New National Certification

What does this mean for you?

This year marks the beginning of our move toward national certification of Career Development Practitioners.

We’re here to give you important information on timelines, process, etc., whether you are already an Ontario CCDP or considering to become certified over the next 11 months.

As you know, much work has been done since 2018 in the development of the new CDP Competency Framework and Profile and the new national Code of Ethics. As one of five provinces currently certifying CDPs, we have been working with our colleagues in Nova Scotia, who are taking on the responsibility of national certification, to develop the process for moving our CCDPs over to national certification. There will be much more information coming out over the next few months but we wanted to give you some touchpoints to consider.

ONTARIO CCDPs

If you are already certified and have maintained your certification through re-certification every three years, you have the opportunity to move over (be legacied) to national certification without having to requalify. The timeline as we understand it, will be from April 2023 to end of December 2023.

This timeline will include messaging from the national body that will be sent to all of you, possibly starting as soon as April. Specific dates may be slightly altered until all the processes are finalized, but the key is, once started there will be a finite period in which to do this (probably a window of about 6 months).

Steps:

  • CDPCBO will send you instructions from the new national certifying body outlining the processes and asking you to submit a request to transfer your certification over
  • The process will include you providing some basic information (e.g. certification number and date, etc.).
  • You will sign off that you agree to the national body confirming your status with us at CDPCBO
  • CDPCBO will provide that information, such as your certificate number and date for recertification, to the national body,
  • For recertification after transferring over, your current date for renewal with us will transfer as well (e.g. if you were due to recertify Dec 2025, it will remain the same)
  • For those of you up for recertification this year (2023), please make sure to get your application for recertification into us as soon as possible. That is people who certified in the years 2020 and 2017.

Please note: If you do not wish to become nationally certified, your certification with us will end at the time you need to recertify. CDPCBO will no longer certify CDPs in Ontario after December 2023.

ONTARIO NON-CERTIFIED CDPs

If you are not currently certified as a CDP in Ontario, and would like to become certified, you have two choices.

  1. You can choose to certify in Ontario, and then be transferred over to national as outlined above for CCDPs.
  2. Or, you can wait and certify under the new procedures with the national body. The national certification procedures are to be piloted twice this fall (Sept-Dec) and then national certification for new applicants (not already CCDP) is expected to begin in early 2024.

If you wish to certify in Ontario, and then be transferred over to national, there is a finite amount of time to do so. You will need to send in your completed application package to CDPCBO by the end of October 2023. That will give us time to complete your assessment, certify you and for you to apply to transfer over to the national certification.

For all of you, CCDPs and CDPS, we will continue to keep you informed as we get more information. You can reach us a [email protected] if you have any questions.