Regulations and Ethics

Graduate regulations of the University and the Department of Psychology are outlined in the University Calendar. Additional information on Psychology Department administrative policies and procedures is provided in the Psychology Graduate Student Handbook and in the Clinical Psychology Graduate Student Handbook. Students’ degree requirements are those in the Calendar in the year of entry into the program.

The Clinical Program has a formal administrative structure within the Department, in that it is an identified Program with specific admission and graduation requirements. It is under the supervision of the Clinical Program Committee, and is the overall responsibility of the Director of Clinical Training (DCT). The chief administrative officer for the program is the Graduate Program Assistant.

The clinical program committee (CC) consists of clinical faculty members (see current list on the following site: https://www.sfu.ca/psychology/graduate/clinical-psychology-program/clinical-faculty.html), the director and associate director(s) of the Clinical Psychology Centre, and three student representatives elected by the graduate students in the program. The DCT chairs the committee meetings, and the program assistant serves as secretary to the committee. CC meetings typically occur on the first Thursday of each month (and often do not occur in July or August), consisting of open and closed sessions. Open sessions address program issues, regulations, and policy matters. All students are welcome to attend open sessions, where student representatives have a voice on matters before the committee. In the closed session, the committee discusses information that is sensitive, private, or pertains to specific individuals or program matters that require further development before discussion during an open session. All CC members except for student/student representatives attend closed sessions. All formal program changes from the CC have to be approved by the Psychology Graduate Studies Committee, the department, the Faculty of Arts & Sciences' Graduate Studies Committee, the Senate Committee on Graduate Studies, and the Senate.

Standing in the program is contingent upon maintenance of satisfactory performance in: a) course-work, b) thesis work, c) practicum skills development, and d) adherence to professional ethical standards (CPA Code of Ethics, CPBC Code of Conduct, relevant B.C. Acts pertaining to psychology practice) as evaluated in the annual review of student progress. The clinical program committee and psychology department will address unsatisfactory performance in the program’s academic curriculum or required practicum training in accordance with general graduate regulations (see GGR 1.8.2).  

At times, students have difficulty completing practicum training to satisfactory standards. When this occurs, the clinical program committee (CC) first determines whether a remediation plan is feasible. If a plan is feasible, the CC or a subcommittee will communicate to the student a remediation plan to address relevant areas of professional development or concern, along with deadlines and criteria for the completion of remediation tasks. The CC or subcommittee monitors the student’s completion of the plan and provides feedback as appropriate. Students must successfully complete remediation plans by the date stipulated in their remediation plan but in no more than three terms from its assignment. When a student undertakes a remediation plan, they will receive an IP in the course in which their performance needs remediation (e.g., 825, 880, 881). When the student successfully completes the remediation plan, the IP mark changes to an “S.” If remediation is deemed not feasible, the student does not successfully complete remediation, or the student engages in a serious breach of ethical/professional conduct during remediation (in view of standards for ethical/professional conduct, such as the CPBC Code of Conduct, the CPA Code of Ethics, and relevant B.C. Acts pertaining to psychology practice), they will receive a “U” in the applicable course. In this case, the CC will review the student’s performance in accordance with GGR 1.8.2, which may result in a requirement to withdraw from the program.