Certification of competence in clinical medical physics is offered in four distinct sub-specialties:
Candidates declare their sub-specialty at the time of application. A separate exam is administered for each of the sub-specialties, although some material related to general medical physics is common to each of the exams. Candidates who qualify for the Membership examination process must do a written exam and an oral exam in order to become certified.
Individuals seeking certification from CCPM must meet certain requirements. Applicants for Membership must hold a suitable graduate degree, and must meet a minimum requirement for patient-related work experience. Applicants for Fellowship must have additional work experience, and have made significant contributions in clinical service, education and/or research related to medical physics. Details of the requirements for both Membership and Fellowship can be found in the Application Instructions.
If the requirements are met, the applicant must then successfully complete the examination process, after which he or she will be elected to Membership or Fellowship at the next Annual General Meeting of the College.
Canada is currently experiencing a record shortage of qualified medical physicists (QMPs) in radiation oncology physics (ROP), which is making it difficult to meet our provincial minimum staffing requirements. The demand for certified QMPs, to ensure safe and effective treatments, has recently risen due to the increasing incidence of cancer, growing need for radiotherapy treatments, more complex and adaptive treatment techniques, new radiation therapy facilities, etc.
The gap between supply and rising demand for QMPs has been an escalating problem over the past two decades. Some contributing factors are the small number of medical physics graduates, limited Commission on Accreditation of Medical Physics Education Programs (CAMPEP)-accredited ROP residency positions, a rise in retirements, and relocation of new graduates and QMPs to south of the border.
Many institutions and professional organizations, both provincial and national, are exploring ways to address the issue. Viable solutions like attracting more students to the field, increasing funding and support for medical physics graduate programs, creating more residency opportunities, and retaining the graduates and QMPs in Canada by offering competitive salaries and career advancement opportunities, require longer timelines to implement.
One approach to fulfilling this growing demand, within a short timeframe, is to recruit well-experienced international medical physicists. To assure that the medical physics needs of patients are being provided by qualified personnel, most Canadian employers are demanding certification of MPs, primarily through the Canadian College of Physicists in Medicine (CCPM). This certification can be achieved via successful completion of a CAMPEP-accredited ROP residency followed by the CCPM membership examination.
To ensure that internationally trained MPs also meet these Canadian certification standards, CCPM offers the Bridging Program as an avenue towards eligibility to sit the CCPM membership exam. The Bridging Program is a one-year program designed to transition established, eligible, and practicing MPs to clinical practice in Canada by confirming that they meet the CAMPEP residency standards required for certification.
Currently, the Bridging Program is limited to international ROP MPs, i.e., there is no equivalent program for imaging MPs, as completion of a CAMPEP-accredited residency is not an eligibility requirement for CCPM certification for any of the imaging sub-specialties.
In the past five (5) years, the Board has received several applications and enquiries pertaining to eligibility for the Bridging Program. The purpose of this article is to provide potential applicants and host institutions with in-depth information regarding eligibility (education and experience), program setup and requirements, and application package preparation for a Bridging Program.
Current employment: To be eligible to apply for the Bridging Program, the applicant must be employed as a clinical MP in a Canadian Institution. This means that the applicant should already be working in Canada. The applicant should not be working outside the country at the time of application, even if a prospective job offer in Canada has been secured.
Previous employment: The applicant must have at least 4 years full-time experience as a recognized clinical MP outside Canada or the United States of America, in the last 7 years. Medical physics work performed during graduate studies, training, or in part-time positions, will not be considered. In addition, work experience as a dosimetrist or physics assistant (or equivalent, as judged by CCPM Board review) does not count towards this full-time requirement.
Educational requirements: Applicants shall possess a masters or doctoral degree from an accredited university or college in medical physics, physics, science with physics as a major option, engineering or applied mathematics. Furthermore, as per the Standards for CAMPEP residency, “the applicant shall have a strong foundation in basic physics, which shall be demonstrated either by an undergraduate or graduate degree in physics, or by a degree in an engineering discipline or another of the physical sciences and with coursework that is the equivalent of a minor in physics (i.e., one that includes at least three upper-level undergraduate physics courses that would be required for a physics major)”.
Program location: The Bridging Program must take place through a department having a CAMPEP-accredited residency program. Institutions that do not have a CAMPEP residency program will need to confirm that this condition is met prior to submission of the application to the College.
Program Director and Mentor: The Bridging Program must be overseen by the CAMPEP residency program director of the institution where the program is being conducted. The mentor, assigned to assess the progress of the applicant, should be a member of the CCPM.
Before submitting the application, the application processing fees must be paid. Processing fees are published on the CCPM website under Exam Schedule and Fees. The application package must be electronically submitted by the applicant to the CCPM Registrar with the following documents. If any of the documents are not in English, translations to English must be provided.
Cover letter: Optional but highly recommended to introduce the applicant and the planned program.
Curriculum vitae (CV): The comprehensive CV must also provide specifics of any past medical physics training, relevant qualifications and experience, professional responsibilities, and competence.
Proof of educational qualifications: The application must be accompanied by copies of transcripts and proof of completion of both undergraduate and graduate degrees. During the review process, the reviewers may request a course syllabus to better understand the content covered in the courses listed. Hence, it is highly recommended that the syllabus be attached with the application. Though previous evaluations of foreign credential validation against Canadian standards may be attached, it does not guarantee that the educational qualification will be acceptable as the College follows the CAMPEP educational requirements for residency admission. Any other relevant certifications may also be included.
Proof of prior employment: Letter(s) of employment as a clinical MP from previous employer(s) must be attached to prove the 4 years of MP experience claimed and to confirm the position(s) held.
