Professional designation indicating a certain level of skill or competence in a field of work
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.[1] Chartered status is considered a mark of professional competency, and is awarded mainly by charteredprofessional 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.
Chartered status originates from royal charters issued to professional bodies in the UK by the British Monarch, although such is the prestige and credibility of a chartered designation that some non-UK organisations have taken to issuing chartered designations without Royal or Parliamentary approval. In the UK, chartered titles may still only be awarded by institutions that have been incorporated under royal charter, with the permission of the Privy Council.[2] The standards for chartered titles in the UK are set between the professional bodies and relevant government departments, and cannot be changed without government permission.[3] Many chartered statuses in the UK and Ireland are also regulated professional titles under European professional qualification directives.[4]
The full title used differs from profession to profession and is normally of the form "Chartered Profession", for example, Chartered Engineer and Chartered Accountant.
Standing and usage
Chartered status is generally considered a terminal qualification in a particular professio. In some fields professional bodies also offer lower level qualifications, such as Incorporated Engineer (IEng), Engineering Technician (EngTech) or Registered Scientist (RSci). The status is not the same as the senior membership grade of Fellow in many professional institutes and learned societies, which is usually a measure of achievement or standing in a profession rather than a professional qualification based on assessment of competencies.[5][6][7][8]
Chartered status is a form of accreditation, with there being a grant of a protected title but no requirement to be chartered in order to practice a profession (making it distinct from licensing).[9] In the UK and other countries that follow its model, the professional bodies overseeing chartered statuses have a duty to act in the public interest, rather than in the interests of their members, ensuring that chartered professionals must meet ethical standards of behaviour.[10][11] As a status, rather than simply a qualification, a chartered title may be removed for failure to adhere to codes of conduct, or lost through non-renewal. Someone who has lost the status may no longer describe themselves as chartered.[12][13]
Many chartered statuses require initial academic preparation, normally to bachelor's level but sometimes to master's level (or equivalent experience) in engineering and scientific fields where an integrated master's degree is the standard first degree.[note 1] After completion of academic training, it is normal to have to complete Initial Professional Development (IPD), which may include professional courses and examinations, to gain the competencies necessary for chartered status. Many chartered statuses also have a requirement that holders undertake Continuing Professional Development (CPD) to maintain and update their competencies, with some requiring evidence of CPD at regular intervals to renew the status.[6][7][8][16][17] In the UK, the Privy Council has stated that its policy is "that the criteria for individual Chartered Status should be broadly similar across the professions".[18] They also caution that chartered designations used without approval by the Queen in Council or the Privy Council "are not recognised by the UK Government and no assurance can be given that such designations meet the same high standards as authorised designations".[19]
In the UK, chartered professional titles may only be trademarked if issued by a body holding a royal charter and which has permission under its charter to grant that title. Chartered professional titles are normally only permitted to be registered as collective trade marks. Guidance provided by the United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office is that the use of the word "chartered" in a trademark by a non-chartered organisation "would mislead the public into believing that the association and its members have chartered status."[20][21]
In the US, "chartered" is considered a descriptive term, thus trademarks using "chartered" along with a descriptive title for the profession may only be registered on the principal register if they can be demonstrated to have acquired distinctiveness through exclusive usage in trade for at least five years.[22][23] Alternatively, they may be registered on the supplemental register.
International use
The two best known chartered statuses are probably Chartered Engineer and Chartered Accountant, along with their derivatives.[24] Examples of their use outside of the UK include Chartered Engineer (CEng) in Ireland (granted in 1969 by the Oireachtas),[25] India[26] and Singapore;[27]Chartered Professional Engineer (CPEng) in Australia[28] and New Zealand (under the Chartered Professional Engineers of New Zealand Act 2002);[29]ASEAN Chartered Professional Engineer (ACPE) in participating ASEAN member states by the ASEAN Chartered Professional Engineer Coordinating Committee;[30]Chartered Accountant in Australia, India, Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, Singapore, South Africa and Zambia;[31] and Chartered Professional Accountant in Canada.[32] Chartered Engineer (or a derivative) is also used in the official translation of titles from Austria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Iceland and Slovakia, while Chartered Accountant (or a derivative) is used in the official translation of titles from Austria, France, Hungary, Iceland, and Romania.[33]
In the US Chartered qualifications are offered by private education providers such as The American College of Financial Services and the Global Academy of Finance & Management (formerly the American Academy of Financial Management). Unlike chartered qualifications in most countries, these are not issued under a royal/government charter or legislation. The UK Intellectual Property Office refused a trademark application for the US Chartered Financial Analyst qualification on the grounds that it was not granted by a body with a royal charter and therefore had the potential to be deceptive.[34]
The next professionals to adopt the title were Chartered Surveyors in 1903[39] and Chartered Directors in 1906.[40] These were followed between the wars by Chartered Civil Engineers (1923),[41] Chartered Electrical Engineers (1924),[42] Chartered Architects (1924)[43] Chartered Textile Technologists (1925)[44] and Chartered Mechanical Engineers (1930).[42] Coverage of the grant to the Institution of Civil Engineers made it clear that the title Chartered Civil Engineer was intended to act as a form of occupational closure:
While the unregulated use of the appellation "Civil Engineer" has deprived that title of professional significance, the designation of corporate membership of the Institution ("M.Inst.C.E." or "Assoc. M.Inst.C.E.") is recognised as an authoritative mark of professional competence. Nevertheless, the mere designation of membership of a Society has not, in recent years, been found to convey that definite idea of professional status to which the public is accustomed. The introduction of the title "Chartered Civil Engineer" therefore marks an important stage in the long history of the Institution.
