2025 Board Elections - Nominations
Each year, members of the Australian Psychological Society (APS) elect Directors to the APS Board. There are two Board positions for which elections will be held this year:
- General Director, APS Division of Psychological Research Education and Training – as Professor Monica Thielking’s three-year term of office in this position concludes at the 2025 Annual General Meeting.
- President-Elect – as this position is elected by members every second year; to act as Vice-President for one year, then as President for two years.
Call for Nominations
The nomination period will commence on Thursday 24 July 2025 and will end on Sunday 28 September 2025.
The Board has appointed Vero Voting as the Returning Officer. Eligible members will receive an email from Vero Voting on Thursday 24 July 2025, inviting nominations for two positions:
- General Director, APS Division of Psychological Research, Education and Training - to serve until the 2028 Annual General Meeting.
- President-Elect – to serve as Vice-President until the 2026 Annual General Meeting and then as President until the 2028 Annual General Meeting.
The Board’s role
Acting on behalf of APS members, the Board defines the APS’s vision and strategy, and oversees stakeholder relations and progress towards strategic objectives. As the governing body of a company limited by guarantee and registered Health Promotion Charity, the Board upholds governance standards; monitoring APS performance and compliance with Australian law.
Being a member of the APS Board is an opportunity to be involved in decisions that affect the psychology profession and the wider community:
The APS is committed to being the strongest voice for improving the lives of Australians through psychology. We stand together with our members and partners as advocates for applying psychological science and practice to support and empower communities and individuals so that Australians can thrive and lead fulfilling lives.
Directors’ attributes
Directors should be eager to explore opportunities and to develop solutions to issues, risks, and challenges facing the APS and the psychology profession.
Directors are expected to inspire and energise members by example; working collaboratively with the rest of the Board and with management.
Directors have a shared responsibility for ensuring that corporate activities support the best interests of the APS and comply with regulatory requirements. Directors also have legal duties, as individuals, to act honestly and fairly, with care and diligence, in the best interests of the organisation and its purpose.
The President is the Board Chair and has the additional responsibilities of providing leadership to the Board, and representing the APS in public and with key stakeholders. The President-Elect/Vice-President is the Deputy Chair and acts in place of the President when the President is unable to act.
Eligibility
The APS Constitution, approved by our members, sets out the eligibility criteria for Board positions.
To be eligible to nominate, or second a nomination, you must satisfy the eligibility criteria set out below:
- General Director, APS Division of Psychological Research, Education and Training
You must be a current Honorary Fellow, Fellow or Member of the APS and a member of the APS Division of Psychological Research, Education and Training.
You must be a current Honorary Fellow, Fellow or Member of the APS and a member of the APS for at least four continuous years at the close of the nomination period on Sunday 28 September 2025.
How to nominate
Nominations are to be submitted on the Vero Voting nominations portal by logging in with the secure link sent to eligible members by Vero Voting on Thursday 24 July 2025, or by navigating to https://AusPsychSoc.verovoting.com.au/ and entering the unique username and PIN supplied in the Vero Voting email.
If you have not received an email from Vero Voting by Friday 25 July 2025 and believe that you are eligible to nominate for a Board position, please contact [email protected].
Instructions and supplementary information material (on the Board’s role and Director’s role) are provided on the Vero platform.
If you nominate yourself, you will require two eligible members to second your nomination. Seconders will need to consent via a confirmation email generated by Vero.
If you nominate someone else, you will require another eligible member to second the nomination. The nominee will need to consent via a confirmation email generated by Vero, and to then complete the online nomination form.
The nomination must be completed and submitted on the Vero nominations portal by 10:00 am AEST on Sunday 28 September 2025. Please be aware that no technical support is available over the weekend. Nominees are strongly advised to complete the entire form, ensuring that seconders also have sufficient time to provide their consent, in advance of the closing date.
Nominations are confidential and no names are released until after candidacy has been confirmed by the Company Secretary and the Candidate Briefing Session has been held.
The nomination form requires completion of the following candidate information:
- Photograph
- Candidate Capability Statement (consisting of responses to eight competencies; a maximum of 200 words each)
- Declaration of Interests
- Consent to Act as a Director
- Fit and Proper Person Declaration
Candidate Briefing Session
Candidates will find more about the role of the Board, the election process, and campaigning at a briefing session to be held at 2:00 pm AEST on Tuesday 30 September 2025. Attendance is compulsory for all Board candidates.
Announcement of candidates
Candidate names will be announced on Thursday 2 October 2025.
A ‘Meet the Candidates’ event will be held for each position. Questions from members will be provided to participating candidates in advance to allow for preparation. The events will be recorded between 4:00 pm and 6:30 pm AEDT on Tuesday 7 October 2025 and published on the APS website and The Hive when the ballot opens.
Election
If there is more than one valid nomination for a position, an election is required for that position.
Ballots open at 10:00 am AEDT on Monday 13 October 2025 and close at 10:00 am AEDT on Monday 27 October 2025. Members will receive information on how to vote closer to the date.
The results of the elections will be announced at the Annual General Meeting which will be held at 6:00 pm AEDT on Tuesday 28 October 2025.
We look forward to your involvement in the 2025 Board Elections and your contribution to advancing the APS.
For more information
Please contact us at [email protected] for more information. All enquiries and communications will be handled confidentially.