APS User Guide - Academy of Peer Services

APS User Guide Welcome to the Academy of Peer Services (APS)!

This guide contains information to help you get started on your journey of learning. We hope you enjoy your experience with us.

Please Note:

This PDF User Guide does not contain the video tutorials. To view the User Guide with video online, click here.

2022 Calendar Term 1 Open 1/7/22 Close 4/1/22

Term 2 Open 5/2/22 Close 7/22/22 Term 3 Open 8/29/22 Close 11/18/22

(Last updated January 6, 2022)

https://aps-community.org/user-instructions/

Last Updated January 6, 2022 Pages 2 of 24

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Table of Contents

1 - New User – Register: ................................................................................................ 3

2 - New User (Accessing APS from a Mobile Device): ..................................................... 6

3 - Returning Users (Log In): ........................................................................................... 7

4 - Reset Password: ........................................................................................................ 8

5 - Change Password: ..................................................................................................... 9

6 - Dashboard (Overview): ........................................................................................... 11

7 - Register for Course: ................................................................................................ 14

8 - Take a Course: ........................................................................................................ 18

8.1 - Complete the course ................................................................................ 19

9 - Withdraw from Course: .......................................................................................... 19

10 - Certificates & Transcripts: ..................................................................................... 21

10.1 - Print a Certificate (for individual Courses) ............................................. 21

10.2 - Print a Certificate (for Thirteen Core Courses) ....................................... 22

10.3 - Print a Transcript .................................................................................... 23

11 - Accessing the Certification Board: ........................................................................ 24

12 - More Help is Available .......................................................................................... 24


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1 - New User – Register:

These are the steps to register and sign up for courses.

Step 1: Access the Academy of Peer Services: https://www.academyofpeerservices.org

Step 2: Click Log in – upper right corner of the screen.

The login screen opens.

Step 3: Click Create new account.

A registration form opens.

https://www.academyofpeerservices.org/


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Step 4: Choose the type of account you want to create.

Community Corrections is a different program from APS that is only accessible to Dept. of

Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) employees.

To create an account, choose:

Register for courses in the Academy of Peer Services for peer support providers.

Step 5: Answer all of the questions, particularly those marked with a red *. They are required.

Note: The third box, Email/Username must be the email address you will use for all

communication with the Academy. It will also be your username. To keep your official

records straight, only one email per registered user is allowed.


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Step 6: Click the box labeled, “I’m Not a Robot.”

Note: When you click the box, a picture puzzle may open for you to solve. After you

successfully solve the puzzle, the green check mark as shown above will appear.

Step 7: Review the Usage Terms then click Register

Troubleshooting Tip: If the registration goes back to the top of the form, there may be

an unanswered or incomplete question.

Scroll to the bottom of the screen (as shown below) to view any error messages.

Correct or complete any incomplete questions. Once the registration form has been

successfully submitted, an email with your credentials will be sent to the email address

you provided.


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2 - New User (Accessing APS from a Mobile Device):

Each mobile device has a slightly different kind of display and the APS home page may

look different depending on the display.

If you are using an iPhone, be aware of the limitations of private browsing mode:

Once you reach the home page the blue login button is typically displayed at the top

right of the screen.

You can scroll down to find important links like the Course Catalog, Getting Started and

getting Help, as well as the link for the Certification Board.


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You can use the same instructions as above to create or login to your account.

3 - Returning Users (Log In):


Step 2: Click Log in – upper right corner of the screen.

The login screen opens.

Step 3: Enter your Username in the top field and Password on bottom field. Click Login

Your registered username is the same as before.



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4 - Reset Password:

Step 1: Click on Forgot password link

A new screen will appear to allow you to get a new password.

Step 2: Enter your username or your registered email address and click Request Password.

Note: Use the link in the email you receive to set your password. If the link is not active, you may need to copy and paste the web address for the password change site into your browser.

If you do not receive the email right away, check your Junk Mail folder.

