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.
The Institute of Physics (IOP) is a UK-based learned society and professional body that works to advance physics education, research and application.
The Science Council is a UK organisation that was established by Royal Charter in 2003. The principal activity of The Science Council is the promotion of the advancement and dissemination of knowledge of and education in science pure and applied, for the public benefit. The Science Council is the Competent Authority with respect to the European Union directive 2005/36/EC. It is a membership organisation for learned and professional bodies across science and its applications and works with them to represent this sector to government and others. Together, the member organisations represent over 350,000 scientists. The Science Council provides a forum for discussion and exchange of views and works to foster collaboration between member organisations and the wider science, technology, engineering, mathematics and medical communities to enable inter-disciplinary contributions to science policy and the application of science.
Professional qualifications in the United Kingdom are titles or awards granted by professional bodies. Many British professional qualifications were subject to the European directives on professional qualifications and are covered by amended versions of those regulations as enacted in British law. Most, but not all, professional qualifications are 'Chartered' qualifications, and follow on from having been admitted to a degree. The term "professional qualification" can also be used to refer to higher-level vocational qualifications in "professional" roles.
An engineering technologist is a professional trained in certain aspects of development and implementation of a respective area of technology. An education in engineering technology concentrates more on application and less on theory than does an engineering education. Engineering technologists often assist engineers; but after years of experience, they can also become engineers. Like engineers, areas where engineering technologists can work include product design, fabrication, and testing. Engineering technologists sometimes rise to senior management positions in industry or become entrepreneurs.
The Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) is a learned society in the United Kingdom with the goal of "advancing the chemical sciences". It was formed in 1980 from the amalgamation of the Chemical Society, the Royal Institute of Chemistry, the Faraday Society, and the Society for Analytical Chemistry with a new Royal Charter and the dual role of learned society and professional body. At its inception, the Society had a combined membership of 34,000 in the UK and a further 8,000 abroad. The headquarters of the Society are at Burlington House, Piccadilly, London. It also has offices in Thomas Graham House in Cambridge where RSC Publishing is based. The Society has offices in the United States, on the campuses of The University of Pennsylvania and Drexel University, at the University City Science Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in both Beijing and Shanghai, China and in Bangalore, India.
The British Computer Society (BCS), branded BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, since 2009, is a professional body and a learned society that represents those working in information technology (IT), computing, software engineering and computer science, both in the United Kingdom and internationally. Founded in 1957, BCS has played an important role in educating and nurturing IT professionals, computer scientists, software engineers, computer engineers, upholding the profession, accrediting chartered IT professional status, and creating a global community active in promoting and furthering the field and practice of computing.
The Institute of Biology (IoB) was a professional body for biologists, primarily those working in the United Kingdom. The Institute was founded in 1950 by the Biological Council: the then umbrella body for Britain's many learned biological societies. Its individual membership quickly grew; in the late 1990s it was as high as 16,000 but declined in the early 21st century to 11,000. It received a Royal Charter in 1979 and it held charitable status. The IoB was not a trade union, nor did it have the regulatory power over its membership although it did have the right to remove a member's Chartered status and was empowered by its Royal Charter to represent Britain's profession of biology. In October 2009, the IoB was merged with the Biosciences Federation (BSF) to form the Society of Biology, which has around 14,000 individual members and over 90 member organisations. In May 2015, the Society was granted permission to become the Royal Society of Biology.
The Engineering Council is the UK's regulatory authority for registration of Chartered and Incorporated engineers and engineering technician. The Engineering Council holds the national registers of over 228,000 Engineering Technicians (EngTech), Incorporated Engineers (IEng), Chartered Engineers (CEng) and Information and Communications Technology Technicians (ICTTech). The Engineering Council is also responsible for establishing and upholding globally acknowledged benchmarks of professional competence and ethical conduct, which govern the award and retention of these titles. This guarantees that employers, government bodies, and the broader society, both within the UK and abroad, can place their trust in the expertise, experience, and dedication of engineers and technicians who are professionally registered with the Engineering Council.
Chartered Scientist (CSci) is a professional qualification in the United Kingdom that is awarded by the Science Council through its Licensed member organisations. Holders of this qualification can use the post-nominal letters CSci.
The Institute of Biomedical Science (IBMS) is the professional body for biomedical scientists in the United Kingdom. The IBMS was founded in 1912 and represents approximately 20,000 members employed mainly in the National Health Service and United Kingdom Health Security Agency and private healthcare laboratories. Other members also work in veterinary laboratories, the National Blood Authority, Health Protection Agency, Medical Research Council and Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, as well as related commercial fields and in teaching. Most members, around 96%, live and work in the United Kingdom and Ireland and some are employed overseas. It aims to promote and develop biomedical science and its practitioners.
In the United Kingdom, a Chartered Engineer (CEng) is an engineer registered with the UK's regulatory body for the engineering profession, the Engineering Council. Chartered Engineers are master's degree qualified or can demonstrate equivalent work-based learning and have gained the appropriate professional competencies through education and working experience. Demonstration of competence is defined in the UK Standard for Professional Engineering Competence, assessed through professional review of academic qualifications and professional development. Formal, non-formal and informal learning can be assessed. The title Chartered Engineer is protected in the UK under law by means of the Engineering Council’s Royal Charter and Bye-laws. As of 2019 there are approximately 180,000 engineers registered as a Chartered Engineer. Chartered Engineers are registered through Professional Engineering Institutions (PEIs) licensed by the Engineering Council which are relevant to their industry or specialism.
Chartered Physicist (CPhys) is a chartered status and a professional qualification for physicists awarded by the Institute of Physics. It is denoted by the postnominals "CPhys".
A chartered professional is a person who has gained a specific level of skill or competence in a particular field of work, which has been recognised by the award of a formal credential by a relevant professional organization. Chartered status is considered a mark of professional competency, and is awarded mainly by chartered professional bodies and learned societies. Common in Britain, it is also used in Ireland, the United States and the Commonwealth, and has been adopted by organizations around the world.
The Institute of Science and Technology is a UK-based professional organization which is a member of the Science Council and thereby authorized to award the designation Registered Science Technician (RSciTech), Registered Scientist (RSci) and Chartered Scientist (CSci).
Registered Scientist (RSci) is a professional qualification in the United Kingdom that was introduced in 2012 as an extension to the Science Council's existing professional registers. This register extends the framework to allow professional recognition for higher technical roles. Holders of this qualification can use the post-nominal letters RSci. The Registered Scientist and Registered Science Technician (RSciTech), which was introduced at the same time, were developed with the support of the Gatsby Charitable Foundation.
Registered Science Technician (RSciTech) is a professional qualification in the United Kingdom for science technicians. It was introduced in 2011 alongside Registered Scientist as an extension to the UK Science Council's existing professional register for Chartered Scientists. the Registered Science Technician (RSciTech) was developed with the support of the Gatsby Charitable Foundation, with the aim of increasing the professionalism and recognition of those working in technical roles in science. Holders of this qualification can use the post-nominal letters RSciTech. Registration as RSciTech has been encouraged by institutions such as Imperial College London, and the UK Government's Science manufacturing technician and Laboratory technician apprenticeship standards are designed to lead to registration as an RSciTech.
The Institute of Water is the main professional association for the water industry in the UK.
Science technician is a profession involving working as a member of support staff in any science disciplines. The Science Council defines a technician as “a person who is skilled in the use of particular techniques and procedures to solve practical problems, often in ways that require considerable ingenuity and creativity. Technicians typically work with complex instruments and equipment, and require specialised training, as well as considerable practical experience, in order to do their job effectively”.
