The
Accreditation Operation Procedures
(AOP) outline procedures that guide the accreditation process for programs to be accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA). Correspondent to the AOP are Implementing Regulations (IRs), which are official policy documents that “elucidate, interpret and operationally define” the CoA’s policies and procedures. IRs are divided into several different sections (A through E), which are subject to regular review and revision by the CoA. Through this iterative process, opportunities for clarification have arisen regarding IRs in Section D, which relate specifically to the AOP, and an IR in Section E, which addresses Self-Governance and Regulation.
Public Comment: D.3-1, D.3-2, D.3-11, & D.4-7(b)
Section 7 of the AOP at each level notes that the Office of Program Consultation and Accreditation maintains a database of potential site visitors. IR D.3-1 has been edited to clarify qualifications for APA site visitors and the CoA has modified its classifications of site visitors. Site visitors are now classified as either “Educators” or “Practitioners” with generalists (i.e., visitors training and qualified in areas of psychology outside the scope of accreditation) falling in the “Educators” category. While this change means that not all doctoral site visit teams will require a generalist, the Commission would like to express that it highly values generalist contributions to site visits and will continue to include generalists on doctoral site visit team lists of prospective visitors. Generalists remain strongly encouraged to attend site visitor trainings and to serve on site visit teams. IR D.3-2 has been revised with new criteria for the composition of site visit teams and the selection of site visitors (based on the new classifications in IR D.3-1). IR D.3-11 has been updated accordingly to align with these revisions.
Section 1 of the AOP states that all accredited programs are reviewed annually, and IR D.4-7(a) addresses the use of annual reports for reaffirmation of accredited status and monitoring of individual programs. The revision to this IR focuses on the integration of accredited master’s programs including a master’s-specific “success indicator” to determine thresholds.
In accordance with the APA "Policies for Accreditation Governance" and U.S. Department of Education regulations for notice and comment, the CoA will make the proposed revisions available for a sixty (60) day period of public review and comment. The comment period is scheduled to begin at 5:00 pm Eastern Standard Time on December 1, 2025 and will continue through 5:00pm Eastern Standard Time on January 30, 2026. Information about the proposed standards and public comment is available at
http://apps.apa.org/accredcomment/.
Public Notice
Accreditation Status and CoA Status Information
Per the SoA and SoA-M (Standard V.A.1.b at the master’s, doctoral, and postdoctoral level as well as Standard V.A.1.d at the internship level), the CoA requires that accredited programs must disclose its status with regard to accreditation. The CoA has updated these policies to reflect its current action of monitoring program disclosures on at least an annual basis.
Monitoring of Programs on “Accredited, Inactive” Status
The CoA has amended IR D.4-5 to include instructions for master’s or doctoral programs that have finished phasing out of accreditation and need to voluntarily withdraw.
Voluntary Withdrawal from Accreditation and Lapse of Accreditation
The CoA has clarified IR D.4-11 to include the difference between voluntary withdrawal from accreditation and a lapse in accreditation.
CoA Enforcement Timelines
The Commission has developed IR D.4-12 to formalize its timeline for programs that are out of compliance with the SoA. This IR provides additional clarification of the information presented in 8.2 M, 8.3 M, 8.2 D, 8.3 D, 8.2 I, 8.3 I, 8.2 P, and 8.3 P of the Accreditation Operating Procedures.
Procedures for Notification of CoA Actions in Accordance with the Secretary of Education’s Standards for Recognition of Accrediting Agencies
The CoA has revised IR D.8-2 to describe the time frame it uses to publish some requested materials.
Commission on Accreditation Policy on Research Studies
The CoA has updated this policy to include master's cohort groups as well as a new student achievement measure for master's programs.
Policy on Regard of Actions by Regional Accreditors and State Agencies
The Commission has revised IR D.8-3 to fully include the accreditation of master’s programs.
Groups to Receive Notification of Proposed Changes in the SoA and AOP
The CoA has updated IR E.1-2 to clarify compliance with the Department of Education, including the timeline for future systematic reviews of the SoA-AOP revisions, and a statement regarding the Commission’s use of public comments received in the policy revision process.
Commission on Accreditation Meeting Procedures
The Commission currently holds four meetings per year with one policy-focused meeting and three program review-focused meetings. IR E.2-1 has been revised with a breakdown of the timing of the CoA’s meetings to clarify compliance with the Department of Education.
In accordance with the APA “Policies for Accreditation Governance” and the US Department of Education regulations for notice and comment, the CoA is providing additional information and is making the changes available for a thirty (30) day period of public notice starting
December 1, 2025. Information about the proposed standards and public comment is available at
http://apps.apa.org/accredcomment/. On behalf of the CoA, thank you in advance for your review.
To promote thoughtful discussion, the CoA is providing an electronic-based form for public comment submission. Comments and other information, including users' identities will be public while email addresses used in the registration process will be confidential. The CoA will consider all comments received and make appropriate revisions should they be deemed necessary before approval of the final versions of the IRs.