Need help? Send email to:[email protected]

mailto::[email protected]


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5 - Change Password:

The Genius Dashboard navigation bar is where you will go to change your password.


If you are not already logged in, click Log in (upper right button)

Step 2: Click Edit Account in the navigation bar (left side of screen).

A new screen appears. Your Last Name, First Name, and registered email should already appear in the window.

Step 3: Click Change my password check box.

The Change Password fields turn white and you can now enter information.



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Step 4: Enter your current password in Old Password box.

Step 5: Enter a new password. (Minimum length is now 8 characters with at least one uppercase, one lowercase, one number, and one symbol)

Step 6: Enter the new password again to confirm it was entered correctly.

Step 7: Click Save.

This message will be displayed.

Step 8: If the new password is not accepted, correct any errors.

Need help? Send email to: [email protected]

mailto:[email protected]


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6 - Dashboard (Overview):

The Genius Dashboard is where you will access courses and manage your course records.


If you are not already logged in, click Log in (upper right button) and follow the steps

Step 2: Review the Navigation bar that appears on the left side of the screen.

Your username and role (Learner) are in the top block. Use Logout to exit the Academy of Peer Services. The

Navigation buttons below will give you access to the different features. You will click:

Dashboard to view the status of courses you are taking.

Register for Course to select courses to take.

Withdraw from Course if you change your mind about taking a course you have registered to take.

Print Transcript for a list of all of the courses you have completed (Core, Elective, and Supervision).

Edit Account to change your password.

Step 3: With the Dashboard clicked, review the windows (shown next) for Active Courses and Completed Courses.



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To print the certificate, click the icon next to one of the Completed Courses.

If you have not registered for or completed any courses, these windows will be blank.

Step 4: In the middle section of the Dashboard, review the Learning Path.

The Learning Path is a block that appears below the Active and Completed Courses. It lists required (Core) courses and your progress for each course.

Courses that have pre-requisites (see *PR in the Course Catalog) appear in the Pending Courses window on the left side. Once the pre-requisite course has been successfully completed the course can be added through the Registration window and completed.

To start a course or take a test, click one of the Active Courses.

Note: You may need to wait up to one hour after completing the test and course evaluation before the certificate will be available.


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When all of the required courses have been successfully completed, a Download button appears so that you can print the Certificate of Completion.

You will submit the Certificate of Completion with your application to the New York Peer Specialist Certification Board when you apply for certification.

Be sure to check the application process on their website for all of the required elements: http://nypeerspecialist.org

Need help? Send email to:

[email protected]

http://nypeerspecialist.org/



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7 - Register for Course:

Step1: On the Navigation bar click Register for Course

The Course Catalog window opens with an alphabetical list of all of the courses.

There are three ways to search for courses in the Course Catalog:

A. Scroll (alphabetically) through the full list of courses to find the course you want.

B. Use the “Search field” in the heading to search for a course by topic or title.


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C. Use the “Advanced Filters” in the heading to search for Continuing Education, Core, Elective, Supervision, and Development courses.

After clicking Find Course, any courses that match the search term will appear in the Search window.

Step 2: Click Info on one of the courses to learn more.

A new screen opens with the prerequisites (if any), the Learning Path (if any), the category (Core, Elective, Supervision), a description of the course, seat time, and the option to close the window or add the course to your cart (choose it).

Advanced Filters is a link below the green FIND COURSE button Click it to get the menu of course categories.


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Step 3: Click Add to Cart if this is a course you want to register to take.

Note: All courses are free of charge. The cart is just a way to register for courses.

Repeat steps 3-6 to find and add to the cart any other courses you want to register to take.

Step 4: Click Proceed to Checkout (in the upper right corner of the screen).

The number of courses you have added to the cart will be reflected in the cart icon.

A Course Confirmation window opens. Verify the courses listed in the Course Confirmation are the ones you want to take.

Step 5: Click Confirm to register for the courses. A separate confirmation email is sent for each course.


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Step 6: Click on Go to Dashboard button to get to Dashboard.

All registered course/courses will be displayed in the Active Courses section of the Dashboard.

*At this time, all Academy of Peer Services courses are offered free of charge by

the New York State Office of Mental Health.




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8 - Take a Course:

Step 1: Click Dashboard.

The courses you have registered to take will appear in the list of Active Courses.

Step 2: Click the title of any course, which will open a new window.

Here you can choose to:

• Start the Course

• Take the Posttest

• Complete the Course Evaluation

You can also select the Resource file and Accessible versions of the course, created for people who use screen readers (also known as voice over or narrator) on their computer.


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8.1 - Complete the course

In order to receive a certificate for the course, you must successfully pass the Posttest with a score of 75% or higher (for Core, Elective, and Supervision courses) or 80% or higher for the Continuing Education (CE) category of courses. All courses also require you to complete the Course Evaluation before you can receive a certificate of completion.

9 - Withdraw from Course:

After you register for courses, you can change your mind about taking one or more of them.

Step 1: Click Withdraw from Course in the left Navigation Bar

Step 2: Click Request New Drop (upper left corner of the screen).

A drop-down menu opens


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Step 3: Choose the course title and reason for withdrawing from the drop-down menus.

• Click Save to complete the request

• Click Close to cancel the request.

Repeat steps 2-3 for each course you want to drop.

When you are done, the courses you have dropped will be listed.

Step 4: Verify the course is no longer listed in the Active Courses.




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10 - Certificates & Transcripts:

10.1 - Print a Certificate (for individual Courses)

Step 1: Go to the Academy of Peer Services ttps://www.academyofpeerservices.org.

If you are not already logged in, click Log in (upper right button) and follow the steps

In the Dashboard, each completed course appears in the Completed Courses window. To receive a certificate, click the title of the course to download a certificate of completion.

Step 2: Click the title of the course and click on “Download Certificate” pop up button.. A PDF file is downloaded to your computer.

Step 3: Open the PDF file to verify your name, the course title, and number of hours for the course are correct.

Be sure to save the completion certificates for each course.


https://www.academyofpeerservices.org./



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10.2 - Print a Certificate (for Thirteen Core Courses)

The Learning Path is a list of all the Core courses you are required to submit to the New York Peer Specialist Certification Board to apply for the Peer Specialist certification.

Step 1: Click Dashboard (if you are not already there).

If you have completed all of the required courses, a green “Completed” tag appears at the top of the Learning Path and a Download button becomes available at the bottom.

Step 2: Click Download. A PDF file is downloaded to your computer. This is the Certification of Completion

Step 3: Open the PDF file to verify your name.

*Save the Certificate of Completion to submit to the Certification Board (http://nypeerspecialist.org/)

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10.3 - Print a Transcript

Once you have completed one or more of the courses, you can print or save a PDF file with a list of the courses you have completed, whether they are core courses, elective courses, or supervision courses.

When you are applying for a renewal or recertification, the transcript can help you to request credit for course work completed beyond the core courses.

Step 1: Click Dashboard (if you are not already there). The Navigation Bar will appear on the left side of the screen.

Step 2: Click Print Transcript.

The Transcript will appear on the screen.

Step 3: “Click to Download the Transcript” for a PDF copy of the Transcript.


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Step 4: Check the Transcript to be sure all the completed courses appear as expected.

*Save the PDF copy of the Transcript to submit with your completed application to the Certification Board (http://nypeerspecialist.org/)


11 - Accessing the Certification Board:

To learn more about the NYPSCB, certification requirements, or to contact Certification Board staff click on the Certification Bord link from APS home page.

12 - More Help is Available

• To access the Quick Reference Guide, click here.

• To access the Frequently Asked Questions, click here.

• To access the Online User Guide and Video Tutorials, click here.







https://www.academyofpeerservices.org/express/apsomh/layout/QuickReference_Registering_Courses.pdf

https://aps-community.org/ui-faq/

https://aps-community.org/user-instructions/


Documents

APS User Guide - Academy of Peer Services