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.
In the United States, federal grants are economic aid issued by the United States government out of the general federal revenue. A federal grant is an award of financial assistance from a federal agency to a recipient to carry out a public purpose of support or stimulation authorized by a law of the United States.
Certified Public Accountant (CPA) is the title of qualified accountants in numerous countries in the English-speaking world. It is generally equivalent to the title of chartered accountant in other English-speaking countries. In the United States, the CPA is a license to provide accounting services to the public. It is awarded by each of the 50 states for practice in that state. Additionally, all states except Hawaii have passed mobility laws to allow CPAs from other states to practice in their state. State licensing requirements vary, but the minimum standard requirements include passing the Uniform Certified Public Accountant Examination, 150 semester units of college education, and one year of accounting-related experience.
The Project Management Institute is a U.S.-based not-for-profit professional organization for project management.
The Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) program is a postgraduate professional certification offered internationally by the US-based CFA Institute to investment and financial professionals. The program teaches a wide range of subjects relating to advanced investment analysis—including security analysis, statistics, probability theory, fixed income, derivatives, economics, financial analysis, corporate finance, alternative investments, portfolio management—and provides a generalist knowledge of other areas of finance.
The Institute of Management Accountants (IMA), formerly known as the National Association of Cost Accountants (NACA), is a professional organization of accountants.
The Government Finance Officers Association is a professional association of approximately 19,000 state, provincial, and local government finance officers in the United States and Canada. GFOA is headquartered in downtown Chicago.
The Master of Public Health or Master of Philosophy in Public Health (MPH), Master of Science in Public Health (MSPH), Master of Medical Science in Public Health (MMSPH) and the Doctor of Public Health (DrPH), International Masters for Health Leadership (IMHL) are interdisciplinary professional degrees awarded for studies in areas related to public health. The MPH degree focuses on public health practice, as opposed to research or teaching. Master of Public Health programs are available throughout the world in Schools of Public Health, Programs in Public Health, Medical Schools, and Schools of Public Affairs. MPH degrees, in addition to including a core curriculum, will usually also let students pursue a specialization in a specific field, such as epidemiology, biostatistics, or health management.
The International Association of Emergency Managers (IAEM) is a non-profit organization, dedicated to promoting the profession of emergency management by working with its membership to promote the goals of saving lives and protecting property during emergencies and disasters.
Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) is a licensure for mental health professionals in some countries.
The American Culinary Federation (ACF) is a professional chef's organization established in 1929 in New York City. It was formed as a merge of three chefs' associations in New York City, the Société Culinaire Philanthropique, the Vatel Club and the Chefs de Cuisine Association of America.
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.
The Home Energy Rating is an American estimated measurement of a home's energy efficiency based on normalized modified end-use loads (nMEULs). In the United States, the Residential Energy Services Network (RESNET) is responsible for creation and maintenance of the RESNET Mortgage Industry National Home Energy Rating Standards (MINHERS), a proprietary system of standards, which includes standards language for the certification and quality assurance for RESNET Provider organizations. RESNET is an EPA recognized Home Certification Organization (HCO) that also help's create standards in compliance with the American National Standards Institute, namely ANSI 301, ANSI 310, ANSI 380, and ANSI 850. The Building Science Institute, Ltd. Co. (BSI) is another EPA recognized HCO that maintains the ANSI Standards to produce Energy Ratings and compliance with above-code programs such as the ENERGY STAR New Homes Program.
The Association of Information Technology Professionals (AITP) is a professional association that focuses on information technology education for business professionals. The group is a non-profit US-oriented group, but its activities are performed by 62 local chapters organized on a geographic basis, and 286 student chapters at colleges and universities.
The Institute of Certified Professional Managers (ICPM) is a US-based, non-profit, educational institute and certification body affiliated with the James Madison University College of Business, that provides education and certification in management to managers, supervisors and leaders working in all industries. It was founded in 1974.
The Credit Institute of Canada (CIC) is a not-for-profit organization created by a special Act of Parliament on June 11, 1928. The CIC provides credit management resources, education and certification to its members and is the only organization that grants official designations to professionals in the Canadian credit management field.
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 Professional Risk Managers' International Association (PRMIA) is a non-profit, member-driven professional organization that focuses on the development and education of the risk management profession. Its membership provides a network of risk professionals working to set standards for the global risk profession. PRMIA offers the Professional Risk Manager designation and several other certificate programs for professional certification purposes.
The National Contract Management Association (NCMA) is a professional association, based in the United States, dedicated to the profession of contract management. Founded in 1959, NCMA now has over 20,000 members and more than 100 local chapters. NCMA promotes contract management through various means, including education, networking, publications, legislative and regulatory alerts, professional certifications, a code of ethics, awards, job postings, salary surveys, and a leadership development program.
