Accreditation

The Clinical Psychology Program at the University of Waterloo was one of the first clinical psychology programs to be accredited in Canada. In its early years, it was accredited by the Ontario Psychological Association (OPA). Then, accreditation of our program by the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) began in 1986 and has continued to the present day. From 1963 through 2012, we were also accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA). However, in 2012, the CPA and the APA signed the First Street Accord, a mutual recognition agreement of the equivalence of accreditation standards and practices, making future APA accreditation no longer relevant for Canadian programs.

Most recently, in June 2024, The Canadian Psychological Association accredited our Clinical Psychology Program for a five-year period. Our next site visit will be in 2028-2029. The 2024 Site Visit Report observed:

“The Panel would like to begin by commending the program on their comprehensive approach to clinical supervision, as evidenced by the fact that all core faculty provide clinical supervision during students’ first intervention cases, as well as the fact that students are typically exposed to 10-12 clinical supervisors before applying to residency programs.”

“The Panel also commended the program on the breadth and depth of their psychotherapy training, including the aforementioned supervision by multiple supervisors, as well as training in multiple modes of psychotherapy (e.g., CBT, EFT, Family therapy).”

“The Panel commends the program on their comprehensive data collection related to program evaluation and program-level quality improvement initiatives, particularly as it relates to the careers for which program graduates are prepared.”

“…the Panel would like to commend the program on the supportive, collaborative environment fostered by the program’s faculty, as evidenced by the positive feedback received by the program’s students during the site visit.” (Standard V.B)

Contact Information for the CPA Office of Accreditation 

 The contact information for the CPA Office of Accreditation is the following: