CURRENT SITE VISITORS

Current Site Visitors

APA conducts more than 250 site visits each year, requiring a team of more than 500 qualified site visitors. Thank you for being a critical step in the accreditation process and playing an important role in preserving the integrity of the field of psychology. Please note that every site visitor who completes a site visit may claim either 25 CEs or a journal subscription (once per calendar year). Both options are of no cost to the site visitor. Below, you'll find helpful resources and frequently asked questions pertaining to your role as a site visitor.
TRAINING

Upcoming Site Visitor Workshops

Check out our list of upcoming in-person workshops for current and prospective site visitors.  
View Workshops
POLICIES

Site Visitor Policies

 Stay current on site visitor policies, including:
EXPENSE REPORTING

Submit Your Expense Reports

You can now electronically submit your completed, signed expense report and receipts. Completed materials should be sent via email directly to our finance team in the Office of Program Consultation and Accreditation at AccreditationTravel@apa.org.

Copies of receipts are required for all expenses regardless of the amount, including meal receipts, taxi receipts, flight/train receipts (if not booked through ATC Travel Management), hotel receipts, etc. As always, expense reports should be submitted within 30 days of your trip. For additional information on site visit expense-related questions, please review the FAQs ‘Travel’ section of the Site Visitor Manual (PDF, 3MB).

If you have any expense-related questions, please contact the finance team via e-mail or at (202) 336-5979.
SITE VISITOR MANUAL

Understanding Roles and Responsibilities

Prepare for your service as a site visitor. Read an overview of the accreditation process, how the site visit fits in, the site visit process and more.
View Manual
SITE VISIT REPORT

Site Visit Report Preparation Sheets

Site visitors may utilize the following site visit report preparation sheets to draft site visit reports outside of the CoA Portal. The final report must be submitted through the CoA Portal; therefore, if the site visit report preparation sheet is utilized then the site visit team will need to cut and paste the “Reports” tab narrative and the “Site Visit Comment” narrative directly into the CoA Portal. The site visit report must be submitted within 30 days following the visit.

Update your site visitor profile

It is important that the accreditation database of active site visitors remains up-to-date and accurate. If you feel your site visitor profile should be updated with regard to your contact information, experience, availability, etc., please log into your site visitor profile in the CoA Portal to make these changes.
Update profile

FAQs for Current Site Visitors

  • What if I have questions regarding a possible conflict of interest with the program or another member of the Site Visit team?

    View examples of potential conflicts of interest. If there is still question with regard to a specific relationship, please consult the Office of Accreditation.

  • Is there a limit to the number of site visits I can agree to?

    You can accept or decline as many site visit requests as you wish. Ideally, no site visitor will participate in more then two site visits per year, but this limit is merely a suggestion and should not limit you from doing additional visits if your schedule allows.

  • What travel plans will I be responsible for? How will I be reimbursed for these expenses?

    Transportation: To schedule travel, site visitors (excluding VA visitors completing VA program site visits) are to use Deem, an online travel booking tool. Visitors may also use Deem for site visit hotel bookings. Shortly after receiving an email from the accreditation office formally confirming the site visit, first-time users will also receive an activation email from Deem@work. Visitors should retain the activation email and login information, as Deem will be used to schedule travel for every site visit. Visitors can access their Deem accounts at any time. 


    While visitors are strongly encouraged to use Deem to schedule travel, they may instead contact an ATC agent by phone at (local) (703) 253-6004 or (toll-free) (800) 458-9383. Site visitors should indicate that they are booking with the American Psychological Association and provide the name and dates of the site visit they will be attending. Visitors should be prepared to provide their date of birth, gender, name as it appears on their government issued ID, phone contact on the day of travel, email address, and seat preference. ATC Travel Management business hours are M-F, 8:30 am – 7:00 pm, Eastern time. 


    When booking travel with Deem or an ATC agent, airfare will be billed directly to APA. Do not obtain non-refundable supersaver fares unless you are absolutely certain that the dates for the visit are firm.  If you can save substantially on airfare by staying over at a location on a Saturday night and you wish to do so, please contact the OPCA so that we can ensure that you will be reimbursed for your hotel accommodations for that evening. If you choose to make your own flight arrangements, be sure to report travel costs on your expense report. You must receive prior approval from the accreditation office should you wish to use any other means of transportation (e.g., rental car).


    Hotel: The chair of the site visit team is encouraged to ask the program to suggest a convenient and affordable hotel, and communicate this to the rest of the team. Indicate hotel costs on your expense report and submit it to the Accreditation Office for reimbursement with the paid hotel receipt (zero balance).

  • Will APA reimburse me for an extra night at the hotel?

    APA will reimburse you for an additional night if you can save substantially on airfare by staying over at a location. Please notify the Accreditation Office ahead of time so that you will be reimbursed for your hotel accommodations for that evening.


    All other requests for the reimbursement of additional nights are only approved under extenuating circumstances and need to be approved by the Accreditation Office prior to the visit.

  • Is there any set limit for hotel costs?

    The Accreditation Office understands that hotel prices vary depending on geographic location, and tend to run very high in urban areas. While there is no set dollar amount, we ask that you seek additional suggestions from the program if the hotel cost seems particularly high for a certain area.

