How to Become a Psychometrist Through Certification

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What is a Psychometrist?

A psychometrist is a specialist in administering and scoring psychological and neuropsychological tests. They work under the supervision of licensed psychologists, but frequently do not require any sort of license or certification themselves. They can work with patients of all ages and all types of different psychological conditions, from traumatic brain injury (TBI) to learning disabilities.

They are experts in navigating the sometimes shifty waters of delivering and interpreting standardized psychological test batteries. Dealing with patients who may have deficits that prevent distinct answers, or tests that require free-form interviews or other ambiguous answers, they use their experience and psychological training to create reports that will inform diagnosis and further treatment.

A psychometrist is often considered a highly specialized type of psychiatric technician.

Because of the subtleties of psychological testing, this is far more complex than simply asking questions and checking the results. Psychometrists have to understand the norms of the population and conduct detailed behavioral observations of the exam subject to fully inform their reports.

Psychometrists are generally qualified to handle any sort of psychological testing battery, but they may end up specializing in certain fields, such as TBI, ADHD (Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder), or ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder).

The Psychometrist Job Descriptions Revolves Around Testing and Reporting

As a sort of psychiatric specialist, the typical job description for psychometrists doesn’t tend to vary a lot from position to position. While the specific tests and working environment will vary, the duties remain pretty consistent.

The typical daily duties of a psychometrist will include:

Interviewing patients and collecting basic demographic and intake details
Administering cognitive and personality tests as directed
Scoring test results
Preparing reports on their findings

By taking the testing load off psychologists themselves, psychometrists create more efficiency in the diagnostic and treatment process.

They may also take on some other clerical tasks, such as scheduling, coding, and billing preparation, as well as purchasing, organizing, and maintaining testing materials. This means they have an appealing split between paperwork and administrative work and client-facing interactions. Psychometrists don’t typically develop long-term relationships with clients, but they do get real job satisfaction out of providing meaningful data that will help patients down the road to recovery.

The Education and Training You Need To Become a Psychometrist

The educational path to becoming a psychometrist is far from clear-cut. There are no degree programs in psychometry. There are no consistent state-level registration requirements that specify psychometrist degrees. In fact, a lot of people sort of just fall into the career at some point, not having realized it even existed before running across it.

Most job listings for psychometrist positions will specify at least a bachelor’s degree in psychology, although for senior positions and more advanced roles a master’s may be preferred. On the other hand, you’ll find psychometrists that have found their way into the field with other diverse majors behind them, from statistics to social work.

Are a Psychometrist and a Psychometrician the Same Thing?
Anytime you start talking about psychometrists, you will inevitably open up a can of confusion over the differences between them and psychometrician. In a just and reasonable world, you would imagine that two such similar words would basically describe very nearly the same job. But that’s not the world of psychology.
Psychometricians are the doctorally-qualified psychologists who create the tests and tools that psychometrists use every day. While many of them earn a PhD in Psychology or a PsyD, particularly specializing in quantitative psychology, others may have a background in math and statistics.
Like psychometrics, not every jurisdiction require licensing for psychometricians. But the work itself requires high-level familiarity with fields ranging from:
Statistics and probability
Quantitative psychology
Research design
Assessment and human norms
Evaluation and measurement methods
Psychometricians create the standard battery of tests used by psychometrists, but also a broader range of different tests with other applications, such as IQ tests, job performance evaluations, personality tests, and others.
It’s entirely possible for a psychometrist to work their way up to becoming a psychometrician eventually with the right experience and additional advanced degrees, but it’s not considered a common career path. They are different types of jobs that often attract different kinds of individuals. Be sure which one you are looking at before you start applying!

Essentially, you will want an undergraduate background that gives you a solid understanding of:

The principles of human behavior and cognitive processes
Essential math and science for healthcare professionals
Communications and social interactions

While there are a range of different degrees in health and social sciences that can deliver those basics, psychology is the clearest match and is generally the preferred background that pops up in most psychometrist job descriptions.

Picking the Best Classes To Take to Become a Psychometrist

Much of the specific skillset required to become a good psychometrist may eventually be learned on the job. But to give yourself the best foundations for psychometry skills, it’s a good idea to load up on electives in neuroscience, behavioral psychology, research fundamentals, and stats and probability in psychology.

If you have some idea about a specific type of psychometric field you want to enter, it’s also possible to build your skillset out in those areas as you are studying for your bachelor’s. Courses in development psychology, for example, will help prepare you for ADHD or ASD diagnostics work.

You may also find field work opportunities that can get you some exposure to real-world psychometric testing jobs. This is very much on a case-by-case basis and your options will vary between different schools, but some placements may give you a chance to work closely with actual psychometrists and pick their brains.

You May Need an Official License to Practice Psychometry Depending on Your State

Most states don’t require specific licensure for psychometrists. Since they work, in every state, under the close supervision of practicing and licensed psychologists, their duties don’t involve any sort of independent or clinical practice.

