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ACBC Certification and the IBCD Care & Discipleship Course

ACBC Certification & The CDC Program

We believe that certification from the Association of Certified Biblical Counselors (ACBC) is a very helpful process for individuals pursuing biblical counseling training, and it is incredibly beneficial to the local church.

All of the training in IBCD Care & Discipleship Course has been designed to assist people in pursuing ACBC Certification. We have found that when people are first introduced to biblical counseling, they are not immediately ready to pursue the rigors of the ACBC Certification process. The CDC program breaks the ACBC Certification process into smaller steps with certificates of completion along the way to indicate overall progress. Part of the CDC process includes submitting exams. These exams will be reviewed by ACBC Certified counselors, who will offer you detailed feedback. We have found that participants who complete the CDC program will feel edified, challenged, and prepared as they move towards ACBC Certification.

If you plan to use the Care & Discipleship material for ACBC Certification, or if you plan to facilitate a group through the material for ACBC Certification, you must fill out whichever of the following forms applies:

ACBC Fundamental Training Participant Registration

ACBC Fundamental Training Course Facilitator Registration

The complete requirements of the CDC program are not necessary to become certified through ACBC, but they are very helpful. IBCD’s CDC material alone, without the exams, applications, and interviews, can be used to meet ACBC’s Phase 1 requirements. Here is a description of how the CDC Course can be used toward ACBC Certification:

Phase 1 of ACBC Certification | Learning

Phase 1 of ACBC Certification is to complete a 30-hour Fundamentals Training Course, 10 hours of Observation and 1,000 pages of approved reading.

The IBCD CDC Level 1 (Basic) and Level 2 (Intermediate) material is an approved Fundamentals Training Course, satisfying all 30 hours. You may use your church’s Supporting Church access, a physical DVD, Individual Subscription, or our free audios to complete this portion of the training.

IBCD offers 7 Observation Videos that you can use to complete the 10 hours of observation. You can access these through your church’s Supporting Church access, a physical DVD, or an Individual Subscription. To find out how many hours each case has along with counselor names, please see our FAQ page. You will need this information as you fill out your ACBC Application.

ACBC requires 1,000 pages of approved reading. The IBCD CDC program requires participants to read The Peacemaker by Ken Sande and Instruments in the Redeemer’s Hands by Paul Tripp, which satisfies approximately 640 pages of approved reading. Both of these books are on ACBC’s Approved Reading List. If you complete the CDC program, you will still be required to read approximately 320 pages that must be chosen from the Theology section of ACBC’s Approved Reading List.

The complete requirements of the CDC program are not necessary to become certified through ACBC, but they are very helpful. All participants will need to fill out this form for IBCD’s records.

Phase 2 of ACBC Certification | Exams & Evaluations

Phase 2 of ACBC Certification is to complete the exams and evaluations. ACBC requires two exams: Counseling and Theology. Once you finish writing these exams, you can turn them in along with an evaluations. The exams and evaluations will be turned in directly to ACBC. As a part of the application, you will need to indicate the following information about your Basic Training through IBCD:

Fundamentals Training Course 
Name of Certified Agency: IBCD
Completion Date: date finished listening to/watching the material
City, State: location where training occurred
Instructors and Courses: Jim Newheiser and Charles Hodges, IBCD Care & Discipleship Course

Please be sure you’ve filled out this form so that IBCD can record your training. 

You will also need to submit your Observation and Reading Logs. You will submit all of these requirements to ACBC directly through the process described on their website. If you used IBCD Observation Videos, please see our FAQ page for run times, counselor names, and more information. You will submit all of the Phase 2 requirements to ACBC directly through the process described on their website.

Phase 3 of ACBC Certification | Supervision

Phase 3 of ACBC Certification requires supervision. Once you’ve passed your exams and your evaluations have been approved, ACBC will walk you through the steps to obtain a supervisor. With this supervisor, you will complete 50 hours of supervised counseling.

More information on ACBC Certification can be found at www.biblicalcounseling.com/certification

ACBC Fundamentals Training Course Policies

Please keep the following policies in mind if you plan to use the IBCD materials to fulfill ACBC Certification requirements. 

