Graduate Programs

CAMPEP offers accreditation of graduate educational programs in medical physics. The goal is to ensure that a graduate program provides rigorous and thorough education such that program graduates are equipped with the appropriate skills to pursue a career in medical physics.

The Process of CAMPEP accreditation of graduate programs requires that the program submit a self assessment report using the template available giving evidence of consistency with a set of clearly stated standards. After review of this report, a survey team will conduct a program site visit to validate the assessment. If successful, accreditation is granted for a period of 3 years. Re-accreditation requires an updated self assessment report. The Graduate Education Program Review Committee (GEPRC) is responsible for managing the accreditation of graduate programs and appointing a Survey Team from within the GEPRC for each application. The survey team consists of senior medical physicists with experience in both clinical practice and educational programs. All members of the GEPRC and the program survey teams act for CAMPEP on a volunteer basis. A fee is charged for each application and re-application to cover the incidental costs of the accreditation process, including travel expenses related to the site visit.

Full instructions are provided on the application template, available from the link on the left hand panel. A right mouse click on the link will enable a copy of the template to be saved to your local disc. The initial application submitted via an online submission process must include an official request for accreditation in the form of a letter from a principal administrative officer of the institution inviting CAMPEP to conduct an evaluation of the medical physics graduate education program. An institution's request for its program to be evaluated by CAMPEP is totally voluntary and, as such, the institution agrees to abide by the decision of the CAMPEP Board of Directors.

The application fee for accreditation or reaccreditation of graduate programs in the U.S. and Canada is US $5,000.

*For programs outside the U.S. or Canada considering application for CAMPEP accreditation, the program director must contact the chair of the appropriate review committee for instructions.

This fee is due at the time the application is submitted.
Credit card payments may be made via the Online Self Study Submission System.

Contact Jacqueline Ogburn for assistance.

Steps Involved

1. The preparation and submission to CAMPEP of a self-study evaluation by the institution applying for accreditation. All self-study documentation must be in English or must have an accompanying English translation. The purpose of the self-study is to describe the scope and performance of the program. This information is the primary vehicle for CAMPEP’s evaluation of a program applying for accreditation. Secondarily, the self-study provides a body of information that permits a critical self-evaluation and the development of goals for self-improvement. The official request and institutional accreditation documentation shall be contained in an appendix of the self-study. The fee for accreditation is due at the time the application is submitted. The review of the self-study document by the CAMPEP GEPRC shall commence after receipt of the application fee. 
2. The preliminary review of the self-study by the CAMPEP GEPRC.
3. The resolution of any questions or concerns identified during the preliminary review. A satisfactory response from the program director to these questions is required before proceeding to the next step. If the preliminary review raises no concerns, this step is not required.
4. The site visit by representative members of the GEPRC. Site visits are always scheduled for first time applicant institutions but may not be deemed necessary for institutions being re-accredited. In all cases, institutions applying for reaccreditation will be visited, at the least, on every other occasion on which they apply for reaccreditation, i.e., at least once every ten years.
5. The preparation of a program evaluation report by the site visit team. This report shall include any appropriate recommendations and must be approved by the GEPRC prior to submission to the CAMPEP Board of Directors.
6. Consideration of the GEPRC recommendations by the CAMPEP Board of Directors.
7. Communication of the resulting recommendation of the CAMPEP Board of Directors to the applicant institution.

On Site Program Review

Purpose and Structure

The site visit requires 1.5 days and is scheduled at a time that will permit the members of the site visit team to meet with one or more of the principal administrative officials of the institution, the faculty and the students, and shall, therefore, be during a time when classes are in session.

The purpose of the site visit is to examine selected areas of the program identified in the self-study review where questions may exist; to meet and talk personally with faculty members, students, and administrative officials; to observe the adequacy of facilities; to assess the aptitude and commitment of students and faculty; to observe the general educational and scientific environment at the institution; and to obtain any additional data required for evaluation.

The site visit team shall be provided with records generated by the medical physics programs including, but not limited to, minutes of faculty meetings and governing committee meetings, course evaluations, lecture materials, and student admission records. Any records to which the site-visit team has legal access shall be available for review at their request. Also available for review to the site-visit team shall be theses and dissertations produced by program graduates, and the course exams and qualifying exams for the current and preceding academic year.

Site Visit Team Composition

The site visit team (generally two or three members of the GEPRC) is composed of experienced educators and scientists thoroughly familiar with CAMPEP’s criteria and knowledgeable about both administrative and technical aspects of successful programs. In the selection of members of the site visit team for a particular on-site evaluation visit, every effort is made to eliminate any conflict of interest or bias. For instance, a graduate of the institution under evaluation, or a person having a close and continuing relationship with the institution, would not be chosen to assist in the visit and evaluation. Neither would one be selected who is a faculty member at an institution in the same immediate geographical area nor from one having any substantial number of its graduates on the faculty at the institution being evaluated.

Accreditation Status

Initial Accreditation: If a new educational program has already enrolled trainees (Note:  A non-accredited residency program may not accept residents), then, following a Site Visit, Initial Accreditation may be granted by the Board for three years.  If the program has yet to admit a student/resident, Initial Accreditation may be granted for a period until the first full-time student/resident has completed the first year of study and not to exceed two years, at which time a Site Visit will take place.  Following the Site Visit, Initial Accreditation may be extended by the Board so that the total Initial Accreditation period after the initial Board action is three years.  

In either case, if the program submits acceptable annual reports during these three years of Initial Accreditation, it may be extended an additional two years on the recommendation of the appropriate Review Committee(s) and granted by the President upon recommendation by the Review Committee Chair.

Reaccreditation:  Educational programs applying for Reaccreditation may be granted accreditation for a period of up to five years.

Provisional Accreditation: Provisional Accreditation for a period of up to three years may be granted at the discretion of the CAMPEP Board if circumstances preclude awarding of accreditation. The terms for ending the Provisional Accreditation shall be specified by the Board.

Accreditation Denied: This action is taken when a program is found not to comply with CAMPEP standards for accreditation and it appears that the changes that the program would have to make to qualify for accreditation could not be achieved within a reasonable period of time. After this decision, should accreditation be further pursued by the program, a new application shall be required, including the appropriate fee.

When a graduate program is accredited, CAMPEP will provide a certificate of accreditation to the institution and a copy of the final GEPRC report listing any required and recommended changes.  The program director must provide updated information on any required and/or recommended changes at the time of each subsequent annual report.

The name of the institution and program will appear on the CAMPEP website on the list of medical institutions whose programs have been accredited by CAMPEP.