Endorsement FAQ’s

  • What is involved in the Endorsement process?

    1) Register on the Endorsement Application System (EASy). When registering on EASy, it is strongly recommended that you register using a personal email address (e.g., Gmail, yahoo, Hotmail, etc.). Employer email servers often block messages sent by EASy

    2) EASy will email you a username and password

    3) Build your professional application, including work, in-service training, and supervisory experiences. This reflects your capabilities within the infant, young child, and family field

    4) You will be asked to list the names and email addresses for the 3 individuals who will complete reference rating forms on your behalf. EASy will send an email to each reference rater; the whole process is done electronically. Please ask your reference raters for a personal email address so they will receive the secure link to complete the form on EASy

    5) Once your application is complete you may “Submit” by clicking the button that appears on your EASy dashboard.

    6) Infant/Early Childhood Family Associate, Infant/Early Childhood Family Specialist and Infant/Early Childhood Family Reflectie Supervisor applicants receive an Endorsement decision after at least one trained reviewer, who has earned Endorsement, examines, and approves the application.

    7) Infant/Early Childhood Mental Health Specialist & Infant/Early Childhood Mental Health Mentor applicants move on to the written Endorsement exam after at least one trained reviewer, who has earned Endorsement, examines and approves their application.

    8) Endorsement

    How do I ask for help while completing the Endorsement process?

    If you have questions while in EASy, there are comment boxes within every tab of the Endorsement application where applicants can ask questions or leave remarks. You can also email your Endorsement Support Team - Endorsement@aimhitn.org with questions.

    How long does it take to apply for Endorsement?

    Your Endorsement journey is just that – yours! You can take as much or as little time as you need to complete your application. Your Endorsement Support team is available to support you along the way, so please reach out to Endorsement@aimhitn.org if you have questions or need assistance with your application.

    Please note: some pieces of the Endorsement application, such as your reference ratings and Code of Ethics, expire after one year. If portions of your application have expired when you are ready to submit, they must be redone before submission.

    How much does Endorsement cost?

    Professionals in Tennessee do not pay for Endorsement!

    What happens after I submit my application for review?

    All applications are carefully reviewed by at least one trained application reviewer who has earned Endorsement. The application reviewer will examine your transcripts, reference rating forms, and qualifying specialized work, in-service training, and RSC experiences. Then they will make a recommendation about whether to recommend your application for Endorsement, to approve you to sit for the Endorsement exam, or may suggest that you pursue further work, training and/or RSC experiences and then have your application re-reviewed after a period of time.Item description

    Why should I earn Endorsement?

    Neurons to Neighborhoods (Shonkoff & Phillips, 2000) and Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth through Age 8: A Unifying Foundation (2015) report there is a critical shortage of well trained professionals who have knowledge, skills, and supervised work experience to promote healthy social and emotional development, and to intervene and treat serious early childhood mental health problems.

    By engaging in Endorsement, you will:

    • Grow and develop as a professional in the rapidly expanding infant, young child, and family service field

    • Be recognized by employers and peers for having attained a category of competency in culturally sensitive, relationship-based practice that promotes infant and early childhood mental health

    • Become a part of one of the first and most comprehensive international efforts to identify best practice competencies at multiple levels and across disciplines and to offer a pathway for professional development in the infant and family field.

    How do I indicate that I have earned the Endorsement?

    The Infant Mental Health Endorsement® (IMH-E®) and Early Childhood Mental Health Endorsement® (ECMH-E®) marks indicate that a person has earned Endorsement. Use of the registered trademark is important (whenever possible) to distinguish from other systems of “endorsement.”

    Examples:

    Jane Doe, MSW, LMSW, IMH-E®

    Infant Mental Health Specialist

    Jane Doe, MA, IMH-E®

    Infant Mental Health Mentor – Clinical

    Jane Doe, MS, ECMH-E®

    Early Childhood Mental Health Specialist

    Jane Doe, PhD, ECMH-E®

    Early Childhood Mental Health Mentor - Policy

  • Where can I find the Competency Guidelines?

    You can find the Competency Guidelines on the Endorsement Application System (EASy) here: https://aimhitn.myeasy.org/support/guidelines.

