Sources
Help build the largest human-edited directory on the web.
Submit a site - Become an editor
Wikipedia. Licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.
Are you an expert in this subject? Join the discussion and share your knowledge at Wikipedia.org.
Professional certification
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
|
Professional certification, trade certification, or professional designation, often called simply certification or qualification, is a designation earned by a person to assure that he/she is qualified to perform a job or task.
Certifications are earned from a Professional society and, generally, need to be renewed periodically, or may be valid for a specific period of time (e.g. the life-time of the product upon which the individual is certified). As a part of a complete renewal of an individual's certification, it is common for the individual to show evidence of continual learning — often termed continuing education — or earning continuing education units (CEU).
It is important to note that certifications are usually earned from a professional society, not the government. If a demonstration of ability or knowledge is required by law before being allowed to perform a task or job, this is referred to as licensure. In the United States, professional licenses are usually issued by state agencies. The assessment process is often similar, even the same; certification and licensure differ only in terms of legal status.
Certifications are very common in aviation, construction, technology and other industrial sectors, as well as health care and finance. In USA, the Federal Aviation Administration regulates aviator certifications.
The National Organization for Competency Assurance (NOCA) is a US-based organization which helps certification bodies, primarily in health care and related fields, by providing them with information on the latest trends and issues of concern to practitioners and organizations focused on certification, obtaining licenses, and human resource development. Many members of the Association of Test Publishers (ATP) are also certification organizations.
Accountants are the accountancy and financial experts which are legally certified in different jurisdictions to originally worked only in public practices, selling advice and services to other individuals and businesses, but today in addition many work within private corporations, financial industry and government bodies. There are many professional bodies for accountants throughout the world, some of them are legally recognized in their jurisdictions.
- British qualified accountants
- Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (ACMA or FCMA),
- Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA or FCCA)
- Chartered Accountant (FCA, CA or ACA)
- American qualified accountants
- Certified Public Accountant (CPA)
- Certified Internal Auditor (CIA)
- Certification in Control Self Assessment (CCSA)
There are non-statutory accountancy qualifications which are established by the industries, such as:
- Certified Management Accountant (CMA) and Chartered Cost Accountant (CCA) designations from the American Academy of Financial Management (AAFM)
- Certified Fraud Examiner by the ACFE
Aviators (Aviation Pilots) are certified through theoretical and in-flight examinations. Requirements for certifications are quite equal in most countries and regulated by each National Aviation Authority. The existing certificates or pilot licenses are:
Licensing in these categories require not only examinations but also a minimum of flight hours. All categories are available for Fixed Wing Aircraft (airplanes) and Rotatory Wing Aircraft (helicopters). Within each category, aviators may also obtain certifications in:
- Instrument Flight Rules (IFR)
- Multiengine aircraft
- Turbojet Engines
- Jet Engines
- Experimental aircraft
- Amphibious aircraft
- Seaplanes
Usually, aviators also must be certified in their log books for the type and model of aircraft they are allowed to fly. Currency checks are obligatory as well as annual medical check ups. An aviator can only fly if holding:
- A valid pilot license
- A valid medical certificate
- Valid certifications for the type of aircraft and type of flight.
- see main article at Professional certification (Business)
- see main article at Professional certification (Computer technology)
Certification is often used in the professions of software engineering and information technology.
The British Computer Society (BCS) is the leading body for those working in IT. With a world-wide membership now over 60,000 members in over 100 countries, BCS is the qualifying body for Chartered IT Professionals (CITP). The BCS was incorporated by Royal Charter in 1984.
The International Economic Development Council, IEDC,[1] based in Washington, D.C. recognizes economic developers around the world who have achieved a level of excellence in their understanding of the tools and programs of economic development. In order to become a Certified Economic Developer (CEcD) one must sit through the exam and fulfill a number of requirements [[2]]
Certified Nursing Assistants (CNA), and Certified Opticians are a couple of the many types of career health certificates below the level of a licensed practitioner that are able to give some recognition for achievement of educational requirements in their fields.
These are introductory certifications only, and recognition of higher achievements in the health sciences are usually given by an affiliated association, school, or board of practitioners. Other professional certifications include certifications such as medical licenses, Membership of the Royal College of Physicians, nursing board certification, diplomas in social work. The Commission for Certification in Geriatric Pharmacy certifies pharmacists who are knowledgeable about principles of geriatric pharmacotherapy and the provision of pharmaceutical care to the elderly. The Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies administers a voluntary accreditation program for law enforcement agencies.
See also
- Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Radiologists
- Fellow of the American College of Emergency Physicians
- Fellow of International Public Health (FIPH), Honourary.
- Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians
- Fellowship of the Royal College of Surgeons
- Fellow of West African College of Physicians (FWACP)
- Membership of the College of Emergency Medicine
- Joint Commission on Allied Health Personnel in Ophthalmology
TESOL is a large field of employment with widely varying degrees of regulation. Most provision world-wide is through the state school system of each individual country, and as such the instructors tend to be trained primary or secondary school teachers who are native speakers of the language of their pupils, not English. Though native speakers of English have been working in non-English speaking countries in this capacity for years, it was not until the last twenty-five years or so that there was any wide-spread focus on training particularly for this field. Previously, workers in this sort of job were anyone from backpackers hoping to earn some extra travel money to well-educated professionals in other fields doing volunteer work, or retired people. These sort of people are certainly still to be found, but there are many who consider TESOL their main profession.
One of the problems facing these full time teachers is the fact that there is no international governing body for the certification or licenture of English language teachers. However, Cambridge University and its subsidiary body UCLES, are pioneers in trying to get some degree of accountability and quality control to consumers of English courses, through their CELTA and DELTA programs. Trinity College, London has roughly equivalent programs, the CertTESOL and the LTCL DipTESOL. They offer initial certificates in teaching, in which candidates are trained in language awareness and classroom techniques and given a chance to practise teaching and receive feedback on this. Both institutions have as a follow-up a professional diploma, usually taken after a year or two in the field. Although the initial certificate is available to anyone with a high school education, the diploma is meant to be a post-graduate qualification and in fact can be incorporated into a Master's degree program.
An increasing number of lawyers are choosing to be recognized as having special knowledge and experience by becoming certified specialists in certain fields of law. According to the American Bar Association, a lawyer who is a certified specialist has been recognized by an independent professional certifying organization as having an enhanced level of skill and expertise, as well as substantial involvement in an established legal specialty. These organizations require a lawyer to demonstrate special training, experience and knowledge to ensure that the lawyer's recognition as a certified specialist is meaningful and reliable. Lawyer conduct with regard to specialty certification is regulated by the states.
Logistician is the Profession in the logistics & transport sectors, including sea, air, land and rail modes. Professional qualification for logisticians usually carry post-nominal letters. Common examples include:
- FCILT/CMILT conferred by The Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT),
- EJLog/ESLog/EMLog conferred by the European Logistics Association (ELA),
- CML/CPL conferred by the International Society of Logistics (SOLE),
- JrLog/Log/SrLog conferred by the China Federation of Logistics & Purchasing (CFLP),
- FHKLA/MHKLA conferred by the Hong Kong Logistics Association (HKLA),
- PLS/CTL/DLP conferred by the American Society of Transportation & Logistics (AST&L)
Certification is of significant importance in the project management (PM) industry. Certification refers to the evaluation and recognition of the skills, knowledge, and/or competence of a practitioner in the field.
Project management certifications come in a variety of flavors:
- Competence-based programs where an individual must provide evidence of actual, on-the-job performance.
- Knowledge-based programs where an individual must pass an exam.
- Experience-based programs where an individual must provide evidence of training or education in the field.
PM organisations which run certification programmes include:
- Association for Project Management (APM)
- Project Management Institute (PMI)
- International Project Management Association (IPMA)
- ASIS International administers the Certified Protection Professional - Board Certified in Security Management (CPP)
- ASIS International administers the Physical Security Professional, Board Certified (PSP)
- ASIS International administers the Professional Certified Investigator, Board Certified (PCI)
- Association of Certified Fraud Examiners administers the Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE)
- International Foundation of Protection Officers administers the Certified Protection Officer (CPO)
- The Certified Beer Judge Program (BJCP) has certified over 2000 amateur brewers and beer-lovers, mainly in the United States
- Certified Professional Ergonomist (CPE) and Certified Human Factors Professional (CHFP).
- The International Marina Institute (IMI) has certified over 180 marina management professionals globally through its Certified Marina Managers (CMM) program.
- The Association of Pool & Spa Professionals (APSP) certifies pool builders and service technicians.
- Help Desk Institute certifies for the Help desk service industry
- The Telecommunications Certification Organization provides vendor-independent certification of telecommunications, VoIP, networking, IP and wireless technology knowledge for individuals and employers.
- The Council-certified Indoor Environmental Consultant (CIEC) certification covers a wide range of indoor environmental quality disciplines focusing on managing indoor environmental quality in relation to building design, maintenance and operations to ensure an optimal environment for building occupants.
- Computer technologies
The current proliferation of IT certifications (both offered and attained)[citation needed] has led some technologists to question their value. Proprietary content that has been distributed on the Internet allows some to gain credentials without the implied depth or breadth of expertise. Certifying agencies have responded in various ways: some now incorporate hands-on elements, anti-cheating methodologies or have expanded their content. Others have expired and restructured their certificate programs, and/or raised their fees to deter abuse.
Certification programmes which take into account length of service, and demonstrated experience, via industry peer and / or employer recommendation avoid some of the issues associated with purely passing an examinations, however, certification remains a contentious issue.