Registration, Accreditation, Certification, & Licensing

Clearmind’s Counsellor Training Program, ‘Prac’, is currently winding down The Final cohort of the program will complete classes in June 2023. Our counsellor training program is designated by the Private Training Institutions Branch (BC Canada) and accredited with the National Council of Integrative Psychotherapists (UK) and has received the Educational Quality Association (EQA) seal of approval. This means that we are a legitimate training provider or private college whose program and operations have been examined by these outside bodies. But this does not mean our program is accepted everywhere, in the same way as a degree earned in one country will not necessarily be recognized in another country.

Upon completing all requirements and graduating with a diploma from our Practitioners Training Program (PRAC), students can apply for registration with an association or governing body in their area or country. At that time, they become “Registered” and then have license to practice in that area (with insurance).​

 

Counselling in Canada

Graduates of Clearmind International Institute (CM) who choose to practice in Canada will have the option of registering with a counselling association, and in some provinces, you may also register with a provincial college (see below for information on your province).

Counsellors trained through Clearmind may apply to register with a counselling association which provides credentials, access to insurance providers, and governs its members. Our students are eligible to apply to the Association of Cooperative Counselling Therapists (ACCT), and the Canadian Professional Counsellors Association (CPCA), both of which use competency-based criteria to determine whether an applicant is suitable for registration.

Please Note: Due to regulations in some Canadian provinces you may only be accepted for registration with the above two associations if you are also eligible to register with the counselling ‘college’ in that province.

In Canada, regulation of a profession, such as counselling, is the responsibility of provincial governments. Currently all provinces have regulated or are in the process of regulating; once regulated it is expected that provinces will go ahead and create professional counselling colleges.

Regulation in each province is different, however; in the regulated provinces, the only people that CAN use the title “counsellor” or “psychotherapist”, or wording such as “registered”, “counselling” or “psychotherapist” are those who are members of the College in that province. Please reference requirements for your jurisdiction for more information.

Counselling in the UK

We are accredited with the National Council of Integrative Psychotherapists in the United Kingdom, which means that graduates of our program may apply to the NCIP for recognition as a psychotherapist. The UK is governed by voluntary registration with counselling associations. In the UK, movement toward compulsory registration by government for therapists was resisted by many associations, so it continues to be a voluntary process. The BACP and NCS are the largest associations, and therefore hold the most power in the UK. Membership in the BACP is often required for agency jobs, but if private practice is your goal, membership in the NCIP is a viable path to that end.