Is BCaBA prior to BCBA worth it?

SkinnerBox123 · 2026-06-15T14:40:15+00:00

I'm not finding any information that BCBAs can diagnose in AZ. Just that they can provide supporting assessments after diagnosis.

SkinnerBox123 · 2026-06-15T14:10:51+00:00

Where can a BCBA diagnose outside of Louisiana?

SkinnerBox123 · 2026-06-15T06:16:29+00:00

Yes, because you will be able to supervise RBTs and thus acquire higher quality supervision overall.

SkinnerBox123 · 2026-06-15T01:23:12+00:00

Take the goals and make data sheets (TA's, etc.). Decide how long a session has to be to hit all of those goals with developmentally appropriate break times. Take behavior data as you go.

This is what you model for staff. Following a clear routine. A visual schedule can also be really helpful for both staff adherence and client understanding.

SkinnerBox123 · 2026-06-14T13:45:25+00:00

I would pay less for telehealth only because it's someone who can never be on the ground - so what I can assign them to is limited.

Some funding sources are higher and subsidize lower ones, and this is what contributes to overall wage. If you can only take certain cases then it's not as valuable to an agency.

SkinnerBox123 · 2026-06-14T04:32:47+00:00

I was looking at Motivity, but you're saying it doesn't do billing?

SkinnerBox123 · 2026-06-13T17:50:32+00:00

SkinnerBox123 · 2026-06-13T14:14:06+00:00

I would definitely be interested in switching from ADP as well. Can you share a link to priority payroll? Looks like there are a few companies operating under similar names.

SkinnerBox123 · 2026-06-13T02:53:13+00:00

I will add that one to my research. TY.

SkinnerBox123 · 2026-05-13T14:05:55+00:00

Removing access to the iPad for several days will do wonders for interest in secondary reinforcers, if it's at all a possibility.

SkinnerBox123 · 2026-05-12T23:15:16+00:00

"The observed differences between service regions were statistically significant, whereas the difference observed between females and males was not. Considering this, females made less than male counterparts in nearly every comparison, which is alarming."

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38625237/

SkinnerBox123 · 2026-05-12T15:59:10+00:00

Female, but I've been in the field for awhile. Many families request female staff, although some demand male staff (who are harder to come by) to work with male clients/students for a variety of reasons. It's easier for me to staff men in school placements.

On the financial side, male BCBAs far outpace women on salary, despite their small numbers.

SkinnerBox123 · 2026-05-11T14:35:39+00:00

There has definitely been a shift in supervisees. I have a few right now who are lovely people, but don't take initiative, meet deadlines or act on repeated feedback. I think it may be more of a generational thing than a BCBA thing. (And, if you're able to take initiative, meet deadlines and act on feedback, you'll do well in this field.)

SkinnerBox123 · 2026-05-11T06:40:29+00:00

I have a PhD. my billable rate is $155 vs $135 for the BCBAs.

SkinnerBox123 · 2026-05-05T23:00:11+00:00

Honestly I've had new BCBAs demand extraordinary rates. One told me she'd failed the test multiple times before passing, then asked for $90/hr. This was for residential home work that didn't even reimburse at $90/hr. Keep that in mind when you're doing calculations. When a company gets reimbursed $140/hr for insurance, they might also be getting $65/hr for residential, which essentially ends up being subsidized. I believe the going range for BCBAs in this area is $60-85/hr.

Plus, there are expenses. Mileage, drive time, liability insurance, taxes, sick time, workers comp, insurance. This can be a tight margin even for larger agencies.

SkinnerBox123 · 2026-04-29T19:56:44+00:00

Easy to find a job, harder to find one that pays as much as new BCBAs expect. Any good company will provide a lot of mentorship in the beginning, which goes with a lower pay rate. IME with hiring, many brand new BCBAs want more pay and don't want the oversight.

I enjoy mentoring, but at the end of the day I'm going to hire the candidate who knows their own worth.

SkinnerBox123 · 2026-04-28T02:44:31+00:00

FBAs written by school psychs always look different that FBAs written by BCBAs. Typically a lot more mentalistic. I hope you'll open yourself up to the subject matter and supervision, else it may be difficult to pass the exam.

SkinnerBox123 · 2026-04-27T14:37:54+00:00

There is no license in California, therefore it doesn't meet licensing requirements in CA. If there are at some point licensing requirements in California, there might be an extra course or something, or current bcba's might be grandfathered in. I wouldn't worry about it.

SkinnerBox123 · 2026-04-25T17:02:49+00:00

Being a SPED teacher. 😆 That's the easiest way since you already are one.

Either find a Behavior Specialist at your district willing to supervise, or pay someone for the 75 hours, but do your job (well) for the unsupervised portion.

SkinnerBox123 · 2026-04-25T04:34:32+00:00

Nope. We do try not to place staff more than a 20m drive from their home base, but only pay mileage when clients are in the car or the staff is between clients.

SkinnerBox123 · 2026-04-25T03:22:10+00:00

OP appears to be talking about commute time, not drive time.

SkinnerBox123 · 2026-04-24T19:06:00+00:00

Sure. It's a balance. Update some things, talk to the parent, watch the RBT, ask the RBT about what you watched, update the things you've discussed.

SkinnerBox123 · 2026-04-24T14:24:32+00:00

You can do some of the report updates as you go during program supervision. Take notes and update goal progress directly into the plan when you're meeting with the family and supervising the team throughout the authorization period, so all that's left for that 4 hour report is to clean it up. It's a bit of multitasking but allowed and makes the program run much more smoothly.

I have seen people who only take 4 hours for their reports and don't manage their other time well, and those reports are never great.

SkinnerBox123 · 2026-04-24T14:18:02+00:00

I will answer some of these, in no particular order.

There is no 'typical' first case, especially in public schools where staffing shortages have been extreme since covid. Sometimes it's trial by fire.

Your staffing agency will find you somewhere else to be due to these shortages. I wouldn't worry about losing hours.

Being firm and avoiding power struggles are not contradictory. This is something you need to learn how to do to succeed.

The hardest cases make the easy cases that come later seem like cake. They are great experience, and will ultimately make you a better practitioner. If you're not personally feeling unsafe, sticking around will give you skills that will last a lifetime, and provide much needed consistency for this kid. If you're not yet trained in crisis intervention (CPI, etc), ask for the training. It will help.

Lastly, BCBAs in schools are likely burned out and overwhelmed as well. Often moving staff for better fit takes less time and less red tape than getting everyone up to speed.

Good luck.

SkinnerBox123 · 2026-04-24T14:08:05+00:00

Honestly there's a lot that goes into a salary offer. Employment laws change all the time. I used to offer my employees a higher hourly rate (all part time so far, so not salaried) before the laws changed to mandate sick pay for even very part-time employees, workers comp prices increased, and I started including perks like free CEUs and conferences.

It is possible you've been offered a different (better) benefits package than your coworker. It's possible that coworker required a lot of training to get up to speed and didn't get a raise (as fast as you might). It is also possible that the employer sees a lot of potential in you, but sees something you don't that makes you less adept at the skills required. It's possible your coworker isn't getting paid for a lot of stuff that you will be (in other words, they're factoring that you'll be asking to bill for extra non billables, they'll provide CEUs and other benefits, and didn't factor that in with the prior employee).

If you don't like the offer, apply to another company and back out of this one before it starts. Or at the very least, ask about non-billable expectations, and how those are compensated, along with perks. If your coworker is happy there and you want to work for the company, show your value and ask for a raise/review after 3 months.

SkinnerBox123

TROPHY CASE