Professional certification, trade certification, or professional designation, often called simply certification or qualification, is a designation earned by a person to assure qualification to perform a job or task. Not all certifications that use post-nominal letters are an acknowledgement of educational achievement, or an agency appointed to safeguard the public interest.
An accountant is a practitioner of accounting or accountancy. Accountants who have demonstrated competency through their professional associations' certification exams are certified to use titles such as Chartered Accountant, Chartered Certified Accountant or Certified Public Accountant, or Registered Public Accountant. Such professionals are granted certain responsibilities by statute, such as the ability to certify an organization's financial statements, and may be held liable for professional misconduct. Non-qualified accountants may be employed by a qualified accountant, or may work independently without statutory privileges and obligations.
CISSP is an independent information security certification granted by the International Information System Security Certification Consortium, also known as ISC2.
The American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP) is the American Planning Association's professional institute. AICP certifies professionals in the United States in the field of town planning and assists planners in the areas of ethics, professional development, planning education, and the standards of planning practice. Members of AICP pledge to adhere to a detailed Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct. Once certified, professional planners may place the designation "AICP" after their name to indicate their membership in AICP, and their mastery of the principles, skills, knowledge, and experience determined by the organization as essential for a professional planner.
The Certified Financial Planner certification is a professional certification mark for financial planners conferred by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards in the United States, and by 25 other organizations affiliated with Financial Planning Standards Board (FPSB), the owner of the CFP mark outside of the United States. The certification is generally considered the gold standard in the financial planning industry. The certification is managed by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc., which was founded in 1985 as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization; it is neither a government designation nor an accredited degree.
The College of Family Physicians of Canada is a professional association and the legal certifying body for the practice of family medicine in Canada. This national organization of family physicians was founded in 1954 and incorporated in 1968. Although membership is not mandatory to practice medicine, it currently numbers over 38,000 members. Members of the CFPC belong to the national College, as well as to their provincial or territorial chapters. The CFPC uses both English and French as official communication languages.
The National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB) is a nonprofit corporation comprising the legally constituted architectural registration boards of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands as its members. Its mission is to collaborate with licensing boards to facilitate the licensure and credentialing of architects to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the public.
The Society of Management Accountants of Canada, also known as Certified Management Accountants of Canada and CMA Canada, awards the Certified Management Accountant designation in Canada.
Following is a partial list of professional certifications in financial services, with an overview of the educational and continuing requirements for each; see Professional certification § Accountancy, auditing and finance and Category:Professional certification in finance for all articles. As the field of finance has increased in complexity in recent years, the number of available designations has grown, and, correspondingly, some will have more recognition than others. Note that in the US, many state securities and insurance regulators do not allow financial professionals to use a designation — in particular a "senior" designation — unless it has been accredited by either the American National Standards Institute or the National Commission for Certifying Agencies.
Certified safety professional is a certification offered by the Board of Certified Safety Professionals. The accreditation is used in the United States by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies and internationally by the International Organization for Standardization/International Electrotechnical Commission and 193 Countries Consortium.
The National Dental Examining Board of Canada, also known as the NDEB, is the organization that is responsible for granting approval for dentists to practice in Canada through standardized examinations. Its headquarters are in Ottawa.
The National Association of Black Accountants, is an American nonprofit professional association that represents the interests of more than 200,000 black professionals in furthering their educational and professional goals in accounting, finance, and related business professions. Student members are served throughout the organization's 50 chapters around the country.
The Construction Management Association of America (CMAA) is a non-profit and non-governmental, professional association serving the construction management industry. The Association was formed in 1982. Current membership is more than 14,000, including individual CM/PM practitioners, corporate members, and construction owners in both public and private sectors, along with academic and associate members. CMAA has 29 regional chapters.
The National Board for Respiratory Care (NBRC Inc. is a non-profit organization formed in 1960 with the purpose of awarding and maintaining credentialing for Respiratory Therapists in the United States. The NBRC is the only organization in the United States which develops certification examinations for Registered Respiratory Therapists and Certified Respiratory Therapists. The NBRC also offers additional specialization credentialing for respiratory practitioners that hold its certifications. The CRT and RRT designations are the standard credential in respiratory care for licensure requirements in the portions of the United States that have enacted a Respiratory Care Act. States that license respiratory therapists sometimes require the practitioner to maintain their NBRC credentialing to maintain their license to practice. The NBRC is headquartered in Overland Park, Kansas. It has been in the Kansas City metropolitan area since 1974. The NBRC is located at 10801 Mastin St, Suite 300, Overland Park, KS 66210.
The Accreditation in Public Relations (APR), the Accreditation in Public Relations and Military Communications (APR+M), and the Certificate in Principles of Public Relations are voluntary certifications in the United States and Canada for persons working in the field of public relations (PR) and, in the case of the APR+M, military public affairs.
Chartered Professional Accountant is the professional designation which united the three Canadian accounting designations that previously existed:
The Investments and Wealth Institute (IWI), previously known as Investment Management Consultants Association (IMCA), was founded in 1985 in Colorado to provide investment consulting and wealth management credentials and educational offerings for its members. IMCA is both a certification organization and a membership association.
The International Council of Management Consulting Institutes (ICMCI) has since 1987 been the professional body worldwide for management consultants. ICMCI since 2013 is called CMC-Global.
The Canadian Registered Safety Professional (CRSP)/ Professionnel en sécurité agréé du Canada (PSAC) is a certification offered by the Board of Canadian Registered Safety Professionals for an Occupational Health and Safety professional. The CRSP/PSAC is accredited in Canada to ISO 17024 by the Standards Council of Canada.
Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada is the national organization representing the Canadian accounting profession through the unification of the three largest accounting organizations: the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants (CICA), the Society of Management Accountants of Canada and Certified General Accountants of Canada (CGA-Canada), as well as the 40 national and provincial accounting bodies. It is one of the largest organizations of its type in the world, with over 217,000 Chartered Professional Accountants in Canada and around the world.