Development in the US began in 1927 with the establishment of the American College of Life Underwriters (now The American College of Financial Services) offering the Chartered Life Underwriter designation.[48] This marked not only the first use of a chartered title in the US but also the first use without government permission by either Charter or Act of Parliament. This was a sharp contrast to the situation in the Commonwealth, where accountants in South Africa and Australia had been engaged in a decades-long struggle to gain the right to use a chartered title that came to fruition at about the same time.[49] The CLU was followed, after many years of preparatory work, by the incorporation of the Institute of Chartered Financial Analysts (now the CFA Institute) in 1962 and the creation of the Chartered Financial Analyst designation in 1963.[50]
With the Engineering profession in the UK fractured into many different professional institutions, the 13 chartered engineering institutions formed the Engineering Institutes Joint Council in 1962, which was chartered as the Council of Engineering Institutions in 1965[51] and introduced the title of Chartered Engineer with the designatory letters CEng.[42] This marked the introduction of separate post-nominals for chartered status, which had previously been (and still is in many institutions) marked by the same post-nominals as membership. The CEng spread to Ireland a few years later in 1969.[25] Following the introduction of the CEng, many scientific professional bodies also gained the right to award chartered status, such as Chartered Chemist (1975),[52] Chartered Biologist (1979),[53] Chartered Physicist (1985)[54] and Chartered Geologist (1990).[55] This expansion was driven less by occupational closure than a desire to demonstrate professional equality with the engineers.[54]
When the European Communities (Recognition of Professional Qualifications) Regulations were introduced in the UK in 1991, they featured 40 chartered statuses, including five forms of Chartered Surveyor from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, Chartered Accountants from three different bodies, and two titles from the Chartered Insurance Institute.[56] The most recent version of the regulations, from 2015, lists 71 chartered statuses, now including 20 varieties of Chartered Surveyor.[57] The UK Privy Council list includes (as of November 2018) 107 titles, including 20 variants on Chartered Surveyor, and is noted as not being exhaustive.[58]
The 21st century has seen moves to increase professionalism. The Chartered Physicist status, for example, has, since 2001, required a master's degree to fulfill the academic preparation and is no longer awarded automatically to all corporate members of the Institute of Physics,[59] and since 2012 has required evidence of CPD to be presented to renew the status every 3 years.[60] Similarly Chartered Engineers in the UK have needed a master's degree since 2012, and in Ireland since 2013.[61] The Chartered Scientist title, introduced in 2004, required a master's degree and annual re-validation through evidence of CPD from the start.[7]
Chartered Procurement and Supply Professional (MCIPS – Chartered Procurement and Supply Professional/FCIPS – Chartered Procurement and Supply Professional)[58][123]
^ Of the 55 British and 5 Irish chartered statuses on the European Commission database of professional qualifications, only two (Chartered Arbitrator, qualification not applicable, and Chartered Tax Advisor (Ireland), qualification of at least one year of education) do not require degree-level qualifications; most require qualifications from three to four years of post-secondary education (i.e. bachelor's level), while 15 (all UK) are listed as requiring qualifications from at least four years post-secondary education (i.e. master's level), all in engineering or science.[14][15]
^The Occupational Safety and Health Consultants Register (OSHCR) regards 'CMIOSH' as an equal to Fellows (FIIRSM) [133]
References
^Penny Tamkin; Linda Miller; Joy Williams; Paul Casey (1 March 2013). Understanding occupational regulation(PDF). UK Commission for Employment and Skills. p. 65. Retrieved 16 June 2016. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help)
^"IfA and Charter; FAQs". Chartered Institute for Archaeologists. Retrieved 16 June 2016. When will there be a 'chartered archaeologist'? Being granted the powers to award chartered status to individual archaeologists is a separate process and would need to be agreed by the Privy Council by means of an amendment to the Charter.
