this is a three-year full-time salaried program sponsored by the national health service (nhs) and based in universities and the nhs. entry into these programs is highly competitive and requires at least a three-year undergraduate degree in psychology plus some form of experience, usually in either the nhs as an assistant psychologist or in academia as a research assistant. it is not unusual for applicants to apply several times before being accepted onto a training course as only about one-fifth of applicants are accepted each year. these clinical psychology doctoral degrees are accredited by the british psychological society and the health professions council (hpc). the hpc is the statutory regulator for practitioner psychologists in the uk. those who successfully complete clinical psychology doctoral degrees are eligible to apply for registration with the hpc as a clinical psychologist. the practice of clinical psychology requires a license in the united states, canada, the united kingdom, and many other countries. although each of the us states is somewhat different in terms of requirements and licenses, there are three common elements: graduation from an accredited school with the appropriate degree completion of supervised clinical experience or internship passing a written examination and, in some states, an oral examination all u.s. state and canadian province licensing boards are members of the association of state and provincial psychology boards (asppb), which created and maintains the examination for professional practice in psychology (eppp). many states require other examinations in addition to the eppp, such as a jurisprudence (i.e. mental health law) examination and/or an oral examination. most states also require a certain number of continuing education credits per year in order to renew a license, which can be obtained through various means, such as taking audited classes and attending approved workshops. clinical psychologists require the psychologist license to practice, although other mental health provider licenses can be obtained with a master's degree, such as marriage and family therapist (mft), licensed professional counselor (lpc), and licensed psychological associate (lpa). in the uk, registration as a clinical psychologist with the health professions council (hpc) is necessary. the hpc is the statutory regulator for practitioner psychologists in the uk. in the uk the following titles are restricted by law "registered psychologist" and "practitioner psychologist"; in addition, the specialist title "clinical psychologist" is also restricted by law. assessment an important area of expertise for many clinical psychologists is psychological assessment, and there are indications that as many as 91% of psychologists engage in this core clinical practice. such evaluation is usually done in service to gaining insight into and forming hypothesis about psychological or behavioral problems. as such, the results of such assessments are usually used to create generalized impressions (rather than diagnosis) in service to informing treatment planning. methods include formal testing measures, interviews, reviewing records, clinical observation, and physical examination. measurement domains there exist hundreds of various assessment tools, although only a few have been shown to have both high validity (i.e., test actually measures what it claims to measure) and reliability (i.e., consistency). many psychological assessment measures are restricted for use by those with advanced training in mental health. for instance, pearson (one of the many companies with rights and protection of psychological assessment tools) separates who can administer, interpret, and report on certain tests. anybody is able to access qualification level a tests. those who intend to use assessment tools at qualification level b must hold a master's degree in psychology, education, speech language pathology, occupational therapy, social work, counseling, or in a field closely related to the intended use of the assessment, and formal training in the ethical administration, scoring, and interpretation of clinical assessments. those with access to qualification c (highest level) assessment measures must hold a doctorate degree in psychology, education, or a closely related field with formal training in the ethical administration, scoring, and interpretation of clinical assessments related to the intended use of the assessment. psychological measures generally fall within one of several categories, including the following: intelligence & achievement tests – these tests are designed to measure certain specific kinds of cognitive functioning (often referred to as iq) in comparison to a norming group. these tests, such as the wisc-iv and the wais, attempt to measure such traits as general knowledge, verbal skill, memory, attention span, logical reasoning, and visual/spatial perception. several tests have been shown to predict accurately certain kinds of performance, especially scholastic. other tests in this category include the wraml and the wiat. personality tests – tests of personality aim to describe patterns of behavior, thoughts, and feelings. they generally fall within two categories: objective and projective. objective measures, such as the mmpi, are based on restricted answers—such as yes/no, true/false, or a rating scale—which allow for the computation of scores that can be compared to a normative group. projective tests, such as the rorschach inkblot test, allow for open-ended answers, often based on ambiguous stimuli. other commonly used personality assessment measures include the pai and the neo neuropsychological tests – neuropsychological tests consist of specifically designed tasks used to measure psychological functions known to be linked to a particular brain structure or pathway. they are typically used to assess impairment after an injury or illness known to affect neurocognitive functioning, or when used in research, to contrast neuropsychological abilities across experimental groups. diagnostic measurement tools – clinical psychologists are able to diagnose psychological disorders and related disorders found in the dsm-5 and icd-10. many assessment tests have been developed to complement the clinicians clinical observation and other assessment activities. some of these include the scid-iv, the mini, as well as some specific to certain psychological disorders such as the caps-5 for trauma, the aseba, and the k-sads for affective and schizophrenia in children. clinical observation – clinical psychologists are also trained to gather data by observing behavior. the clinical interview is a vital part of the assessment, even when using other formalized tools, which can employ either a structured or unstructured format. such assessment looks at certain areas, such as general appearance and behavior, mood and affects, perception, comprehension, orientation, insight, memory, and content of the communication. one psychiatric example of a formal interview is the mental status examination, which is often used in psychiatry as a screening tool for treatment or further testing. diagnostic impressions