Letter of support from the Department Head: This support letter, from the head of the department where the Bridging Program will be carried out, should provide details of current employment, resources available to support the Bridging Program applicant, confirm the physical location of the program, and provide a brief overview of the proposed training program. If the Bridging Program is being performed in collaboration with a CAMPEP residency program at another institution, a letter of support from the CAMPEP residency director must be included.
Structured plan for the Bridging Program: The structured plan should be designed to ensure that all aspects of a CAMPEP ROP residency, not already addressed in the previous work experience, is covered. It is recommended that the applicant and the mentor/residency director work together to identify the individual gaps in training and clinical experience using the CAMPEP residency syllabus as a reference.
An introductory section of the plan should highlight topics of the CAMPEP ROP residency already addressed in the previous work experience. For each identified training/clinical rotation, the structured plan should include the: (i) rotation name, (ii) name(s) of the rotation supervisor(s), (iii) duration of rotation, (iv) details of content to be covered, and (v) documentation and evaluation plan. A CCPM certified medical physicist must be present during evaluations. The structured plan must be approved by both the department head and the CAMPEP residency director.
Institutions hiring international medical physicists with the aim of seeking CCPM membership certification are encouraged to proactively consult the CCPM Registrar for guidance on the eligibility of the potential applicant and the proposed model for the Bridging Program. The applicant’s educational qualifications (both undergraduate and graduate degrees) and evidence of pre-existing competence in the areas covered by a CAMPEP residency program are important criteria evaluated during review.
The applicant’s education should be equivalent to the requirements for admission to a CAMPEP ROP residency program. Minor deficiencies in experience may be addressed by the Bridging Program, subject to Board approval.
The Bridging Program shall commence only after successful assessment by an ad-hoc review committee and approval by the CCPM Board, and is expected to be completed in one year. The candidate must maintain (i) a detailed log of activities performed throughout the program that are signed off by the mentor and (ii) results of all evaluations.
To demonstrate completion of the Bridging Program, the candidate must provide the Registrar with a letter from the CAMPEP residency program director stating successful completion of all elements mentioned in the structured plan and thus meets all CAMPEP ROP residency competencies. As the Registrar may request further documentation, such as rotation logs and evaluations, these may also be attached with the completion letter.
Once the approval of completion of the Bridging Program is granted by the Registrar, the candidate is eligible to apply for the CCPM membership examination. This application must be accompanied by the Bridging Program completion letter from the CAMPEP residency director and the approval letter from the CCPM Registrar.
Further details about the Bridging Program are available in the CCPM Regulations. For additional information or guidance, please contact the CCPM Registrar at registrar@ccpm.ca
Retention of competency certification (Membership) in the Canadian College of Physicists in Medicine requires recertification every five (5) years and Physics of Mammography in the Canadian College of Physicists in Medicine requires recertification every three (3) years. Recertification consists of a credential review of evidence of clinical practice and appropriate continuing education.
Please see CCPM Bylaws and CCPM Regulations for more information on this process.
The following information is required for recertification. Please note that if you have more than one specialty, you must submit a separate credit submission for each.
Additional information about the recertification process is available on the FAQ page.
Please contact the CCPM Administrator info@ccpm.ca with any questions or requests for more information.
The following information is required for recertification. Recertification requirements for CCPM certified mammography physicists are outlined in the CCPM regulations in Section H.8 and include the following:
When applying for recertification please provide:
Please contact the CCPM Administrator info@ccpm.ca with any questions or requests for more information.
The Board of the Canadian College of Physicists in Medicine is pleased to honour the Founding President of the College by means of the Harold E. Johns Travel Award for Young Investigators.
H. E. Johns – Officer of the Order of Canada, Ph.D., LL.D., D.Sc., Emeritus University Professor and Professor Emeritus in the Department of Medical Biophysics and Radiology, University of Toronto.
Dr. Johns was born of missionary parents while in West China. During his scientific career, he published over 200 peer-reviewed papers, trained over 100 graduate students, many of whom hold key positions in the field of Medical Physics across Canada and around the world. He has won many prestigious awards and has published four editions of “The Physics of Radiology”, the premiere textbook in the field.
His developments in the late 1940s of the Cobalt “bomb” led to a career in the pioneering field of Medical Biophysics. This in turn led to an international reputation among scientists. His many awards and accolades reflect the respect and admiration in which he was held by academics and scientists around the world. He was inducted into the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame in 1998. Dr. Johns passed away on August 23, 1998.
The Harold E. Johns Travel award is given annually by the Canadian College of Physicists in Medicine to an outstanding CCPM Member proposing to visit one or more medical physics centres or to attend specialized training courses such as an American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM) summer school. It is intended to assist the CCPM Member in extending their knowledge by travelling to another centre or institution with the intent of gaining further experience in their chosen field, or, alternately, to embark on a new field of endeavour in medical physics. The ultimate goal of the award is to enhance medical physics practice in Canada.
Applicants may travel either inside Canada or elsewhere. Applicants must have passed the CCPM membership exam within the previous three years, and should not have previously taken a similar course or have spent a significant amount of time at the proposed institutions. The award is for $3,000 and will be paid upon receipt of a satisfactory expense claim. Recipients need not be Canadian citizens but must be working in Canada.
The next application deadline is Friday, April 2, 2027.
Applicants must apply online with the following information:
The selection committee reserves the right to contact additional individuals or institutions.
A panel appointed by the Board of the College will choose the award recipient. Their choice will be based upon:
The award will be announced at the Annual General Meeting of the College. Recipients will have two years after their application deadline to complete their travel and will be required to submit a short report to the InterACTIONS newsletter.
Applicants who are unsuccessful in any one year and still eligible in subsequent years may have their applications considered again by writing to the Registrar and providing any necessary updated information.
For questions, please contact registrar@ccpm.ca
Mike Sattarivand, FCCPM, DABR, P.Eng., CRPA(R)
