Finishing fourth year soon? What you need to know for provisional registration as a psychologist

15 Sep 2021

Once you are registered, you can start supervised practice as a provisional psychologist anywhere in Australia.

You need to be registered as a provisional psychologist with the Psychology Board of Australia (Board) before you can start psychology practice in an approved internship or higher degree program.

Online registration for graduate applications is open from mid-September and you can submit your application up to three months before you expect to complete your course. You’ll need to know which pathway you are completing before you submit your application.

How do I apply?

1. Create your account using the online services portal and complete your application.
2. Upload your documents and pay the required fees. Check that you have provided all required documentation to prove you’ve met the registration standards, including certified copies of your photo ID.
3. Wait for your education provider to provide your graduate results to Ahpra.

Once we’ve received your graduate results from your education provider and we are satisfied that you have met all the requirements for registration, we will finalise your application.

When you are registered, we will publish your name to the Register of practitioners.

Get your application right

Check out our graduate video to help you get your application right.

You’ll find helpful advice, tips for avoiding common causes of delay and downloadable information flyers on the graduate applications page of the Ahpra website.

Photo ID

It's important that you provide correctly certified photo ID documents with your application - the wording is very specific.

‘I certify that this is a true copy of the original and the photograph is a true likeness of the person presenting the document as sighted by me.’

To get it right the first time download the guide ‘Certifying Documents’ and take it with you to the authorised officer.

Who can certify documents?

In addition to JPs, most registered health practitioners, public servants, teachers, lecturers and members of the legal profession can certify photographic ID documents. For the full list of authorised officers see the guide.

What do I need to do for provisional registration?

When you apply for provisional registration, your application is carefully assessed against the Board’s requirements for registration.

For registration as a provisional psychologist, you need to prove that you meet the following standards:

• English language skills, and
• professional indemnity insurance.

We will also ask you to disclose any criminal history and to declare any health impairments that may affect your ability to practise.

You will need to upload details of your proposed supervision arrangements or higher degree program with your application.

We cannot register you until we are satisfied that you meet the requirements for registration and are suitably qualified and your supervised practice arrangements are in place.

Pathways for further training

Provisional psychologists undertake the fifth and sixth years of psychology training through one of the approved pathways which lead to general registration:

• 4+2 internship
• 5+1 internship program, or
• higher degree program (Masters or Doctorate professional qualification).

You should choose your pathway for further training before applying online for provisional registration because you will need to submit information that is specific to the pathway you choose. For those in an internship pathway, this includes the appropriate internship program plan.

How long does it take to assess my application?

We can’t finalise your application until we receive your graduate results from your education provider.

If you’ve submitted everything you need to prove you’ve met the requirements for registration, we aim to finalise your application within two weeks of receiving your graduate results.

For more information

• For registration enquiries or difficulties with the online application form: contact us by making a web enquiry or by calling 1300 419 495 (within Australia).
• For media enquiries: (03) 8708 9200.