  • Who makes the Site Visit schedule? Can I get a sample schedule?

    The schedule should be developed by the chair of the site visit team and the training director of the program at least two weeks prior to the site visit. Due to the many structural differences among programs, we do not provide a sample schedule.

  • When should I receive program materials regarding the site visit?

    Once all site visitors have accepted their roles for the site visit in the CoA Portal, the Accreditation Office will send an email confirming the visit. In addition to important program-related information, this email will include the APA Travel Office Memo and an Expense Report E-fill form. If you do not receive this confirmation six weeks prior to the site visit, please contact the Accreditation Office.


    Upon receipt of this email, all site visit team members will have access to the program’s self-study in the CoA Portal. Programs are no longer responsible for providing a hardcopy version of the self-study report and, therefore, may not have a hardcopy themselves. Site visitors should not expect programs to provide the document outside of the CoA Portal (e.g. PDF, hardcopy). The self-study should be accessed and reviewed within the online system.

  • Are my accreditation materials up to date?

  • How should I structure the site visit (SV) report?

    Site visitors should structure their reports according to the appropriate Site Visit Report Preparation Sheets listed above, if they chose to draft the report outside of the CoA Portal.

  • When is the site visit report due?

    The report must be submitted through the CoA Portal within 30 days following the site visit.

  • Once the report is submitted what other responsibilities do I have?

    Once the site visit report and schedule are submitted your responsibility for the site visit is complete. Occasionally the Office of Accreditation may need to call a site visitor to clarify information provided in the site visit report.

  • Will I receive feedback regarding the visit?

    Site visitors who go on at least two visits during a year will receive aggregate data on their ratings from the programs they visited. Such data is compiled by the Accreditation Office periodically. 


    Each member of the site visit team will receive access to the program's response to their report and the Commission’s decision (see Implementing Regulation D3-3(b)) after the CoA has made a final decision on that program. Please note that this may be several months or longer after the site visit takes place. Site visitors receive these materials only in the interest of providing feedback on their performance with the intent being to improve future reports. The CoA and Office of Program Consultation and Accreditation do not expect, and will not accept, any responses regarding the contents of these materials from site visitors.

  • When will I find out the outcome of the program’s review? How long do I need to keep the program materials (site visit report)?

    The accredited program listings are updated 30 days after each Commission meeting. You may consult this list on a periodic basis to find out whether the program has received a final decision and its accredited status has been updated. After final decisions have been publicly posted, site visit teams will have access to the program’s response to the site visit report and accreditation decision in the CoA Portal. Once you receive these materials, this indicates that the review is final and that ALL program material is to be destroyed.

  • I have not been invited to participate on a site visit team lately. How can I find out if I am still an active member of the site visitor corps?

    Some years you may have many invitations, while other years, you may never receive a call. It is very dependent on your area of expertise and the types of programs up for review. Sometimes this is simply a matter of incorrect information in the site visitor database. The accreditation database is separate from all other APA databases, so please update your site visitor profile in the CoA Portal if your contact information and/or availability changes. If you would like to participate in more visits, please contact the Accreditation Office.

  • How do I become a site visit team chair?

    Once you have participated as the second member on three site visits, you are automatically eligible to serve as the chair of a site visit team and may appear on lists as a potential chair. Chair workshops are offered periodically to aid in the transition to site visitor chair, and provide 4.0 CE credits for licensed psychologists. Attending this workshop is encouraged, but not required, to head a site visit team. All upcoming workshops are listed on the Accreditation Workshop Page. If you would be interested in attending such a workshop, please contact the office.

  • What if I do not wish to chair a site visit?

    If you are asked to chair a team, but do not wish to lead the visit, you are welcome to offer your services as the second member of the team. If you do not wish to appear on further "chair" lists, please contact the office. Your name will remain in the site visitor pool as a "group 2" member only.

  • When does the Commission on Accreditation meet? How many programs are reviewed each year?

    The CoA meets three times per year (Spring/Summer/Fall). Exact dates for the Commission on Accreditation meetings are publicly announced on an annual basis and are available on the Important Dates page. The Commission reviews approximately 70 programs at each meeting for a total of about 210 programs each year.

What is a site visit?

The Commission on Accreditation conducts, per year, approximately 75 visits to doctoral programs and 125 visits to internship/postdoctoral programs, necessitating the participation of well over 400 site visitors from all areas of psychology.

On Site Review

The site visit is an on site review of your program to help the Commission confirm that your program meets the Standards of Accreditation and your self-study information is valid.

Point of Contact

Since representatives of the programs do not appear before the Commission, only the site visit team has face-to-face contact with the psychologists involved in the program.

Verification

Site visitors act as the "eyes and ears" of the Commission. It is through the written report of the site visitors that it is possible to verify self-study information and receive a perspective about the program operation that can only be obtained through direct observation.

An Essential Step

The site visit is an essential and unique step in the accreditation process. As such, site visitors serve a critical role in providing information to the Commission about the quality of educational programs.

Related Pages

  • Applying for Accreditation and Intent to Apply Status

    Upcoming Accreditation Workshops
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