EuroPsy (or European Certificate in Psychology)
is a European standard of education, professional training and competence in psychology set by the European Federation of Psychologists’ Associations (EFPA).

Visit: www.europsy.eu  

Learn more on EuroPSy FAQ 

Summary of the Annual EuroPsy Chairs Meeting 2021

March 12, 2021

By Rachael McDonnell Murray, EuroPsy Team 

On the 12th of March the chairs of the National Awarding Committees (NACs) and Specialist National Awarding Committees all met online for the annual EuroPsy EFPA chairs meeting.

Despite being online there were a wide variety of topics discussed, and all members had the opportunity to participate throughout the meeting. Developments made in the specialist EuroPsy certificates in Psychotherapy and Work and Organisational Psychology were highlighted. Additionally, exciting news came from the establishment of a pilot phase currently underway for a provisional EuroPsy Specialist Certificate in Sport Psychology. Challenges and ethical dilemmas faced by the EAC during the year were outlined and were presented as points for discussion.

A number of points on further promotion of the EuroPsy included connecting with additional universities, students and national authorities. How EuroPsy has helped to influence the progression of supervisors and supervisor standards through training were discussed, and NACs were welcomed to feedback on what additional training would be necessary for the year ahead. It is clear each NAC and S-NAC has been making huge efforts to promote the EuroPsy, improve standards of training and develop new areas of special interest such as Neuropsychology, Educational psychology, Sports psychology, and Community Psychology. All of which highlights the continued growth and expansion of the EuroPsy.

The value of having a S-NAC in Psychotherapy 

By Rachael McDonnell Murray, EuroPsy Team

Currently there are four National Awarding Committees (NAC), which have established a Specialised NAC (S-NAC) in Psychotherapy. These include Turkey, Spain, Finland and Russia. Several countries already have arrangements in place in which clinical psychologists can specialise in psychotherapy and therefore could greatly benefit from aligning with the EuroPsy standard of psychologists specialized in psychotherapy.

There are a wide variety of advantages to having a S-NAC in psychotherapy. Firstly, it promotes a European standard that can be used to enhance the quality (including minimum standard) of psychotherapy provided by psychologists; it can be and is currently being used to influence law and policy development; it can also be used to contribute to and influence curriculums and educational attainment for psychologists who wish to specialise in psychotherapy. Additionally, by establishing a S-NAC in Psychotherapy, members are provided with a document that clearly differentiates holders of the EuroPsy basic certificate and a specialized certificate in psychotherapy, which can be helpful for the public when seeking a psychologist.  

The main purpose of establishing a certificate in psychotherapy is not to have as many holders of the certificate as possible (even though that would be nice). It is to establish a common minimum European standard of psychotherapy delivered by psychologists specialized in psychotherapy. The presence of the S-NAC alone can be used to campaign and can strengthen the position of European psychologists specialized in psychotherapy. Currently, a conceptual framework underlying the certificate is in progress. This framework focuses on training standards in psychotherapy, and also the competencies needed to deliver the specialised training in psychotherapy. This will be a major development for the S-NAC in Psychotherapy and for future holders of the specialist psychotherapy certificate.

Do you know…. what is the impact of the EuroPsy ?

• Influencing legislation on regulation of psychology
• Influencing university Curricula
• Improving transparency for the public
• Promoting best practice (supervision; CPD)
• Bringing together psychologists in Europe