How to Get Licensed in Florida to Be an Assisted Living Administrator

Assisted Living Administrators must have core competency licenses in Florida.

To get licensed as an assisted living administrator in Florida, you are required to take a 26-hour ALF Core Training Course, given over a five-day period at various facilities around the state, and then pass a two-hour Competency Test, administered at an official Florida testing site.



If you are going to be working as an ALF administrator in a facility that provides special care for persons with Alzheimer's disease and related disorders or maintains secured areas in the facility, you must take an additional four hours of training in Extended Congregate Care.

Things You'll Need

• $385 check or credit card authorization
• Core training registration form
• Regulatory Guidebook and Administrators Manual
• $125 money order or business check
• ALF Core Competency Test Registration Application
• Two forms of identification showing photo and signature
• Several sharpened No. 2 pencils

Instructions

1. Pick a time and location of a Core Training Class. Mail in your registration form if you want to pay by check or register online if you want to charge it on a credit card. The week-long course costs $385, or $375 if you are a member of the Florida Assisted Living Association. The class is held from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.

2. Study for the Competency Test. Use your notes from training as well as the Guidebook of Regulations and the Administrator's Manual you received during your training week.

3. Pick a date to take the Core Competency test. Mail in the $125 test fee (must be paid with a money order or business check; no credit cards accepted) and registration form to the ALF testing center at the University at South Florida, at least 10 days before the test date. The two-hour test is administered in Jacksonville, Orlando, Miami, Tallahassee or Tampa.

4. Take the test. Bring the admission letter you received after registering. It should arrive about a week before your test date. Bring two forms of identification, both in English. One must be a government-issued document, such as a driver's license, military ID or passport, and must contain a photo. The other must verify at least your signature, such as a Social Security card, or contain both your signature and a photo, such as a credit or debit card.

   Also bring several sharpened No. 2 pencils. You are not permitted to bring cell phones, water bottles or notes.

   Give yourself plenty of time to find a place to park and locate your testing room. If you arrive late, you will not be admitted to the test.

5. Receive your license. If you passed the test, you will receive a wallet-sized copy of your ALF Administrator's license in about three weeks. You can also order an 8 x 10 copy of your certificate to display in your office to show that you are a licensed Assisted Living Facility Administrator in the State of Florida.

Tips & Warnings

• If you are going to be working as an administrator in an assisted living facility, consider joining FALA, the Florida Assisted Living Association, the professional organization that administers the core training classes and certifies the trainers. You can save $10 on your registration fees if you become an FALA member before you take your training.

• After you have completed your Core Competency Training and passed the test to get your license, you may wish to take additional courses through FALA. If your facility has ECC licensure, you and your staff ECC supervisor will be required to take the ECC training, You will also have to take continuing education courses in assisted living topics every two years through FALA to keep your administrator's license. Each time you register for FALA couses, you will save $10 as a FALA member. You will also save on registration fees at FALA annual conventions.

• The facility in which you work must also be licensed by the state. If an assisted living facility is found to be operating without the proper license, its administrators may be arrested for violating the law even if they have individual licenses as ALF administrators.

References

• Florida Assisted Living Resource Guide
• Florida AHCA Assisted Living Facility
• Florida Department of Elder Affairs, Assisted Living Facilities
• Florida Assisted Living Association Core Training Schedule

Resources

• University of South Florida ALF Core Competency Test
• Florida Department of Elder Affairs ALF Core Trainers
• Florida Assisted Living Association Core Training Registration Form
• USF ALF Testing Office Core Competency Test Registration
• USF ALF Certificate Request Form