General Practitioner Advanced Certificate
Advance your skills with a General Practitioner Advanced Certificate
The GPAdvCert is developed for veterinary professionals who wish to advance their knowledge and practical skills, progress their academic qualifications and gain recognition in their field.
These are advanced level ‘next-step’ programmes for veterinary professionals who may have already completed their General Practitioner Certificate (GPCert) accredited by the International School of Veterinary Postgraduate Studies (ISVPS) or equivalent qualifications from other providers. You can also attend these programmes if you do not hold a postgraduate qualification which is aimed at an advanced level, however, the GPAdvCert award route is only available to those delegates who hold or intend to obtain the appropriate GPCert award or equivalent.
Once successfully obtained the certificate (GPAdvCert), the student will not only have acquired an extraordinary degree, but also valuable additional skills and the necessary confidence to carry out new techniques in their professional life, increasing the value and quality of their practice clinical respect to most veterinarians.
How to obtain a General Practitioner Advance Certificate
All veterinarians can attend these advanced level training.
In addition, those who have obtained a GPCert in any of the subjects accepted * in the previous 5 years and who are attending an advanced course of Improve International can enroll directly in the evaluations to obtain the GPAdvCert (a report of a clinical case and a exam with multiple choice questions).
Veterinarians who are not holders of a GPCert in an accepted subject or who have obtained it more than 5 years before, have two options:
- Register and complete the corresponding Improve International and GPCert course.
- Through the APL (Accreditation of Prior Learning).
APL
The two main routes of the APL are the APEL (Accreditation of Prior Experience Learning) and the APCL (Accreditation of Prior Certificated Learning).
APEL – Accreditation of Prior Experience Learning
- This accreditation route is suitable for candidates who have extensive experience in the specialty or who have obtained a GPCert in a subject valid for more than 5 years.
- Candidates who follow this route must prove their professional work history and CPD (Continuing Professional Development) in a CV.
- Candidates must send their CV, a copy of their veterinary degree and a record of the continuous professional development they have made in the corresponding specialty (minimum 70h in the last two years).
- If the APEL is approved, candidates can access the evaluations to obtain the GPCert.
APCL – Accreditation of prior certified learning
- This accreditation path applies to candidates who have obtained an accreditation equivalent to the GPCert in the last 5 years. If they are older than 5 years, candidates must follow the APEL route.
- Candidates must submit their CV, a copy of their veterinary degree and a copy of the relevant certificate they wish to submit.
- If the certificate has been completed in accordance with the current evaluation requirements for the GPCert, the candidate will have direct access to the evaluations to obtain the GPAdvCert.
Other considerations:
- The process of evaluating the APL involves the payment of a fee (consult the ESVPS). In order to carry out the evaluations to obtain the GPCert and / or the GPAdvCert, it is necessary to pay the corresponding examination fees.
- The APL has to be sent in English.
- It is highly recommended that APL candidates have a minimum of 5 years of clinical experience and 2 years of training and experience in the specific area of GPCert.
- In case the APL is not approved, the fee paid is not reimbursable. If candidates wish to re-try accreditation via APL, they will be charged 50% of the fee.
- Candidates interested in the APL should contact the ESVPS directly to discuss the best route for their case and receive the APL application form.
