Integrating Gatekeeping Practices into Core Competencies in MFT Training: Development of the Core Competency-Based Assessment Measure

Gatekeeping is an important topic in human-service professions. Faculty members in couple and family therapy programs are responsible for regulating student acceptance into marriage and family therapy (MFT) training, and student graduation from these training programs; thus, regulating entry into the profession. Core competencies in MFT were developed to describe the competencies of MFTs (Nelson et al., Journal of Marital and Family Therapy 33(4):417–438, 2007). The core competencies detail skills that MFTs must master within about 2 years post-master’s degree. We propose that core competencies are useful ways to assess student progress, and therefore, useful gatekeeping tools. In this paper, we present a student assessment measure called the Core Competency Based Student Assessment, which may be useful to faculty members as they take on a gatekeeping role.