Applications for recertification open in June. When applications are open, you can apply by clicking on the “Apply for Recertification” button on the right of this page.
Application Deadline and Recertification Fees:
Early Application Deadline: September 15 - $325
Late Application Deadline: December 1 - $375
Deadline is midnight EST on the dates listed above
The Canadian Board of Genetic Counselling (CBGC) is committed to ensuring that individuals seeking genetic counselling services in Canada are receiving these services from an individual with a high level of competency. The process of certification and recertification has been adopted by most professional organizations as a mechanism for assessing and maintaining the knowledge and skills of its practitioners. The process of recertification demonstrates a commitment on the part of the CBGC and its membership to the continued education and improvement of the standards of practice in the profession of genetic counselling.
There are two pathways available for the pursuit of recertification:Individuals who do not recertify by examination or by a combination of CECs and CPCs prior to the end of their 10th year of certification will no longer be Canadian Certified Genetic Counsellors and cannot continue to use the CCGC designation.
Please review the information below for further details regarding the recertification process.
All diplomates of the certification examination of the CBGC have received certified status on a 10-year, time-limited basis. Certification will expire on December 31 of the 10th year from the date the exam was written and passed.
Individuals choosing the re-examination pathway are required to apply to write the certification examination prepared by the CBGC Certification Board prior to the expiration of their certification. Please note that due to changes in the examination schedule, there may not be an exam scheduled in the 10th year of certification. To recertify by re-examination, applicants must submit an application form but a logbook is not required. The application details can be found in the Candidate’s Handbook for that year’s exam.
Individuals choosing to recertify using a combination of CPCs and CECs will be required to accrue a total of 150 credits from a combination of both of these activities during the 10-year period. This 10-year period for CEC collection begins on the day following the examination, which allows for the collection of CECs for the CBGC Annual Education Conference immediately following the exam. For ease of calculation, this 10-year period for CPC collection begins on the 1st of the month following the examination. Upon completion of successful recertification, CECs and CPCs will begin to accrue on January 1 of the following year.
The deadline for submission of the completed recertification application will be September 15th (early application deadline) and December 1st (late application deadline) of the recertification year. It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure her/his recertification application is received by the application deadline. The applicant will not be notified that their certification will be lapsing, and that their recertification documentation is due.
Continuing Practice Credits (CPCs) are accrued from employment in the field of genetic counselling. Employment may include, but is not exclusive to, genetic counselling in a clinical, laboratory or research setting, administration, and genetic counselling education.
Each Canadian certified genetic counsellor claiming CPCs, regardless of their area of genetic counselling employment, may be subject to audit and is responsible for maintaining their own updated employment records. Employment status is verified by a signed statement from the counsellors on the Logbook of Continuing Practice Credits (CPCs) form. If selected for audit, individuals claiming CPCs must provide a formal job description from their employer. If the job description does not provide enough clarity on assignment of CPCs for the individual applying for recertification, the CBGC may request that the individual describe in writing the core competencies practices in their employment on a regular basis. Note that leaves of absence (e. maternity leaves) do not count towards CPCs.
Individuals applying for recertification by means of a combination of CPCs and CECs must have a minimum of 20 and a maximum of 70 CPCs to count towards the 150 required total credits for the 10-year period.
CPCs may be accrued starting the month following the exam and are accrued at a rate of 10 credits/year of full-time employment. Full-time is designated as 1.0 FTE or 35-40 hours/week. Individuals working part-time or working less than a full year will receive credits at a pro-rated rate based on the months/years employed or the hours per week employed throughout the year.
Examples:Continuing Education Credits (CECs) are accumulated by attendance at recognized educational forums. Regularly scheduled (weekly, monthly) conferences such as, but not limited to, journal clubs, case conferences, or multidisciplinary team meetings are not eligible for the accumulation of CECs. These are considered part of the job responsibilities of genetic counsellors and are therefore considered to be included in CPCs. Continuing education programs that do not relate directly to genetic counselling are not eligible for continuing education credits.
CECs are accrued at the rate of 1 credit per hour of educational session attended. No credits are granted for attendance of business meetings, committee meetings, poster sessions or social events at these meetings. Credits are granted only for educational or workshop sessions. Online educational courses will be considered for CECs provided that proof of attendance can be shown.
Individuals applying for recertification by means of a combination of CPCs and CECs must have a minimum of 80 and a maximum of 130 CECs from at least three different educational sessions to count towards the 150 required credits for the 10-year period.
PLEASE NOTE: CECs are not the same as the CEUs used for recertification through the American Board of Genetic Counseling. Please ensure that the credits you log are CECs as these are attributed different values.
The Recertification Subcommittee is not responsible for maintaining individual information pertaining to conferences attended. Individuals are required to maintain proof of attendance for all conferences for which they are claiming CECs.
The list of recognized educational sessions is reviewed regularly. The list of recognized educational sessions and the number of CECs assigned can be found here. Individuals are required to maintain proof of attendance for these education sessions.
C. Unrecognized Educational Sessions:
For all remaining meetings and online educational courses each individual must submit to the chair of the Certification board:
Applications for unrecognized educational sessions need to be submitted to the Certification Board within 12 months following the end of the conference or online course. Applications submitted after this time frame will not be processed. We aim to send an acceptance letter to the individual within 3 months of the receipt of their application, listing the number of CECs assigned. That meeting or online course will then be approved for that individual only, and not for all conference attendees. Each individual is then required to maintain the original letter along with proof of attendance.
Please note: not all educational sessions that are approved for CEUs by the ABGC will necessarily be approved for CECs by the CBGC Certification Board as well.
Genetic counsellors seeking recertification through the CPC/CEC pathway are expected to maintain their own records of employment and educational experiences.
For every conference considered for CECs, proof of attendance must be kept by the individual. Receipts, CEC approval letters, certificates of attendance, and ABGC CEU certificates SHOULD NOT be submitted with an applicant’s recertification application, but kept by the individual genetic counsellor for his/her records and in case of audit.
During each recertification year, some applicants will be chosen for audit. Proof of attendance and proof of employment will be required only from those applicants selected for audit.
Individuals who do not recertify by examination or by a combination of CECs and CPCs prior to the end of their 10th year of certification will no longer be Canadian Certified Genetic Counsellors and cannot continue to use the CCGC designation. Appeals from individuals who do not accrue the required CPCs or CECs will not be entertained.
Individuals whose certification has expired are eligible to sit the next certification exam. Such individuals will be considered new applicants and will be required to submit a new application form and logbook consisting of cases not previously submitted.
For information on how to apply for CECs please see the Continuing Education Credits page
Questions regarding the recertification process and completed applications should be directed to the Recertification team lead.
Please click on the Certification tab or the Recertification tab for updates regarding exam dates. For quick links, please see below.