    How do I know if all of my competencies have been met?

    You can use the “Competencies” tab of your EASy application to help you track your competencies. This page is intended to be used as a “self-study” to help you assess your education and training to determine what additional specialized training might be necessary to meet the competencies and earn Endorsement.

    At least one trained application reviewer will carefully examine all the material in your application including college transcripts, in-service training record, and reference rating forms. An application reviewer will be looking most closely at the competency areas under Theoretical Foundations, Direct Service Skills, and Reflection. For the areas of Theoretical Foundations (including pregnancy & early parenthood; infant/very young child development & behavior; attachment, separation, trauma, & loss; cultural competence; etc.) and the areas of Direct Service Skills (including observation & listening; screening & assessment; etc.) competency must be documented by course work and/or in-service training. That is, work experience alone is not enough to document competency in areas such as attachment, separation, trauma, & loss or screening & assessment.

  • What is the difference between the specialized work experiences that meet the criteria for Infant/Early Childhood Family Specialist and Infant/Early Childhood Mental Health Specialist?

    Infant Family Specialist work experience is typically broader and encompasses many of the ways that applicants might work with the families of infants and toddlers including case management, Part C service coordination, home visiting, parent education, and family support.

    Infant Mental Health Specialist work experiences include the following interventions: advocacy, developmental guidance, emotional support, concrete assistance, and parent-infant/very young child relationship-based therapies and practices (e.g., Infant Parent Psychotherapy). These therapies and practices are intended to explore issues related to attachment, separation, trauma, and unresolved losses as they affect the development, behavior, and care of the infant/very young child. Competence as an IMHS builds with supervised work experience over time with services delivered to the families of infants and toddlers that are relationship-focused and culturally sensitive with an emphasis on examining the role of relationships in reflective supervision.

    Early Childhood Family Specialist work experience is typically broader and encompasses many of the ways that applicants might work with the families of young children (3 up to 6-years of age) including case management, home visiting, parent education, and family support.

    Early Childhood Mental Health Specialist work experiences include the following interventions: advocacy, developmental guidance, emotional support, concrete assistance, and parent-infant/very young child relationship-based therapies and practices (e.g., Child Parent Psychotherapy). These therapies and practices are intended to explore issues related to attachment, separation, trauma, and unresolved losses as they affect the development, behavior, and care of the young child. Competence as an ECMHS builds with supervised work experience over time with services delivered to the families of young children (3 up to 6-years of age) that are relationship-focused and culturally sensitive with an emphasis on examining the role of relationships in reflective supervision.

    Does work experience with pregnant people and families count towards the work experience requirement for Infant Family Specialist and Infant Mental Health Specialist?

    Yes, work with pregnant people and families does count towards the required work experience. However, the applicant’s work experience must ALSO include work with infants, toddlers, and their families.

  • If I have an IMH-E and also want to obtain an ECMH-E - will those training hours that count, just transfer right over or do I need to reenter all of them into my new application?

    All applicable trainings can transfer to each new application you start. Once you complete one application and are ready to start another, you will follow these steps to transfer your trainings and all other information:

    1. Login to EASy.

    2. Click “Create new application” on your Dashboard.

    3. Fill in the necessary information.

    4. Under “Transfer Application Data”, please select the application you want to transfer data from.

    5. Click “Create”.

    I have attended well over 30 hours of in-service training; should I submit every in-service training I’ve ever attended?

    You will include as many hours of relationship-based in-service training and/or continuing education as necessary to document that the competencies (as specified in Competency Guidelines) have been met. Some applicants may have been in the field for many years and are encouraged to include all the trainings that have shaped their practice in infant, early childhood-family work. However, it is not necessary to submit a comprehensive list of every training ever attended. The list should reflect a balance of breadth and depth across the competencies and the promotion of infant and early childhood mental health.

    You will list which specific knowledge/skill areas are covered at each training, e.g., attachment, separation, and loss; cultural competence; etc. For a training to count toward Endorsement at least one competency must have been covered. It is important to remember that Endorsement reflects training specialization in the promotion of culturally sensitive, relationship-based practice promoting social and emotional well-being in the first years of life or infant and early childhood mental health.

