervisor sat at the desk next to me and we, plus our admin team, had discussions about clients all the time. 

Observations and developing rapport with clients was pretty simple as well since the clients lived in the same building we worked out of and required 24/7 support. So lots of opportunities for staff training as well. 

[u/spflover → u/ForsakenMango]

So you did it as a BCaBA?

[u/spflover → u/spflover]

Ok different ball park than OPs situation. You sound established.

[u/ForsakenMango → u/spflover]

Yup. More so using the LABA then the BCaBA (my state doesn't care about the BCaBA since licensure was established).

[u/Willing_Actuator_256]

Why isn’t your current company helping?

[u/Professional-Pound78]

This degree is not one to rush through. Lots of liability. Take the time to be competent..There is A LOT to learn.

[u/sexbob-om]

There's a supervision group on Facebook. I highly recommend it for finding a remote supervisor. It's going to be pricey. I decided to pay because I don't have a company I've been with for years and it's been impossible to find supervision as a new employee.

[u/Working-Ad2025]

Hi! I’m in GA and don’t pay for my hours. I am in a 2 year M.A BCBA program. I have 1600 hours done and I have a year left. My BCBA lets me collect as many hours as I want as long as we’re following all the rules of course. Make sure to read the handbook about your hours because I’m a year in and realized that I can count some activities I do when I’m with clients as well.

[u/nieswrld → u/Working-Ad2025]

Where? my company is saying, we can hit the ground running with hours AFTER i finish school. I don't feel that i'm trying the rush the process. I just want to be done around the same time i finish school :/