Infant & Early Childhood Mental Health Endorsement Exam
Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Mentor Endorsement applicants must pass an exam prior to earning Endorsement. The exam has two parts; both are based on the Competency Guidelines.
Part One (60 Multiple Choice Questions – 90 minutes)
There is one multiple-choice exam for all Infant Mental Health Mentor Endorsement® applicants (centered around the 0 to 3 population) and one for all Early Childhood Mental Health Mentor Endorsement® applicants (centered around the 0 to 6 population). These are separate exams; IMH applicants will take the IMH multiple-choice and ECMH applicants will take the ECMH multiple-choice exam.
Respondents have 90-minutes to answer 60 multiple-choice questions. Eighty percent or better is required to pass; no more than 12 incorrect answers.
This section is meant to measure what is known and is derived primarily from the knowledge and skill areas found under the Theoretical Foundations and Direct Service Skills domains of the Competency Guidelines. These domains address ones IECMH knowledge specific to work with pregnant people, infants/young children and their families.
Within the Theoretical Foundations domain, there will be a greater emphasis on the areas of pregnancy and early parenthood; infant/young child development & behavior; attachment, separation, trauma, grief, & loss; cultural humility, diversity, equity & inclusion; and disorders of infancy/early childhood.
Within the Direct Service Skills domain, there will be a greater emphasis on the areas of screening & assessment; parent-infant/very young child relationship-based therapies & practices; and reflective supervision/consultation (RSC).
The multiple-choice questions will have a greater emphasis on direct service, however, there will be some questions related to RSC, policy, ethical practice, service delivery systems and research.
Knowledge gained through course work, specialized in-service training, and self-study will be most useful in this section of the exam.
Part Two (Vignettes – 90 minutes)
The vignettes/scenarios portion of the exam is different for each category/scope of practice of Endorsement.
This section is intended to measure the applicant’s capacity to apply their knowledge of IECMH principles into practice and to demonstrate a reflective, relationship-based approach. While all of the competency areas are important, the ones under the Reflection, Thinking, and Working with Others domains are important to the qualitative section for Mentor - Clinical.
The Administration domain is the primary focus of the Policy exam. Policy applicants are asked to demonstrate a capacity to promote IECMH principles and practices within and across systems.
The Research & Evaluation domain is the primary focus of the Research/Faculty exam. In the Research/Faculty exam, one scenario is more specific to teaching; the other scenario is more specific to empirical research. Research/Faculty applicants will demonstrate a commitment to IECMH principles and practices related to research or course planning and instruction.