Notes on the Future Regulation of Psychotherapy in Ontario

In June of 2007, legislation was passed to establish a College of Psychotherapists and Regulated Mental Health Therapists of Ontario. In September of 2009, a Transitional Council was named to develop the policies and procedures of that college.

It is expected that the Council will need at least two more years to finish its work, so that the college will become functional in 2013 or 2014. At that time, psychotherapy will no longer be a self-regulated profession, and all who call themselves “psychotherapist” in Ontario will have to be members of the new College, unless they are already members of a College that regulates the practice of psychotherapy (e.g. medicine, psychology, nursing, and social work).

Prospective TIRP students want to know what this means about training to become a psychotherapist. Here are the most commonly asked questions and the best answers we have at this time.

Question: In 2013 or 2014, will I need to have a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in order to practice psychotherapy?

Answer: Nobody knows what the entry level requirements will be, or whether there will be two levels to accommodate “psychotherapists” and “mental health therapists.” Many unregulated practitioners, including TIRP faculty, are in favour of giving specific training in psychotherapy more weight in admission requirements than a degree, undergraduate or graduate.

Question: Do I need to have a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree to enter TIRP?

Answer: Not necessarily. Degrees are a measure of literacy, and being able to read, understand, and respond to theory is an important part of the TIRP program. Experience with therapy and group process and capacities for empathy, self-reflection, and good communication are just as important. We believe that people without degrees may well have outstanding potential to become good therapists in all these ways. However, we also need to warn them that they may eventually encounter an academic requirement in relation to the College that they may then have to meet.

Question: How will a TIRP certificate of completion count in the admission requirements to the new College?

Answer: Again, we can’t know for sure. We anticipate, however, that it will count much as it has counted as part of the admission to a self-regulating body such as the Ontario Society of Psychotherapists: TIRP provides in-depth theoretical and practical training in a specific modality of psychotherapy, and in order to graduate, students complete 100 hours of supervision in relation to an ongoing clinical practice and more than 100 hours of personal psychotherapy. We believe that all of these elements are critical to development as a competent therapist, and we expect that in some form they will be reflected in College admission requirements, in addition to any academic requirement.