    How far back can I go when including trainings that meet criteria for Endorsement?

    There is no limit on how long ago the training was attended to be counted toward requirements.

    Are only AIMHiTN sponsored trainings eligible for Endorsement?

    The training does not need to be sponsored by AIMHiTN to be eligible to count toward your minimum for Endorsement. In fact, many trainings that you attend for professional licensing or agency requirements may also qualify for Endorsement (e.g., an ethics training for social workers, Part C training about family-centered planning, or doula training, to name only a few).

    A specialized training that is eligible for Endorsement should meet the following criteria:

    1) Is culturally sensitive, relationship-focused and promotes infant and early childhood mental health

    2) Relates to one or more of the knowledge/skill areas in the Competency Guidelines

    3) Is specific to the Endorsement category for which you are applying

    AIMHiTN strives to offer trainings that meet all the competencies that we welcome you to attend! Please refer to our training and events calendar to access our upcoming training opportunities.

    Are there any in-service trainings, conferences, or courses that are mandatory while working toward Endorsement?

    We do not require any specific trainings, conferences, or courses to earn Endorsement! However, AIMHiTN strives to offer trainings that meet all the competencies that we welcome you to attend! Please refer to our training and events calendar to access our upcoming training opportunities. If our upcoming trainings do not meet your needs, email Endorsement@aimhitn.org, and we can assist you in connecting to trainings.

  • I don’t know anyone who is endorsed to fill out my reference rating form, what should I do?

    We often find that most Endorsement applicants know at least one person in the state who is Endorsed, they just might not know that they are! We recommend starting with our Endorsement registry: https://www.aimhitn.org/endorsement-registry. You can view Endorsed professionals by category and region in TN.

    If you still don’t know anyone who is Endorsed after searching our registry, reach out to your Endorsement Support team at Endorsement@aimhitn.org for assistance!

  • Am I only able to include RSC hours from those who are trained in RSC?

    RSC that meets criteria for Endorsement must come from an individual who has earned Endorsement as an Infant/Early Childhood Family Reflective Supervisor, Infant/Early Childhood Mental Health Specialist or Infant/Early Childhood Mental Health Mentor-Clinical. Be sure to check which Endorsement category your Endorsement requires you to receive RSC from.

    How do I count reflective consultation?

    Each hour of RSC you attend, group or individual, with a qualified provider, counts towards Endorsement. If your team meets with an endorsed consultant, you can count the hours of time that you spend with the consultant, even if you are not the identified presenter. For example, if you meet and participate in case consultations once a month for two hours, you will have 24 hours of RSC after one year that meets the criteria for Endorsement.

    I have a co-worker who has earned Endorsement as an Infant Mental Health Specialist. Can they provide the hours of reflective supervision I need for Endorsement?

    Peer supervision (defined as colleagues meeting together without an identified supervisor/consultant to guide the reflective process), while valuable for many experienced practitioners, does not meet the RSC criteria for Endorsement. The provider of reflective supervision is charged with holding the emotional content of the cases presented. The ability to do so is compromised when the provider is a peer of the presenter. Unnecessary complications can arise when the provider of reflective supervision has concerns about a peer’s ability to serve a particular family due to the peer’s emotional response AND the provider and peer share office space, etc.

    The pathway that fits my scope of practice requires reflective supervision, but I have not been able to access reflective supervision. What do I do?

    If, because of an individual’s scope of practice, their desired category of Endorsement requires reflective supervision but they have not been able to access reflective supervision, AIMHiTN will offer applicants the option to endorse at the Infant or Early Childhood Family Associate pathway of Endorsement. AIMHiTN will provide appropriate support and continued encouragement to the applicants working toward meeting the requirements for a different Endorsement pathway. Encouraging individuals to initially Endorse at the Promotional pathway allows applicants to grow their knowledge base and competencies to meet the requirements to fulfill the category of Endorsement that fits their full scope of practice. If an applicant does not wish to endorse at the Family Associate pathway but does not yet meet the requirements for their chosen pathway, they have the option to sit in the status of In Progress or On Hold while they work toward meeting the necessary requirements of their chosen pathway. During this time, they will have the support of AIMHiTN’s Endorsement team.

