Contact the CPA Accreditation Panel and Office


The members of the CPA Accreditation Panel for 2023 – 2024 are:



Role of the Panel: The principal function of the Panel is to uphold the standards of education and training in professional psychology (defined in the Standards section of the Accreditation Manual) as it exercises judgment in making decisions about programmes that have applied or re-applied for accreditation. In addition, the Panel (with delegation to the Registrar):

  • develops and disseminates the documents necessary to guide and assess programmes throughout the accreditation process
  • coordinates and reviews annual reporting of programmes throughout the terms of their accreditation
  • trains site visitors to participate in the accreditation process
  • consults to its many publics (e.g., programmes, students, consumers) on matters related to accreditation
  • consults to the Board, and any delegated governance, on matters related to accreditation
  • undertakes any action, permitted by its Standards and Procedures, necessary to carrying out its functions as outlined above

Composition of the Panel: The Panel is comprised of 9 members, appointed by the CPA Board, for staggered 3-year terms that may be extended for up to 3 more years.  One of the members is elected by the Panel as Chairperson, and one of the members is a doctoral student in clinical psychology, counselling psychology, school psychology, or clinical neuropsychology and is a student member of CPA.  The student has completed at least 1 year of graduate study and will remain a student for the 3-year term on the Panel.  The student member assumes the same roles and responsibilities of any Panel member, aside from acting as Chairperson.  As a group, the Panel members represent the specialities (i.e., clinical psychology, counselling psychology, school psychology, and clinical neuropsychology), types (i.e., doctoral or internship), and geographic locations of the programmes accredited by the CPA.  In addition, the Panel endeavours to have other dimensions of diversity represented among its members.

Become a CPA Accreditation Panel Member: Panel members conduct reviews of programme applications throughout the year, and the Panel formally meets twice yearly (Spring and Fall) in Ottawa, with all travel expenses covered by CPA.  At these times of the year acting as a Panel reviewer requires a high level of commitment and involvement.  However, Panel membership is also an extremely interesting and rewarding experience.  As the number of accredited programmes in Canada grows, we continually have a need for new Panel members.

To apply to serve as a Panel member, the following requirements must be met:

  • hold membership in CPA and other psychological associations
  • are currently, or have recently been, a faculty/staff member, or affiliate in some official capacity, of a doctoral or internship programme
  • are knowledgeable about professional and scientific issues in psychology
  • hold licensure/certification, where appropriate
  • are active in their academic/professional careers
  • possess a doctoral degree and have completed a doctoral-level internship at accredited programmes or their equivalents

To nominate yourself or another person to serve as a member of the CPA Accreditation Panel, please submit a CV and letter of interest to the Registrar at accreditation@cpa.ca.