  • All participants using the CDC material, whether accessing the material through their church, Individual Subscription, or free audio resources to satisfy ACBC’s Phase 1 requirements must fill out our registration form. If you neglect to fill out their form, your training will not be approved by IBCD or ACBC 
  • If you are facilitating as a group goes through the material together, please be sure of the following:
    • First, fill out a facilitator registration form here.
    • Each of your participants attends each session (or makes up the material on their own time)
    • Each participant fills out this form
    • You may facilitate discussion after viewing the videos together, but facilitators are not to offer any extra teaching. If you’d like to add commentary, please clearly state that your personal teaching is not officially approved teaching from ACBC. This is because approved ACBC training must be taught by an ACBC Fellow. If you engage in extraneous teaching, your course will be disqualified for ACBC and IBCD approval. Your participants will not be eligible for ACBC Certification. 
  • If your church has purchased the physical Observation DVDs, you may watch our DVDs in a group setting
  • If you have purchased an Individual Subscription, you may not use that subscription to stream the videos to a group setting. Please see the Supporting Church options or email info@ibcd.org for information on licensing
  • Individual Subscriptions are meant to be used for individuals only and not meant to be shared. Sharing subscriptions diminishes our ability to report to ACBC whether or not a participant has completed the material. If your account has been shared, your application will be denied. 
  • Some groups will meet weekly to discuss the content, but expect participants to view the videos on their own time. This is an approved way to use Individual Subscriptions
  • An individual may use our free audios for CDC Level 1 and CDC Level 2 to satisfy ACBC’s Phase 1 30 hour teaching requirement. Each individual must fill out the registration form. These individuals will need to access observation hours either in person with a local ACBC Certified counselor or through ACBC approved observation videos. You can access IBCD’s observation videos through an Individual Subscription
  • If you are an institution, like a seminary or university, and would like to use the videos in your class, please email info@ibcd.org for licensing options
  • The complete requirements of the CDC program are not necessary to become certified through ACBC, but they are very helpful. IBCD’s CDC lectures alone, without the exams, applications, and interviews, can be used to meet ACBC’s Phase 1 requirements. 

More Questions? Browse our FAQ:

How do I start?

The best way to start training is through an Individual Subscription ($55/year). This subscription grants you access to you stream our video content at the lowest cost. If you prefer physical DVD sets and handbooks, you can purchase those individually. Each these options is available in our online store.

Can I use your materials for ACBC Certification?

Yes! IBCD is an ACBC Certified Training Center. Our Care & Discipleship Course are approved as an ACBC Fundamentals Training Course. You can use the Level 1 and 2 lectures to fulfill the 30 hours of required Fundamentals Training. You can use our observation videos to satisfy the 10 hours of required observation. You can access the observation videos either through an Individual Subscription or through physical DVDs found in our online store. To understand more about how our materials fulfill some of the requirements for ACBC, please visit our ACBC page. Be sure to fill out this form if you plan to use our materials to pursue ACBC Certification.

I tried to reset my password but didn't receive and email. What do I do?

Sometimes the password reset emails go to the spam or junk folder. Please check there first! If you are still in need of help, please email us at info@ibcd.org.  

How do I change my password?

When you are logged into your account, you should see “Account Details” on the left hand side of the “My Account” page. Click on “Account Details”, follow the prompts, and click “Save Changes”. Next time you log in, you will use your new password. 

What is the difference between ACBC and IBCD?

ACBC is the biblical counseling certifying agency. IBCD is an ACBC Certified Training Center. ACBC has approved our material for training purposes. We offer a certificate of completion program that may help prepare you for ACBC Certification, but we do not offer a full certification. In addition to training for ACBC, IBCD seeks to bring one-another care to the local church through excellent, easily accessible resources.

How long does it take to go through your training?

Our Care & Discipleship Course is designed to be flexible. If you are using the material as a way to pursue ACBC Certification, the requirements include approximately 40 hours of content (30 hours of basic training and 10 hours of observation). Depending on a participants availability, it’s possible to complete these requirements in about a month and a half. If you choose to pursue a certificate of completion through our CDC course, you will have additional time commitments and assignments. Depending on availability, students can finish these requirements in 3-6 months. Some churches go through the material as a group. We estimate that usually requires 64 classes. Depending on your meeting schedule, this may take 1-1.5 years. The following is a list of what is considered the minimum time required to complete the CDC course and assignments:

  • Level 1
    • Level 1 instruction – 15 hours
    • Level 1 electives – 3 hours
    • Level 1 leader interview 1 hour
    • Level 1 exam – 7 hours
    • Level 1 total: 28 hours
  • Level 2
    • Level 2 instruction – 15 hours
    • Level 2 electives – 3 hours
    • Level 2 leader interview 1 hour
    • Level 2 exam – 7 hours
    • Level 2 total: 28 hours
  • Level 3
    • Reading, The Peacemaker – approx 5 hours (1 page/min)
    • Reading, Instruments in the Redeemer’s Hands – approx 6 hours (1 page/min)
    • Watching Observation Videos – 10 hours
    • Writing Peacemaker response paper – 1 hour
    • Writing Instruments response paper – 1 hour
    • Writing Observation reflection paper – 1 hour
    • Level 3 leader interview – 1 hour
    • Level 3 Total: 25 hours
  • Care & Discipleship Course & Assignment Total: 81 hours

Is there a time limit for my training?

IBCD does not have a specific timeframe in which you must finish your training. If you plan to go onto ACBC Certification, after you complete a Fundamentals Training Course, you will have 4 years to complete the rest of Phases 1 and 2. For example, if an individual finishes the Fundamentals Training Course in 2020, they will need to submit their Phase 2 exams and evaluations by December 31, 2024. 

How long are the Observation Videos? What are the names of the biblical counselors I observed?

The lengths of the Observation Videos are listed below. The “counseling duration” section notes the length of time that counts for ACBC’s required 10 hours of observation.

