Psychological Associate Section L – Autonomous Practice Psychological Associate Members Applying for Registration as Psychologists

Registration Guidelines

UPDATED: April 2019

Written Examinations:

Examination for Professional Practice in Psychology (EPPP):  The College has adopted the Association of State and Provincial Psychology Board’s (ASPPB) common pass point of 500, or 70%, on the EPPP. This is also a requirement of the ASPPB Agreement of Reciprocity, to which the College is a signatory. Psychological Associates who are applying for registration as Psychologists will not be required to re-write the EPPP if they have already obtained a score at or above this pass point.

Jurisprudence & Ethics Examination (JEE):  Psychological Associates who have already passed the JEE, or who had a specific jurisprudence and ethics evaluation as part of their oral examination, will not be required to write the JEE.

Oral Examination:

Psychological Associates who:

  1.  are proposing no change in the area(s) of practice, client groups or activities for which they were previously registered for autonomous practice as a Psychological associate and for which they hold a certificate for active practice as a Psychological Associate; and
  2.  have no terms, conditions or limitations on their certificate of registration as a Psychological Associate; and
  3. are not presently subject to any disciplinary undertakings or agreements with the College;

will not be required to repeat the oral examination because their competence in their proposed practice has already been evaluated.

Post-doctoral Supervised Practice:  

Fifteen hundred (1500) hours of post-doctoral supervised practice is an integral part of the ASPPB Agreement of Reciprocity, which provides for mobility of our members to other, reciprocal jurisdictions.

A. Psychological Associates who:

  1. are proposing no change in the area(s) of practice, client groups or activities for which they were previously registered for autonomous practice as a Psychological Associate and for which they hold a certificate for active practice as a Psychological Associate; and
  2. have no terms, conditions or limitations on their certificate of registration as a Psychological Associate; and
  3. are not presently subject to any disciplinary undertakings or agreements with the College;

may choose one of the following two options:

  1. Request a certificate for supervised practice. Since Registration Regulation, Section 32., specifies that “a person’s certificate of registration expires immediately if the Registrar issues another certificate of registration to the person”, this new certificate for supervised practice will mean that they can no longer practise autonomously as a Psychological Associate. All the provisions applicable to Psychologists in supervised practice will apply while they accumulate 1500 hours of supervised practice. The 1500 hours may be accumulated in less than one year if desired.By the end of the period of post-doctoral supervised practice, applicants must obtain ratings of readiness for autonomous practice in all rating categories from both supervisors. A certificate for autonomous practice as a Psychologist will then be issued. In the event that the ratings of readiness for autonomous practice are not achieved, the application will be referred to a panel of the Registration Committee to determine whether there is a need for further professional training and experience.

OR

2) Continue to practise as a Psychological Associate while concurrently obtaining 1500 hours of post-doctoral supervision. The 1500 hours applies to the combined hours of practice and supervisory contact and may be accumulated in less than one year if desired. Either one or two supervisors may be chosen, one of whom must be a Psychologist. A log of the duration and content of supervision, signed by both the applicant and supervisor(s), must be presented at the end of the supervisory period, together with a statement from the supervisor supporting the issuance of a certificate for autonomous practice as a Psychologist.

B. Psychological Associates who:

  1. are proposing a change in the area(s) of practice, client groups or activities for which they were previously registered for autonomous practice as a Psychological Associate and for which they hold a certificate for active practice as a Psychological Associate; or
  2. have a term, condition or limitation on their certificate of registration as a Psychological Associate; or
  3. are presently subject to any disciplinary undertakings or agreements with the College;

will be issued with a certificate for supervised practice as a Psychologist and required to complete 1500 hours of supervised practice. All the provisions applicable to Psychologists in supervised practice will apply while they accumulate 1500 hours of supervised practice. The 1500 hours may be accumulated in less than one year if desired.

