Five Evidence-Based Ways to Earn CE Credits Without Spending Money
Commercial CE providers charge $15–30 per credit hour. Research on continuing education effectiveness shows that many of the highest-quality CE options available to mental health professionals are also free. Here are five evidence-supported approaches.
The Cost Burden of Mandatory CE
For a mental health professional needing 30-36 CE hours per 2-year renewal cycle, commercial CE providers charging $15-25 per credit hour represent a $450-$900 recurring professional expense. Over a 30-year career with 2-year renewal cycles, this amounts to $6,750-$13,500 in CE costs, not including premium subscriptions, conference fees, or mandatory topic-specific courses.
Research by Cervero and Gaines (2015) on the continuing medical education literature found no consistent evidence that paid CE produces better learning outcomes than free CE. What matters is instructional design, specifically whether the CE uses active learning strategies, case-based formats, and spaced repetition, not price point. Many of the highest-quality CE available is funded by federal agencies, nonprofits, and professional associations.
1. Federal Government Training Programs
The United States federal government is the largest producer of high-quality, free, board-approved CE for mental health professionals.
SAMHSA (samhsa.gov/education-training) offers hundreds of free courses covering mental health, substance use, trauma, co-occurring disorders, and recovery. SAMHSA training is NBCC-approved and ASWB/ACE-approved for counselors and social workers nationally. Cook et al. (2010) found that well-designed online CE from credible institutional sources produces learning outcomes equivalent to in-person training.
VA TRAIN (train.org/va) provides free clinical CE from the Department of Veterans Affairs on PTSD, suicide prevention, evidence-based psychotherapy, and clinical assessment. VA TRAIN is publicly accessible, and VA employment is not required.
NIMH and CDC also offer free educational programming that is CE-eligible through affiliated providers in many states.
2. Nonprofit Mental Health Organizations
Many major nonprofit mental health organizations offer free CE as part of their educational mission:
- Zero Suicide Institute - Free suicide prevention training; NBCC-approved
- Suicide Prevention Resource Center (SPRC) - Free evidence-based training with CE credit
- National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) - Free webinars for mental health professionals
- Mental Health America - Free professional development content
These organizations exist explicitly to advance mental health care. Their CE is peer-reviewed, evidence-based, and free because funding is mission-driven rather than profit-driven.
3. Professional Association Membership Benefits
Annual membership in APA, NASW, NBCC, AAMFT, or state-level equivalents frequently includes free CE as a member benefit. For many clinicians, the annual membership fee pays for itself entirely in CE savings.
NASW members access free CE webinars throughout the year via the NASW Learning Center. Reamer (2018) notes that ongoing engagement with NASW's educational programming supports consistent application of the NASW Code of Ethics in practice.
APA members have access to free CE through the APA CE Corner, including psychology-focused webinars and publications with CE credit.
State association membership often includes free or substantially discounted CE at annual conferences and virtual events.
4. University and Hospital Grand Rounds
Academic medical centers and schools of social work routinely offer grand rounds, clinical presentations by expert faculty, that are open to the public and carry CE credit. Major institutions including Stanford, UCSF, Columbia, Harvard, and many others stream grand rounds online and offer free CE for attendance.
These programs often present cutting-edge research that is not yet available in commercial CE, representing genuine continuing professional development rather than review of established knowledge (Bordage & Carlin, 2007).
5. CEHive Free CE Directory
CEHive aggregates free CE from all of the above sources, including federal agencies, nonprofits, professional associations, and universities, into one searchable directory. Filter by license type, state, required topic (ethics, suicide prevention, cultural competency), and CE format to find exactly what you need.
Every course in the CEHive directory is free. Required account creation is clearly labeled so there are no surprises.
A Note on Quality and Accreditation
Free CE is not lesser CE. Davis et al. (1999) found that the key predictor of CE effectiveness is instructional design quality, specifically whether learning activities are interactive and require active engagement rather than passive reception. SAMHSA, VA, and university grand rounds consistently apply these principles.
Always verify that CE is approved by an accreditor accepted by your state board for your specific license type before beginning a course.
References
- Bordage, G., & Carlin, B. (2007). Defining and measuring medical education research productivity. Academic Medicine, 82(10 Suppl), S110-S116. https://doi.org/10.1097/ACM.0b013e318145a5e5
- Cervero, R. M., & Gaines, J. K. (2015). The impact of CME on physician performance and patient health outcomes. Journal of Continuing Education in the Health Professions, 35(2), 131-138. https://doi.org/10.1002/chp.21290
- Cook, D. A., Levinson, A. J., Garside, S., Dupras, D. M., Erwin, P. J., & Montori, V. M. (2010). Instructional design variations in internet-based learning for health professions education. Academic Medicine, 85(5), 909-922. https://doi.org/10.1097/ACM.0b013e3181d6c319
- Davis, D., O'Brien, M. A., Freemantle, N., Wolf, F. M., Mazmanian, P., & Taylor-Vaisey, A. (1999). Impact of formal continuing medical education. JAMA, 282(9), 867-874. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.282.9.867
- Reamer, F. G. (2018). Social work values and ethics (5th ed.). Columbia University Press.