ACBC Certified Counselor & Counselee “Name” Counseling Duration Video Total
Jim Newheiser – Jesse – Session 1 63 min 70 min
Jim Newheiser – Jesse – Session 2 52 min 57 min
Jim Newheiser – Jesse & Sarah – Session 3 51 min 56 min
Caroline Newheiser – Danielle – Session 1 40 min 46 min
Caroline Newheiser – Danielle – Session 2 44 min 48 min
Caroline Newheiser – Danielle – Session 3 38 min 40 min
Tom Maxham – Richard – Session 1 53 min 58 min
Tom Maxham – Richard – Session 2 54 min 60 min
Tom Maxham – Richard – Session 3 50 min 54 min
Jim & Caroline Newheiser – Dan & Debbie – Session 1 54 min 60 min
Jim & Caroline Newheiser – Dan & Debbie – Session 2 55 min 61 min
Jim & Caroline Newheiser – Dan & Debbie – Session 3 54 min 62 min
Heath Lambert – Jeremy & Crystal – Session 1 53 min 57 min
Heath Lambert – Jeremy & Crystal – Session 2 49 min 52 min
Heath Lambert – Jeremy & Crystal – Session 3 39 min 41 min
Dr. Charles Hodges – Aaron & Ellie – Session 1 52 min 55 min
Dr. Charles Hodges – Aaron & Ellie – Session 2 52 min 55 min
Dr. Charles Hodges – Aaron & Ellie – Session 3 13 min 15 min
Dr. Charles Hodges – Aaron & Ellie – Session 4 48 min 51 min
Dr. Charles Hodges – Aaron & Ellie – Session 5 50 min 55 min
Chris Moles – Domestic Abuse – Session 1 0 min 19 min
Chris Moles – Domestic Abuse – Session 2 43 min 48 min
Chris Moles – Domestic Abuse – Session 3 0 min 44 min
Chris Moles – Domestic Abuse – Session 4 0 min 20 min
Chris Moles – Domestic Abuse – Session 5 60 min 66 min
Chris Moles – Domestic Abuse – Session 6 0 min 19 min
Chris Moles – Domestic Abuse – Session 7 47 min 48 min
     
Total 1,005 min  1,317 min

How do I access a digital download that I purchased?

When you make a purchase on our website an account is created for you. Your digital downloads will instantly be accessible on your account page when you are signed in.  Additionally, your purchase will prompt our system to automatically send you an email with the download link attached. The link in the email is uniquely keyed to your account. Upon clicking you may be asked to log in.

What are the Legacy CDC resources?

In June of 2018, several lectures were updated and modernized in Level 2.  If you own a handbook from before June 2018 the corresponding lectures can be found in the Legacy section of this course. If your handbook is labeled “2.5”, your lectures will correspond with the audios found in the Level 2 section. These legacy sessions are not required for the CDC exam. These legacy session do still fulfill the training requirements for ACBC Certification. You can review the changes below:

What are the differences between the new Care & Discipleship DVDs and the older (2011) Basics DVDs?

Besides the restructuring of the overall order to match the CDC Course, bug fixes, and revised graphics, the overall DVD course has changed in the following ways:

Revised sessions

  • What is Biblical Counseling? 1
  • What is Biblical Counseling? 2
  • What is Biblical Counseling? 3
  • Anger/Abuse
  • Depression

New sessions

  • Grace When Things Are Hard
  • Understanding Nature and Nurture in Biblical Counseling
  • From Idol to Blessing 1
  • From Idol to Blessing 2
  • Counseling in Situations of Separation, Divorce & Remarriage

Sessions Not Included

  • Solving Marriage Problems: When Husbands Won’t Lead
  • Solving Marriage Problems: Sex

Each DVD has been “tracked” with chapter breaks to correspond with the discussion sections in the Leader Handbook in order to be able to quickly resume where you left off for discussion.

What are the differences between the new Care & Discipleship Handbooks and the older (2011) Basics of Biblical Counseling Syllabus?

As of 2021, the 2011 Basics of Biblical Counseling material will no longer be approved for use towards the ACBC Certification requirements. Please reach out to info@ibcd.org with questions. 

The Care & Discipleship Handbooks have undergone major changes from the previous Basics of Biblical Counseling Syllabus.

  • The Care & Discipleship Handbooks have all of the same content changes as the CDC DVDs (listed above).
  • All of the outlines have been placed in the proper CDC order and the content has been updated to exactly match the DVDs and audios.
  • The outlines have been reformatted for taking notes.
  • The Supplemental Resources sections have all been updated to more accurately match what is mentioned in the course, and they correspond with the supplemental resources found on each session page
  • The Leader Handbook also has discussion sections throughout each lesson, which are convenient places for pausing the DVD and having group interaction.  The DVDs are “tracked” to correspond with these discussion sections in order to be able to quickly resume where you left off.
  • The Basics Syllabus contained the outlines for most of the content of Levels 1 and 2.  The Handbooks have now been split – one for each Level.

Are the older (2011) Basics of Biblical Counseling materials still a viable option for ACBC Certification?

As of 2021, the 2011 Basics of Biblical Counseling material will no longer be approved for use towards the ACBC Certification requirements. Please reach out to info@ibcd.org with questions.