National Regional Certification Coordinators - terms of reference and responsibilities

Approved by the Executive Board 10^th November 2020

1. National and Regional Certification Coordinators are appointed by the Certification Coordinator to assist in the process of receiving and processing applications by ISST members who are applying for certification.  This includes certification at all levels (Standard, Advanced, Supervisor, Trainer) and in all certification categories (Individual, Group, Couple, Children and Adolescents, Auxiliary).
   
   
2. It is the responsibility of the National Training Directors Committee to advise the National Certification Coordinator with respect to the professional setup in their country and with respect to who, within that set up, is eligible for Full Membership of the ISST and, therefore, to apply for certification.  It is the responsibility of the National Certification Coordinator to liaise with the National Training Directors Committee and to be aware of the policies laid down by it (which in turn have to be ratified by the Executive Board). For countries where there is no National Training Directors Committee, the National Certification Coordinator has the role of advising the ISST through the Certification Coordinator, with respect to who should be eligible for full ISST membership in their country.
   
   
3. Normally, National and Regional Certification Coordinators will be professionally active in the country or region they are representing. 
   
   
4. Where there is no ISST certified Supervisor or Trainer working in a particular country, the Certification Coordinator may:
• Appoint as National Certification Coordinator a Trainer who is working in another country but who is familiar with the professional conditions in the country in question.
  
  
• Appoint a professional from within the country in question who has some training in schema therapy and has the intention of applying for Certification in due course.  In the case the appointee will be called a “National Certification Advisor.”
5. Where National or Regional Certification Coordinators represent one or more countries in which they do not themselves live or have a licence to practice, it is important for them to familiarize themselves with the professional situation in that country (those countries) so that they can advise the Certification Coordinator and the Executive Board accordingly.
   
   
6. National and Regional Certification Coordinators should alert the Certification Coordinator with respect to any questions and concerns with respect to who may or may not be eligible for Full membership of the Society.
   
   
7. National and Regional Certification Coordinators need to keep up to date with the ISST’s requirements and procedures for certification and should also take steps to keep ISST certified Supervisors and Trainers who are offering training in their country up to date with these requirements and procedures so that they can, in turn, inform ISST members who are preparing to apply for certification.
   
   
8. It is the responsibility of National and Regional Certification Coordinators to receive and process applications for ISST certification from ISST members.  This involves:
• thoroughly checking all applications to ensure that they are complete and appropriate before passing them on to the Certification Coordinator. 
  
  
• checking the professional status of applicants to ensure that they are eligible.
  
  
• informing the Certification Coordinator about specific problems and questions with respect to the criteria for full ISST membership in the country concerned.
  
  National or Regional Certification Coordinators have the authority to return applications that do not meet current requirements (for example because they use out of date forms or procedures) and, in the process, to draw the applicant’s attention to what current ISST requirements are.
9. Certification applications for Group Schema Therapy, Schema Therapy for Couples, Schema therapy for Children and Adolescents, and Schema Therapy Auxiliaries may initially be processed by the respective Training and Certification Committees for those categories.  These committees should then pass them on to the National Certification Coordinator for final checking.