APR (Accredition)

How can accreditation advance your career?

One of the toughest aspects of any PR job is convincing the people around you that what you know is based on tested principles rather than gut intuition. Becoming accredited allows you to put the letters APR after your name. This shows the world that you are at the top of your profession.

Simply put, accreditation is your ticket to respect and credibility. Plus, more employers are starting to look for APRs when recruiting or promoting.

For more information on becoming an APR, contact Charlene Gaudet, APR, FCPRS at charlene.gaudet@ceaa-acee.gc.ca.

What’s the process?

The accreditation process measures a member’s experience and competence in the professional practice of public relations. Candidates must satisfactorily complete a three-part accreditation examination and subscribe to the Code of Ethics before being designated as an Accredited Public Relations practitioner and authorized to use the APR designation.

To be eligible for accreditation, candidates must be members of the Canadian Public Relations Society and be employed full-time in public relations, with more than half of this time spent in professional activities, for not less than five years.

The three-part accreditation examination consists of a work example, a written examination and an oral examination. In addition to measuring their level of knowledge and competence, the examination process probes the candidates’ understanding of the Code of Ethics and their awareness of the theories, practices, techniques and tools used by practitioners to meet their obligations to employers or clients.

The National Office of CPRS makes available a manual on accreditation.

Accredited Members

The APR designation denotes high professional, educational and ethical standards in public relations, as well as the leadership, professional judgment and communications skills to manage and strengthen relationships between an organization and its publics and stakeholders.

Ottawa-area practitioners accredited by the Canadian Public Relations Society and who are members in good standing include:

  • Denis Abbott, APR, Bank of Canada
  • Nicole Beauchamp, APR, Consultant
  • Cindy Bickerton, APR, Bickerton Communications
  • Jean-Paul Brasseur, APR, Brasseur & Associates
  • Robert Burr, APR, Burr Communications
  • Robert Butt, APR, The Royal Canadian Legion
  • Mark Buzan, APR,  Action Strategies
  • Margaret Chartrand, APR, MC Communications
  • Danielle F. Cote, APR, BKT Health and Promotion
  • Walter Joseph Chipchase, APR, Consultant
  • Douglas Christenson, APR, AECL
  • Yvette Diepenbrock, APR, Conference Board of Canada
  • Robert Diotte, APR, Consultant
  • Charlene Gaudet, APR, Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency
  • Greg Gertz, APR, Gertz Communications
  • Mark Giles, APR, Privy Council Office
  • Stephen Heckbert, APR, Algonquin College
  • Linda Halliday, APR, Ontario Power Generation
  • David Kardish, APR, Bridges Consulting
  • Jonathon Lareau, APR, Canada Foundation for Innovation
  • Chantal Lecours, APR, L’Institut Professionel de la fonction publique du Canada
  • Pierrette Leonard, APR, The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada
  • Greg MacDougall, APR, Department of Justice Canada
  • Robyn Osgood, APR, Blueprint Public Relations
  • Pierre Pontbriand, APR, Canada Council for the Arts
  • Sylvie Rouleau, APR, Société canadienne d’hypothèque et de loge
  • Donald Roy, APR, Consultant
  • Maragret Rudolf, APR, Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat
  • Wendy Sailman, APR, Department of Justice Canada
  • Jean Valin, APR, Fellow CPRS, Department of Justice Canada
  • Léa Werthman, APR
  • Michelle Whelan, APR, CUSO
  • Claudine Wilson, APR, Algonquin College