Wisconsin Peer Specialist Certification

Take your Peer Specialist Certification exam electronically at several sites around the state through UWM’s School of Continuing Education.

Wisconsin Certified Peer Specialists (CPS) are important members of mental health recovery teams for service recipients. They engage and encourage recipients by promoting wellness, independent living and self-direction. Focusing on recovery, specialists work to serve recipients and to enhance their skills to meet chosen goals.

Wisconsin CPS work with the service recipient as recovery models because they self-identify as having mental illness and/or substance use disorder and have made substantial progress in their recovery. Peer Specialists are considered to be crucial to our nation’s mental health and substance use disorder transformation and are currently employed in independent living centers, hospitals, clinics and many other mental health and/or substance use disorder services and support areas. By becoming a Wisconsin CPS, you will be “igniting recovery” for service recipients.

COVID-19 Exam Considerations Update:
Anyone registered for the March 25 CPPS exam or April 1 CPS exam will automatically be signed up for the rescheduled/next assessment and given priority to ensure they are able to take the exam.

Upcoming Peer Specialist Trainings

Assessments/Exams Schedules
150 applications maximum per exam date.

Certification Peer Specialist assessments/exams are scheduled for the following dates:

April 1, 2020: 8:30am, 11:30am or 2:30pm. All applicants are transferred to the May 13 assessment.

May 13, 2020: 8:30am, 11:30am or 2:30pm. If we receive a large number of applications; additional dates will be added.
(Application deadline must be postmarked by April 22, 2020)

September 30, 2020: 8:30am, 11:30am or 2:30pm
(Application deadline must be postmarked by September 9, 2020)

Certification Parent Peer Specialist assessments/exams are scheduled for the following dates:

March 25, 2020:  8:30am, 11:30am or 2:30pm. Rescheduled to May 6
Those scheduled to take part in the March 25 assessment will be rescheduled due to COVID-19 precautionary measures
(Application deadline was March 4, 2020)

September 16, 2020: 8:30am, 11:30am or 2:30pm
(Application deadline must be postmarked by August 26, 2020)

An email will be sent out one week prior to the exam date to inform applicants of assigned exam time.