Top Reasons To Seek Certification

Everybody know that MD following an individual’s name means they are a medical doctor. CPA signifies the individual has met standards and fulfilled requirements to be a certified public accountant. Thousands of associations utilize professional certification to provide for the professional development of their members and to recognize individuals for their dedication to their chosen career and their ability to perform to set standards. 

Ask certified professionals why they certified and they’ll tell you that the process is one of the single most important steps they made in their professional development. Here are some other reasons why people seek certification.

Certification demonstrates commitment to a chosen profession. Receiving certification shows clients, colleagues, people with whom you work, and in turn the general public that an individual is sincere about his or her standing in the professional community. University degrees no longer represent the full measure of professional knowledge and competence in today’s rapidly evolving world. Certification sets people apart as leaders in their chosen professions.

Certification reflects achievement. This applies not only to professional achievement, but to personal accomplishment as well. A Certified Group Psychotherapist displays excellence by meeting set criteria and requirements for continuing education, professional involvement, and ethical standards.

Certification establishes professional credentials. Since the CGP recognizes an individual’s accomplishments, certification stands above a resume, serving as an impartial third-party endorsement of an individual’s knowledge and experience. Therefore, when the public looks for qualified individuals when seeking group psychotherapy treatment, they seek individuals who have achieved the CGP.

There is no doubt that certification enhances a profession’s image. The CGP program offered by the National Registry of Certified Group Psychotherapists seeks to grow, promote, and develop group psychotherapists who can stand out in front of others as examples of excellence by having met designated competencies.

Certification improves professional opportunities. Certification gives individuals the edge when being considered for reimbursement by some treatment programs. Certification, for example, is a requirement for participating in the much-needed program of recovery being offered through the help of the New York Times 9/11 Neediest Fund grant.

When the grant was obtained, it was the first time in AGPA’s history that the Association was called upon to provide direct services. While legal counsel advised that AGPA would do best to limit authorized services to those who have been certified by the Registry, the leadership’s conviction to require certification for participation went well beyond that, explains AGPA’s President Harold Bernard, PhD, CGP, FAGPA.

“AGPA has made a strong commitment to the desirability of establishing a certification of competence in group psychotherapy as desirable in the long run for the treatment modality we represent,” says Bernard. Indeed, in order to be certified, one needs to satisfy five criteria—licensure in one’s discipline, a solid core educational experience in group psychotherapy, significant experience leading groups, and regular attendance at continuing education events that focus on group treatment, indicating an ongoing commitment to learning about the field, and malpractice insurance.

“I believe it is desirable to be able to represent to the larger mental health community, and to the public at large, that there is a substantial cadre of people within our ranks who meet these criteria,” says Bernard. “This contributes to and strengthens our status within the mental health field….and because AGPA is so committed to the idea of certification, it certainly behooves us to require it when we are the ones administering a grant and authorizing services.”

Certainly there are many very talented and fully trained group psychotherapists who are not CGPs. But, since certification is voluntary, it is a clear indicator of an individual’s willingness to invest further in his or her own professional development. CGPs are aware of the constantly changing professional environment and possess the tools needed to anticipate and respond to those changes. It is also, says Bernard, “the best system we’ve been able to devise thus far to document competence in a manageable way.”

This article was published in the October/November 2002 issue of The Group Solution.