The Accreditation Operation Procedures (AOP) outline procedures that guide the accreditation process for programs to be accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA). Correspondent to the AOP are Implementing Regulations (IRs), which are official policy documents that “elucidate, interpret and operationally define” the CoA’s policies and procedures. IRs are divided into several different sections (A through E), which are subject to regular review and revision by the CoA. Through this iterative process, opportunities for clarification have arisen regarding IRs in Section D, which relate specifically to the AOP, and an IR in Section E, which addresses Self-Governance and Regulation.
Public Comment: D.3-1, D.3-2, D.3-11, & D.4-7(b)
Section 7 of the AOP at each level notes that the Office of Program Consultation and Accreditation maintains a database of potential site visitors. IR D.3-1 has been edited to clarify qualifications for APA site visitors and the CoA has modified its classifications of site visitors. Site visitors are now classified as either “Educators” or “Practitioners” with generalists (i.e., visitors training and qualified in areas of psychology outside the scope of accreditation) falling in the “Educators” category. While this change means that not all doctoral site visit teams will require a generalist, the Commission would like to express that it highly values generalist contributions to site visits and will continue to include generalists on doctoral site visit team lists of prospective visitors. Generalists remain strongly encouraged to attend site visitor trainings and to serve on site visit teams. IR D.3-2 has been revised with new criteria for the composition of site visit teams and the selection of site visitors (based on the new classifications in IR D.3-1). IR D.3-11 has been updated accordingly to align with these revisions.
Section 1 of the AOP states that all accredited programs are reviewed annually, and IR D.4-7(a) addresses the use of annual reports for reaffirmation of accredited status and monitoring of individual programs. The revision to this IR focuses on the integration of accredited master’s programs including a master’s-specific “success indicator” to determine thresholds.
In accordance with the APA "Policies for Accreditation Governance" and U.S. Department of Education regulations for notice and comment, the CoA will make the proposed revisions available for a sixty (60) day period of public review and comment. The comment period is scheduled to begin at 5:00 pm Eastern Standard Time on December 1, 2025 and will continue through 5:00pm Eastern Standard Time on January 30, 2026. Information about the proposed standards and public comment is available at http://apps.apa.org/accredcomment/.
Public Notice
Accreditation Status and CoA Status Information
Per the SoA and SoA-M (Standard V.A.1.b at the master’s, doctoral, and postdoctoral level as well as Standard V.A.1.d at the internship level), the CoA requires that accredited programs must disclose its status with regard to accreditation. The CoA has updated these policies to reflect its current action of monitoring program disclosures on at least an annual basis.
Monitoring of Programs on “Accredited, Inactive” Status
The CoA has amended IR D.4-5 to include instructions for master’s or doctoral programs that have finished phasing out of accreditation and need to voluntarily withdraw.
Voluntary Withdrawal from Accreditation and Lapse of Accreditation
The CoA has clarified IR D.4-11 to include the difference between voluntary withdrawal from accreditation and a lapse in accreditation.
CoA Enforcement Timelines
The Commission has developed IR D.4-12 to formalize its timeline for programs that are out of compliance with the SoA. This IR provides additional clarification of the information presented in 8.2 M, 8.3 M, 8.2 D, 8.3 D, 8.2 I, 8.3 I, 8.2 P, and 8.3 P of the Accreditation Operating Procedures.
Procedures for Notification of CoA Actions in Accordance with the Secretary of Education’s Standards for Recognition of Accrediting Agencies
The CoA has revised IR D.8-2 to describe the time frame it uses to publish some requested materials.
Commission on Accreditation Policy on Research Studies
The CoA has updated this policy to include master's cohort groups as well as a new student achievement measure for master's programs.
Policy on Regard of Actions by Regional Accreditors and State Agencies
The Commission has revised IR D.8-3 to fully include the accreditation of master’s programs.
Groups to Receive Notification of Proposed Changes in the SoA and AOP
The CoA has updated IR E.1-2 to clarify compliance with the Department of Education, including the timeline for future systematic reviews of the SoA-AOP revisions, and a statement regarding the Commission’s use of public comments received in the policy revision process.
Commission on Accreditation Meeting Procedures
The Commission currently holds four meetings per year with one policy-focused meeting and three program review-focused meetings. IR E.2-1 has been revised with a breakdown of the timing of the CoA’s meetings to clarify compliance with the Department of Education.
In accordance with the APA “Policies for Accreditation Governance” and the US Department of Education regulations for notice and comment, the CoA is providing additional information and is making the changes available for a thirty (30) day period of public notice starting December 1, 2025. Information about the proposed standards and public comment is available at http://apps.apa.org/accredcomment/. On behalf of the CoA, thank you in advance for your review.
To promote thoughtful discussion, the CoA is providing an electronic-based form for public comment submission. Comments and other information, including users' identities will be public while email addresses used in the registration process will be confidential. The CoA will consider all comments received and make appropriate revisions should they be deemed necessary before approval of the final versions of the IRs.