Some states, however, lump psychometrists in with licensed or certified psychological assistant roles. They may also allow individuals with a limited license psychologist certification or another credential on the path to becoming a fully licensed psychologist to serve in the role. Others have a specific license for psychological examiners or psychological testing technicians which covers psychometry practice specifically.

These credentials generally require that you meet requirements including:

Taking and passing a written examination
Meeting a specific level of educational achievement, including, in some cases, specific coursework
Submit letters of recommendation attesting to your expertise
Undergo a certain number of practicum hours
Complete and pass a criminal background check

There are also states where psychometrists working in schools require licensure or certification even though the state overall doesn’t have a credential for the role. In these cases, certification is typically handled by the state’s department of education rather than their psychology board. The requirements for the role may be similar, however.

And like psychologists and psychology assistants, they can come with rules requiring a certain number of continuing education hours per year in order to maintain and renew that license.

Psychometrist Certification

One kind of certification that is open to every psychometrist, however, is independent professional certification as offered by the Board of Certified Psychometrists (BCP).

Offered since 2009, the Certified Specialist in Psychometry ^SM is intended to set the gold standard for psychometry qualifications.

Qualification is established by a written examination, but in order to be eligible to sit the exam, you must first hold either a bachelor’s degree and have 3000 hours of testing, scoring, and related experience in the field, or master’s or doctoral degree in a related field and 2000 hours of experience.

The exam is 120 questions which must be completed in two and a half hours. A passing score of at least 71 percent is required.

Members in the NAP, National Association of Psychometrists, may help you find appropriate opportunities for relevant continuing education.

Not only do you need a college education to get CSP certified, but you will need to keep studying in order to hold on to that cert. BCP requires a minimum of 20 hours of CEUs every two years for renewal; at least three of those hours should be in ethics, while the remainders can be in:

Psychometry
Psychology
Neuropsychology
Neurology
Mental health

The Board will also accept college coursework toward your continuing education. So if you are planning to go on to earn a master’s or doctorate in psychology, you can use that to keep your credentials current.

While certification is not required, more and more employers are starting to look for it as a differentiator when hiring. BCP claims that holding a CSP cert results in higher wages, and points to a government policy in the works that will increase the pay grade of federal psychometrist hires from GS-9 to GS-12.

Where To Find Jobs for Psychometrists

There are a surprisingly number of professional options for psychometrists in different industries and specialist fields.

Like psychologists, many psychometrists work in private practice or in hospitals, taking the testing workload off of senior staff.

Psychometrists also are commonly hired by pharmaceutical companies to help handle clinical trials, testing the efficacy of new chemical compounds in psychotherapy—or ensuring the safety of other drugs in development.

Some psychometrists work for law firms or legal consulting firms, establishing evidence for use in forensic psychology cases.

Others work for high end recruiting firms and employment agencies, assessing candidates for high-pressure positions in a wide range of fields. There are even specialist psychometrists who work in professional sports, helping evaluate players and optimize their performance together with sports psychologists.

Psychometrist Salary Levels Around the Country

Psychometry is such a small and specialized field that salary details are not generally tracked separately in official sources. Instead, psychometrists are generally included in the larger group of psychiatric technicians.

While the salaries may be similar to psych techs, psychometrists generally have a few other advantages in the workplace. Psych techs are often required to work shifts, including overnight and on weekends to staff residential facilities. But psychometrists tend to have a more stable and more normal daily schedule.

Like other kinds of employment, your pay scale will rise with additional expertise. Although there is no accounting for education levels in the BLS numbers, you can assume that higher degree levels, like a master’s in psychology, as well as more experience will lead you toward the top ten percent in the field, who earn more than $59,990.

Naturally, compensation varies based on location, as well. BLS found the average salaries differed among these major American cities:

New York: $55,850
Los Angeles: $56,80
Chicago: $46,760
Dallas: $40,870
Miami: $42,120
Saint Louis: $44,540
Atlanta: $46,800
Seattle: $51,720

Finally, industry of employment makes a difference. Various kinds of professional facilities have different resources and demands for psychometrists. The median annual wages for the top industries of employment in 2023 came out to:

Psychiatric and substance abuse hospitals $48,970
Offices of mental health practitioners $41,610
Outpatient mental health and substance abuse centers $37,670
Psychiatric and substance abuse hospitals; private $37,580
Residential mental health and substance abuse facilities $36,640

Few people make decisions about employment based on salary alone. As workers within the healthcare industry, psychometrists also typically have solid healthcare and vacation benefits. Many are also employed on a part-time basis, which opens up a degree of flexibility that many psychiatric technicians don’t enjoy.

If you have a head for analysis and a talent for quickly connecting with people and assessing them, then a job in psychometry may be your best fit in the world of psychology.

2023 US Bureau of Labor Statistics salary and employment figures for Psychiatric Technicians and Aides reflect national data, not school-specific information. Conditions in your area may vary. Data accessed January 2025.