Applicants from a Non-Approved Program

To practise as a chiropodist in Ontario, you must hold a certificate of registration with the College of Chiropodists of Ontario (COCOO). If you have graduated from a chiropody or podiatry program outside Ontario, please contact the College at info@cocoo.on.ca before applying to confirm your eligibility for the Registration Examination.

To start the application process, you must complete and submit the required forms with any applicable fee(s) and documentation.

Step 1: Review Requirements 

Step 2: Complete Online Application 

  • Review the Applicant Checklist for required documents. 
    • Certification of Three-Month Clinical Experience/Internship Form. Must be forwarded to the College directly from the certifying institution or practitioner.
    • Official transcript of successful completion of an approved chiropody/podiatry program. Transcripts must come directly from the educational institution to the College. A transcript must confirm that a degree/diploma has been granted.
    • Official transcript of successful completion of other academic program(s). Transcripts must come directly from the educational institution to the College. A transcript must confirm that a degree/diploma has been granted.
    • Official evidence of registration with a licensing body sent to the College directly from the registration/licensing body (applies only to applicants who practiced in another jurisdiction).
  • Additionally, you must:
    • Upload your complete resume / curriculum vitae to the Applicant Checklist.
    • Upload a copy of your graduation diploma from the chiropody/podiatry program to the Applicant Checklist.
    • Upload a copy of your birth certificate to the Applicant Checklist.
    • Provide and upload proof of either 1) Canadian citizenship, or 2) permanent residency in Canada, or 3) authorization under the Immigration Act (Canada) to practise the profession in Canada to the Applicant Checklist.
    • Provide a signed copy of the Confidentiality Agreement.
    • Submit a Canadian police criminal record check.
      • A police record check is a name-based search of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police’s Canadian Police Information Centre (CPIC) system. The College only requires a Level 1 check (criminal record check) but will accept any other check provided as long as it is no more than six months old at the time of application.
      • You can obtain a police record check from any local police department in Canada or online. Requests should include all your previous names and aliases. Find more information about police record checks on the RCMP website.

IMPORTANT: You cannot work as a chiropodist or in any way hold yourself out as a chiropodist in Ontario until after you are officially registered with the College.

Step 3: Program Review and Approval

Step 4: Application Approval

  • The Registrar will review your completed application and submitted required documents. The College will notify you of any pending documents or forms. 
  • If requirements are unclear or conditions apply, your application may go to the Registration Committee. 
    • The Registration Regulation addresses the initial requirements for registration. The process for approving an application for registration to the College is that the Registrar initially reviews the documentation which you provide. If there are any deficiencies, then pursuant to the Regulated Health Professions Act, 1991, s.15 (2) the Registrar shall refer an application for registration to the Registration Committee if:
      (a) it is unclear whether you meet the registration requirements; 
      (b) the registrar believes terms, conditions or limitations should be placed on your certificate and you do not agree; or 
      (c) the Registrar proposes to refuse your application. 

If you have any questions about the application process, please contact the College.

Prescribe Drugs or Administer Substances by Injection into the Foot

Under the General Regulation, registrants must meet specific education requirements to prescribe drugs or administer substances by injection into the foot.

To qualify, you must successfully complete a course listed in Schedule 4 of the Registration Regulation. This includes course approved by Council that covers prescribing drugs and administering substances by injection into the foot, with both clinical and classroom (didactic) components.

Please note that although the Registration Examination includes pharmacology content, passing the exam alone does NOT authorize you to prescribe drugs or give injections. 

If you wish to gain the authority to prescribe or administer substances by injection into the foot, you have two options: 

  1. Submit your educational materials for review by an external expert to determine if they are equivalent to the Michener course on prescribing and administering drugs and other substances by injection into the foot. The review fee is $625.00; or 
  2. You may take the following courses at The Michener. They are:
Evaluation Criteria Regarding Chiropody and Podiatry Educational Program Reviews

The College of Chiropodists of Ontario regulates both Chiropodists and Podiatrists. The Chiropody Act, 1991 defines the scope of practice of Chiropody as: “the assessment of the foot and the treatment and prevention of diseases, disorders or dysfunctions of the foot by therapeutic, orthotic or palliative means”. According to the Chiropody Act, all registrants are authorized to perform the following acts: 

▪ Cutting into the subcutaneous tissues of the foot; 

▪ Administering by injection into feet, a substance designated in the regulations; 

▪ Prescribing drugs designated in the regulations. 

Podiatrists are also authorized to perform the following acts: 

▪ Communicating a diagnosis identifying a disease or disorder of the foot as the cause of a person’s symptoms; 

▪ Cutting into the subcutaneous tissues of the foot and bony tissues of the forefoot. 

In fulfilling its mandate, the College maintains a profile of competencies that are required for safe and effective practice by all College registrants when they are at the entry-level in the practice of the profession. This competency document is based on the legislation, regulations and by-laws which govern the profession of Chiropody/Podiatry within Ontario. 

 The College’s 3rd generation competency profile is a foundational document that describes the essential competencies currently required of a chiropodist/podiatrist in Ontario specific to entry into the profession. These competencies historically and currently represent the foundation for The Michener Institute Chiropody Program’s curriculum and are subsequently reflected in the Program’s didactic and clinical course learning outcomes. Accordingly, by extension it is also these same competencies that serve as a basis for comparatively assessing and evaluating the equivalency in training and education of applicants to the College of Chiropodists of Ontario from other programs.

Criteria Utilized in Evaluating Equivalency

The Michener Institute’s Chiropody program is a seven semester  program (across three years) that offers a curriculum in fundamental podiatric medicine, clinical practice that integrates didactic courses, hands-on practical labs, simulated clinical training, as well as treating patients under the supervision of faculty in the on-site Chiropody clinic, giving students the chance to practice and build on patient-care skills and procedural techniques, including local anesthesia and soft tissue surgery, biomechanics, wound care and radiology. Students also must complete specialized external clinical placement in order to complete the program. 

The following criteria are used in comparatively assessing the cumulative didactic, practical, and clinical education and training of applicants to the College of Chiropodists of Ontario from programs other than the current Michener Institute Chiropody Program:

  • Education and training from a recognized institution and program.
  • Comparison of didactic and clinical course descriptions and/or clinical rotations and placements.
  • Comparison of course hours and/or credits.
  • Cumulative comparison of course content and subject matter.
  • Cumulative comparison of course objectives and learning outcomes.
  • Comparison of depth or breadth of coverage of subject matter.
  • Comparison of assessments and evaluations.
  • Documented evidence of applicant success in relevant courses/training.
  • > 80% common content and/or content overlap cumulatively across courses and training.
    • 80% or greater common content and/or content overlap is generally accepted as equivalent in the consideration of course transfer credits by most higher education institutions including universities and colleges. Where, in the opinion of the College’s program assessor, there is 80% or greater equivalency, but core content is missing when compared to the Michener course or program, a course or program may not be determined to be equivalent. 
Determination of Equivalency

In order to determine equivalency, all documentation submitted by an applicant pertaining to didactic, practical, and clinical education and training is objectively reviewed based on the above criteria and then compared and cross referenced to the education and training applicants receive from The Michener Chiropody Program.

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Apply to the College

Non-Approved Program Application Fee – $750

Relevant Links

Please review the following important policies and regulations to your application and chiropody in Ontario prior to submitting your application.

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