Guiding Canadian PhD Students and Psychologists in Private Practice
Build a Private Practice You Can Sustain
Join a community of PhD-level psychologists claiming their professional identity in Canada by building sustainable private practices.
United Identity
Connect with a community of PhD-level psychologists who are clarifying their role and presence in Canadian mental health care.
Ethical Innovation
Explore forward-thinking, ethically grounded approaches and tools that honour both clilnical excellence and professional autonomy.
Clear Career Direction
Gain clarity and confidence in building a private practice with mentorship from experienced psychologists who’ve walked the path.
The Psychology Profession is at a Crossroads
Our industry faces unprecedented challenges that no psychologists should navigate alone:
Diluted Professional Identity: The mental health field is flooded with new practitioners, making it harder for PhD psychologists to differentiate their unique experties and training.
Isolated Practice Models: Too many brilliant minds working in silos, or multidiciplinary teams, missing opportunities for innovative growth.
Technology Gap: While other fields embrace moderns tools including AI, psychology lags behind in ethical implementation with few psychologists designing these tools for our profession.
Business Models: Lack of awareness of the various private practice models available to psychologists (i.e. hybrid, 40% fee splits, license, etc.).
A single practice proves the model, a community network transforms our profession.
The GPS Community for Canadian PhD Students and Private Practice Psychologists
For too long, PhD-level psychologists have been working in isolation, navigating unclear business models, and watching their professional identity diluted by regulatory shifts and multidisciplinary environments.
As Canada’s largest and longest-standing group of PhD psychologists, Gilmour Psychological Services has seen these frustrations firsthand: brilliant minds siloed, ethical voices missing from tech innovation, and a lack of transparency around private practice options.
We built GPS not just as a practice, but as a community — a place where psychologists can talk openly about these challenges, share resources, and support one another in maintaining high standards.
We noticed the profession being taken advantage of by systems that undervalue credentials, and we saw technology advancing without our input — so we created a space where PhD psychologists lead, innovate, and shape the future of mental health care together.
Private practice, when done right, isn’t just a career path — it’s a platform for protecting identity, driving ethical leadership, and solving the problems our profession faces.
What happens when PhD Psychologists Unite?
Guidance
Navigate your career with confidence. Access collective wisdom from psychologists who’ve successfully navigated every practice model and regulatory change.
Professional Identity
Reclaim your PhD value and standout in a crowded field. Unite to ensure doctoral-level expertise is recognized and valued.
Support
Never practice in isolation again. Connect with peers who understand your challenges and are right by your side.
TESTIMONIALS
What others are saying
"GPS provides a very classy feeling to their services while still remaining warm, open and nonjudgemental. Whatever services you get there, you’ll be very well taken care of."
- Kyle McBride
"From day one, it was clear how much they genuinely care about both their clients and students...I was especially impressed by their dedication to my training—they provided thoughtful guidance, support, and feedback every step of the way."
- Joe Inhaber
"Gilmour is a wonderful practice that emphasizes high quality services. I completed part of my clinical psychology training under the supervision of one of Gilmour’s co-directors, Dr. Deanna Drahovzal."
- Kim Turner
The Future of Psychology Depends on Unity
Preserve PhD Value: Protect the distinction of doctoral-level training
Collective Wisdom: Learn from psychologists who’ve navigated every practice model
Regulatory Influence: Vote with your feet by upholding high standards
Ethical AI Leadership: Shape how technology serves our profession
Career Clarity: Navigate options with peer support and proven frameworks
Academic Bridges: Strengthen connections between practice and research
Burnout Prevention: Support systems that keep PhD level psychologists participating in innovation
Innovation Hub: Accelerate adoption of best practices
Professional Legacy: Build a stronger profession for the next generation
Amplified Impact: Multiply our influence on mental health care
Just a Few Questions
Who is this group for?
This group is for all students in a psychology doctoral programme or any PhD level psychologist.
What is the cost for joining this community?
There is not cost to joining this community. Just click here to join.
How do I join?
Do you ever meet in person?
This is a virtual community, but if you are travelling to Ottawa, let's see if we can meet!
How is Gilmour Psychological Services affiliated with this community?
Gilmour Psychological Services are the leaders of this GPS community and it is our way of connecting with like-minded psychologists.