By the end of the period of post-doctoral supervised practice, applicants must obtain ratings of readiness for autonomous practice in all rating categories from both supervisors. In the event that this is not achieved, the application will be referred to a panel of the Registration Committee to determine whether there is a need for further professional training and experience.

Application form and supporting documentation
Psychological Associates must complete an application form for Psychological Associates applying for registration as a Psychologist and, depending upon the option selected, submit signed undertaking from either one or two members of the College willing to act as supervisors. If a certificate for supervised practice is being requested (Option A.1 above), the undertakings must be on the forms supplied for this purpose on the College website. If the applicant intends to continue practising as a Psychological Associate (option A. 2 above), the undertaking(s) may be in the form of a letter from the supervisor(s).

Under the sections outlining courses, practica and internships, the applicant need only include the doctoral degree and any other courses taken since their initial application for registration. The applicant must make arrangements for the new transcripts to be sent to the College.

Declaration of Competence
As part of their application, applicants must enclose a declaration of competence indicating their proposed practice as a Psychologist.

Review of application and outcome

  1. If the declaration of competence is unchanged (i.e. same area(s) of practice, clients groups and activities) as that for which they were authorized for autonomous practice as a Psychological Associate, and there is no term, condition or limitation on the certificate of registration as a Psychological Associate, a certificate for supervised practice as a Psychologist will normally be issued if it has been requested and a) the doctoral degree meets the College’s published guidelines for academic credentials, and b) the applicant has not been the subject of disciplinary sanction in the previous five years. If the applicant has chosen to continue practising as a Psychological Associate while accumulating 1500 hours of supervised experience, this plan will be approved by means of a letter from the College.
  2. If the declaration of competence is unchanged (i.e. same area(s) of practice, clients groups and activities) as that for which the applicant was authorized for autonomous practice as a Psychological Associate, but there is a term, condition or limitation on the certificate of registration as a Psychological Associate, or the Psychological Associate has been the subject of disciplinary sanction in the previous five years, the application will be referred to a panel of the Registration Committee for review to determine whether there is a need for further professional training and/or a formal evaluation process such as an oral examination. If the doctoral degree meets the College’s published guidelines for academic credentials, a certificate for supervised practice as a Psychologist will be issued and the member notified of the training and evaluation which will be required.
  3. If there is any change in the declaration of competence from that for which the member was previously authorized for autonomous practice as a Psychological Associate, the application will be referred to a panel of the Registration Committee for review, to determine whether there is a need for further professional training or experience and/or a formal evaluation process such as an oral examination. In undertaking this review, the panel will be guided by the guidelines for change of area of practice for autonomous practice members. If there is a term, condition or limitation on the certificate of registration as a Psychological Associate, the panel will also consider this in reviewing the need for additional training, supervised practice or examination. If the doctoral degree meets the College’s published guidelines for academic credentials, a certificate for supervised practice as a Psychologist will be issued and the member notified of the training and evaluation which will be required.

Application fee
Please refer to Appendix A, Fees in the Registration Process, for the current fee.

Expiry of certificate for autonomous practice as a Psychological Associate
Psychological Associates applying for change of title must be aware of Section 34. of the Registration Regulation specifies “A person’s certificate of registration expires immediately if the Registrar issues another certificate of registration to the person.”   Therefore, upon the issuance of the certificate for supervised practice as a Psychologist, the certificate for autonomous practice as a Psychological Associate will expire.

Applicants changing title and private practice
Psychological Associates who wish to change title, hold a certificate for supervised practice, and also maintain a previously established private practice will be considered on a case-by-case basis by a panel of the Registration Committee. If the member is able to satisfy the panel that the primary supervisor will be able to oversee all private practice activities, the Committee may waive some or all of the usual guidelines for supervised practice in a private practice setting. Therefore, applicants should submit, with their application, a description of the way in which announcement of services, advising of clients, signing of reports and billing will be managed. In reviewing these arrangements, the panel will consider public protection issues as well as the member’s previous private practice experience.

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