As An RBT You Should Expect To See Your Supervisor Regularly
As an RBT, You Should Expect to See Your Supervisor Regularly for ongoing support, feedback, and skill development. Regular supervision ensures you’re implementing behavior plans effectively, maintaining data integrity, and adhering to ethical standards in applied behavior analysis.
This isn’t one of those “maybe” things. If you’re working as an RBT, you should absolutely expect to see your supervisor every month, without fail.
It’s not a suggestion, but it is required.
How Often Should You See Your Supervisor?
You should see your supervisor as frequently as you can.
There is no fixed answer, but let me break it down to you properly.
- Minimum of two supervision contacts per calendar month
- At least one of those must include you working directly with a client
- One of those sessions has to be individual (just you and your supervisor)
- Group supervision? Sure. But it can’t make up more than half of your total supervision hours
- And supervision has to cover at least 5% of the total hours you work providing ABA services that month
So yeah, you’ll need to keep track, and Most clinics don’t do that part for you.
What Supervision Actually Looks Like
In your session, you’re not just sitting around chatting.
Real supervision means your BCBA or BCaBA is:
- Watching you work with a client
- Giving you feedback on prompting, reinforcement, and data
- Reviewing how you document behavior and whether your teaching matches the plan
- Coaching you on things like ethics, boundaries, and skill acquisition procedures
- Spot-checking your session notes and data sheets for accuracy
If that’s not happening during your supervision?
It’s not real supervision. It’s just a box being checked.
Why It Matters?
It is pretty self-explanatory, but here’s what consistent supervision protects:
- Your clients’ progress
- Your RBT credential
- Your development as a clinician
- Your supervisor’s ethics record
You are putting your reputation at risk with your missed supervision, and if the BACB ever audits your file, you’ll need to show proof that you were supervised properly and consistently.
What to Do If You’re Not Getting Your Supervision?
In the rare case that you’re not seeing your supervisor, I urge you to avoid delaying any further and
- Track your supervision hours yourself
- If your logs are incomplete or missing, say something
- You have the right to ask for feedback, clarification, or observation time
- If you’re getting no support, that’s a big red flag—especially if you’re signing off on services
That means if you have no supervision, you have no legal right to bill as an RBT.
It’s that serious.
And the thing is, Supervision isn’t just a formality. It’s your lifeline to ethical, legal, and effective practice.
So, if you’re working every week but never see your supervisor, that’s not okay. And it’s not on you to stay silent about it.
