Overview of Forensic Psychology Continuing Education (CE) Platforms

This overview is brought to you by Streamline Forensics. These rankings are opinion, not fact. They are based on our personal experiences with courses in each platform, in addition to our review of online catalogues. 

Concept

Summary...

This is by far the largest and deepest of the online CE options in forensic psychology. Course costs are right in line with the industry standards. The content is almost all recordings of live lectures that previously occurred, so they weren’t built for the online platform but they recognized the need. In partnership with AAFP trainings that have been setting the bar for years as far as high-quality forensic trainings, Concept filled the vacuum that previously exited for on-demand forensic psychology CEs.

Catalogue: Great

The deepest forensic psychology course platform that exists. At publication they offered more than 350 courses total, with an ample percentage of those being forensic. This was made possible through partnerships with the American Academy of Forensic Psychology and Palo Alto University. This means that many of those awesome trainings you used to have to fly to can be enjoyed in the comfort of your living room while relying on the kind of clean and well run interface you'd expect from academia.

Cost: Low to Average

Course can get as low as about $30 per credit hour, with the vast majority priced at approximately $50 per credit hour. 

Content: Varies

Inevitably, as a catalogue gets more diverse, there are apt to be more hits and misses. Some of the courses are excellent, and about all you need to bring you to a high level of practice in a given area. Others are a bit more generic, basic, or just lacking if there isn’t a dynamic presenter or the content just doesn’t quite get there. Even with an excellent presenter for a given course, many of the offerings have fairly plain slide decks. To be fair, this is standard in this field and hardly a deterrent for most forensic psychologists in the CE market.

Access: Restrictive

365 days from purchase.

Materials: Limited

Appears to be just slides available for download at time of training.

Refund Policy: Strict

No refunds. They do allow substitutes if you submit an explanation.

Best For...

Everything, frankly. Broad overviews when first learning new areas of practice, rapid collection of CEs for licensing, and some high value courses from very prominent members of this specialty community.

Bottom Line...

The unquestioned front-runner in the forensic psychology CE game. Highly affordable, deep catalogue, but limited access (only 1 year), no refunds, and no course materials are unusually restrictive for on-demand formats. Check them out here.

GIFR

Summary...

This site offers a wealth of training and software solutions within the correctional, legal, and mental health landscape. Their growing catalogue has tended to shine with sex offense and risk assessment based content, but they have a lot of other amazing offerings that can offer a great alternative to Concept when necessary.

Catalogue: Good

There is a surprisingly deep offering that has grown a lot both in number and diversity of topics. Without the AAFP backing on most courses, there is likely a little more variability to the course content and value. But make no mistake, there are some big names (and some crossover with presenters who feature at Concept).

Cost: Average

Their cheapest course is about $43 per CE, and the highest is about $120. Most costs run similarly to if not just above Concept. They also offer a membership option, which at the time of submission was priced at $421/yr, and is unique to the forensic psychology CE landscape. 

Content: Medium

Full disclosure, we've seen a limited amount of courses - but sample both live pre-recorded. The pre-recorded lecture was a limited quality recording. Like Concept, the courses themselves felt mostly designed for live learning and so they can lack some of the engagement and pacing from courses delivered on-demand. For example, the question-and-answer process can sometimes be painful, and the content can move more slowly that is necessarily warranted because live courses have to move at a teaching pace appropriate for the lowest common denominator rather than relying on students to pause, rewind, or skip ahead to meet them where they’re at. 

Access: Generous.

Unlimited access until passing of final post-test (so make sure to download all materials before receiving CEs).

Materials: Good.

Depends on the course, but typically generous and helpful materials (case studies, manuals, etc).

Refund Policy: Unclear

Could not find policy posted anywhere on site - it is assumed the process is to contact customer service to discuss. 

Best For...

Some incredible presenters and unique course offerings that you can’t find elsewhere, especially if you specialize in risk assessment.

Bottom Line...

An under-appreciated option with many excellent CE courses. Definitely worth a look here.

Streamline Forensics

Summary...

This is a newcomer to the block, trying to break in with more of a boutique-feel with a small catalogue and high-value trainings that are designed and built exclusively for the online platform. Especially with some of the platform launch coupons floating around in their early offerings, they are priced competitively and likely to offer useful content with all offerings. The biggest knock is that you will hit the end of the small catalogue fairly quickly. That should change over time, assuming there is a market for high-value forensic psychology Continuing Education to get Streamline off the ground.

Catalogue: Small

There are three courses available at the time of publication, with a fourth and fifth noted to be in development for 2023.

Cost: Average to high

Their cheapest course is $48 per forensic psychology CE, which is consistent with the industry standard. Their most expensive course is about $200 per CE. At platform opening, Streamline introduced courses with a 50% off launch coupon, so with that these prices drop below or at the other platforms. But once Streamline reverts to their standard pricing models, there is no denying that their low is average and their high is high.

The higher price points reflect three things. First, that the courses are the only of their kind like this: designed and produced exclusively for the on-demand forensic psychology continuing education learner. Second, as part of that, course pricing reflects unique, dynamic, and prolific course materials that are proprietary to Streamline and that no other platform offers in this way. These include sample reports, beautifully designed graphics, and worksheets to help supplement courses. Third, there is simply higher overhead for smaller platforms because it costs more to run a smaller operation and without any partnerships that otherwise help cut production costs. As the platform grows, it is possible that prices will come down per CE supported by the collective revenue of more courses covering overhead.

Content: High-value

This is where Streamline excels. They offer dynamic and colorful slide decks, thoughtful course materials, and a clean, cohesive look throughout their offerings. Courses are edited for brevity, which means that you won’t get “padded” courses with 1 hour of content stretched across 4. They work best for high-energy, busy forensic clinicians who want information distilled, well packaged, and to the point.

Access: Great

Unlimited, lifetime of platform.

Materials: Deep

Every course comes with at least one, and typically several valuable and unique handouts to bring depth and dynamism to course lectures. Access to materials is typically granted after passing final the post-test.

Refund Policy: Solid

100% guaranteed refund any time prior to passing of final post-test, for lifetime of platform.

Best For...

Early to mid-career forensic psychologists with busy schedules and some appreciation for technology, innovation, and diversity.

Bottom Line...

A great new option for those looking for forensic psychology CE quality over quantity, especially for clinicians who appreciate refund reassurance, a wealth of bonus materials, and lifetime access to a clean user interface. View the Streamline offerings here.

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