    Click here to read our full statement regarding Endorsement engagement protocol.

  • What is the format of the exam?

    There are two parts to the Endorsement exam.

    Part One (60 Multiple Choice Questions – 90 minutes)

    The multiple-choice, or quantitative, section is primarily focused on infant and early childhood mental health knowledge specific to work with infants, young children, and their families. Most questions will be related to direct service, but there will be some questions related to reflective supervision/consultation, policy, and research. The multiple-choice section is the same for all Specialist and Mentor applicants. Knowledge gained through course work, specialized in-service training, and self-study will be most useful in this section of the exam. IMH-E® applicants are expected to have knowledge on pregnant people, infants, young children (up to age 3), and families. ECMH-E® applicants are expected to have knowledge on pregnant women, infants, young children (up to age 6), and families.

    Part Two (Vignettes – 90 minutes)

    The qualitative section will ask for responses to vignettes. 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 Specialists and Mentors - 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.

    What primary topics are covered in the multiple-choice portion of the test?

    The multiple-choice questions are related to the knowledge and skill areas of the competencies as indicated in the Competency Guidelines, such as:

    • Attachment separation, trauma, grief, and loss

    • Pregnancy

    • Infant and young child development and behavior

    • Relationship-based therapeutic practice

    • Infant mental health screening and assessment

    • Disorders of infancy/early childhood

    • Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

    • Reflective practice

    How should I study for the exam?

    Studying for the test will vary from person to person. We encourage you to begin studying as soon as you decide that you hope to sit for an upcoming exam.

    Your own background and knowledge within your discipline can provide guidance as to where you should concentrate your focus of study. Applicants who come from a background that emphasizes development may find they require more studying related to mental health competencies like attachment, trauma, grief and loss, mental and behavioral disorders in adults, supportive counseling, intervention/treatment planning, etc. While those from a mental health background may need more studying in areas such as infant/very young child development & behavior, developmental guidance, typically developing attachment, etc. We encourage you to find study partners to support you during your studies and reflection on your work. If you need assistance locating a study partner we can help connect you with someone who can support your studies.

    What happens if I do not pass the exam?

    Not passing does not mean failing! Many who have not passed their exams on the first try have gone on to pass after another attempt. You can choose to take the exam again as you need to in order to pass both parts. You will only need to retake the portion of the exam you did not pass.

    Keep in mind a passing score on Part 1 (multiple choice) of the exam is 80%. Applicants who receive a score of less than 80% will be invited to take the exam again after 6 months. Applicants who do not receive a passing score on Part 2 (response to vignettes/scenarios) will be provided specific feedback based on exam reviewers’ remarks. Those applicants will be invited to take part 2 of the exam again after one year.

  • When do I have to renew my Endorsement?

    Beginning in 2024, our Endorsement renewal period now runs from October 1st – December 31st every 3 years. The next renewal period will occur in 2027. You must renew your Endorsement each renewal period to maintain your credential.

    I am Endorsed in more than one Endorsement pathway. Do I have to renew each of my Endorsements?

    If you are Endorsed in more than one category of Endorsement with the same age group, you only have to renew the Endorsement with the most requirements. For example, if you are Endorsed at IFA and IFS, you will only renew IFS because it has more requirements than IFA.

    If you are endorsed in IMH-E® and ECMH-E®, you must renew both Endorsements to remain dually endorsed.

    I am endorsed in a category that requires reflective supervision for renewal, but I was not able to receive 12 hours this year. Am I still able to renew my Endorsement?

    Contact Endorsement@aimhitn.org to discuss your renewal options.

    How do I renew my Endorsement?

    To complete your Endorsement renewal, please follow these steps beginning tomorrow, October 1st:

    1. Login to EASy: https://aimhitn.myeasy.org/

    2. Select “Renew Endorsement” for each Endorsement you wish to keep active.Consider archiving any old Endorsements you no longer need. 

    3. Select each met requirement.

    4. Click “Attest.”

    5. You have successfully renewed! 


    You will receive an automated email from EASy confirming that your Endorsement has been renewed. You can also confirm the successful completion of your Endorsement renewal by checking the Endorsement Registry.