^The Educational Role of Professional Regulatory Bodies(PDF). The UK Inter-Professional Group. 2000. p. 2. These bodies function simultaneously as professional associations and as authorities appointed by the Government to award designatory letters and professional titles to those of its members which meet the specified standard of education and training. An important point to note is that this standard is set in conjunction with the relevant Government Departments and may not be changed without their agreement. This is the essential way in which these Chartered bodies differ from an ordinary professional association, and the feature of their constitution from which they derive their status as competent authorities for the professional titles and designatory letters listed in the implementing regulations. (Quote from 1999 letter from the Department of Trade and Industry)
^"Registered Professional Titles". National Contact Point for Professional Qualifications in the United Kingdom. UK NARIC. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
^Impact Assessment of the Horizontal Amendments to the Mutual Recognition of Professional Qualifications Directive (PQD)(PDF). Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. 1 July 2014. p. 27. Retrieved 24 June 2016. The UK also operates a system that allows some professions to use the 'Chartered' title. The awarding of such titles to a professional is a form of accreditation. The title is generally awarded by a professional body that is empowered to do so by a royal charter. There are a wide range of professions that have access to the title such as Chartered Accountants, Chartered Surveyors and Chartered Waste Managers. Crucially, the use of the title, and accreditation more generally, does not prohibit an individual without accreditation or the title from practising the profession.[permanent dead link]
^Stuart Rock (13 February 2016). "Why Chartered Status is Britain's USP". Chartered Institute of Marketing. Retrieved 26 June 2016. Unlike a trade body, which represents the interests of its members, a chartered body is bound to protect the public interest above that of its members. Chartered status bestows a requirement to act in the public interest.
^"The power of professionalism". Chartered Insurance Institute. Retrieved 26 June 2016. Across the professional landscape, from accountants to civil engineers, and of course through to insurance brokers, insurers, insurance practitioners and financial planners, Chartered status stands proud as an indicator of the highest standards of learning and ethical behaviour
^"Registered Professions Database". European Commission. Retrieved 19 June 2016. (Note: results include 6 memberships or associate memberships of chartered bodies that are not listed as being associated with a chartered status, so the listing shows 61 results rather than 55)
^"Chartered bodies". Privy Council. Why do some individuals call themselves 'Chartered'?. Archived from the original on 21 June 2019. Retrieved 24 November 2018.
^"Chartered bodies". Privy Council. What if an organisation is using a 'Chartered' designation that is not approved?. Archived from the original on 21 June 2019. Retrieved 24 November 2018.
^From Practice to Profession(PDF). Association for Investment Manager and Research. 1997. pp. 82–84. Archived from the original(PDF) on 2016-06-16. Retrieved 2016-07-09.
^"Charter and Bylaws"(PDF). Institute of Physics. pp. 9–10. Archived from the original(PDF) on 3 December 2013. Retrieved 26 June 2016. 7. Every person who at the twenty-eighth day of February 2001 was a Corporate Member of the Institute shall be entitled to use the title Chartered Physicist and the abbreviation CPhys according to regulations prescribed by the Council. Every person admitted to any of the corporate classes of membership after the twenty-eighth day of February 2001 who shall: 7.1 have been educated as a physicist and have obtained an Integrated Masters degree recognised by the Council for the purpose of this Clause of this Bylaw and have had experience in responsible work including a structured training course which demands a knowledge of physics or its applications as shall satisfy the Council or 7.2 have attained professional competence to an equivalent standard demonstrated through a combination of academic qualification, training and experience as shall satisfy the Council shall be entitled to use the title 'Chartered Physicist' and the abbreviation CPhys according to regulations prescribed by the Council.
^"Chartered Physicist (CPhys)". Institute of Physics. Retrieved 25 May 2016. anyone who gains Chartered Physicist from 2012 onwards has to revalidate their right to remain a CPhys every three years by submitting an up-to-date CV and CPD record.
^ ab"Chartered London Teacher". The College of Teachers and London Centre for Leadership in Learning, