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Its value to SH&E practitioners and the profession
"I DON'T GET NO RESPECT." That phrase, made famous by Rodney Dangerfield, is one many SH&E practitioners have felt and even expressed. One of the most significant ways to gain respect in one's chosen career is to seek and achieve certification. In the search for safety certification, Board of Certified Safety Professionals (BCSP) and American Board of Industrial Hygiene (ABIH) provide such services for the safety and industrial hygiene professions.
Now celebrating its 35th anniversary, BCSP was established as an independent organization in 1969, following the recommendations of an Ad Hoc Study Committee formed in 1967 by ASSE to investigate the feasibility of establishing a safety certification program. The value of BCSP's service to the profession and to individual practitioners is often assumed, yet rarely appreciated. Perhaps now is an appropriate time for SH&E practitioners to ask, "What is the value of professional certification and should I pursue it?"
Two other developments contribute to the urgency of this question for noncertified practitioners. First, maintaining a career in occupational safety often means maintaining professional marketability. As layoffs continue because of downsizing and relocation of manufacturing overseas, competition for mid- and senior-level safety positions has intensified. Practitioners seeking these positions should objectively consider their options for improving their own marketability. Professional certification is frequently among the most important credentials for job applicants.
Second, certifications throughout the nonlicensed professions are proliferating. Practitioners need to spend their limited resources to acquire respected certifications that will be assets to their careers, not simply letters on a resume. Within the safety and allied professions, "gold standard" certifications are offered by established professional boards such as BCSP, ABIH, Board of Certification in Professional Ergonomics (BCPE), American Board for Occupational Health Nurses (ABOHN) and Institute of Hazardous Materials Management (IHMM).
These professional credentials are supported by four critical pillars: college-level education in courses aligned with professional rubrics; experience executing professional-level practice; passing one or more rigorous examinations; and, if certified, maintenance of continuing education. Each body also articulates a professional code of ethics and conduct that certified individuals use to guide professional practice. These certifying bodies also play a role in adjudicating claims against these codes of professional ethics and conduct.
Outside of this...