Competencies and Standards

Updated October 28, 2021

National Competency Profiles

The National Competency Profiles (NCP) list the competencies that are expected at entry-to-practice of the three certification categories. Its primary purpose is to set standards for education and certification.

The NCP have been accepted by Accreditation Canada for use in the accreditation of sonography education programs. As well as meeting other requirements, accredited programs must develop curriculum and learning activities which ensure that their graduates possess all the competencies listed in the relevant section of the NCP.

The NCP establishes a minimum educational standard; programs are free to include additional competencies to meet local and regional needs, at their discretion. In order to provide sonographer certification, Sonography Canada evaluates the competency level of applicants for registration utilizing both clinical and knowledge-based assessments. The blueprints for these assessments are derived from the NCP.

Since they provide information about the job tasks that sonographers may be expected to perform, the NCP will also be of use to many other stakeholders in the profession: employers, physicians, practicing sonographers, students, government agencies, and the general public.

NCP 6.1 Based on a recommendation of the NCP 6.0 Revalidation Steering Committee, NCP 6.0 was re-issued in October 2021 (as version 6.1) to revise appendix D, removing Extracranial Arteries from the Generalist competency profile. The knowledge-based exams will be based on blueprints derived from version 6.1 beginning in January 2022.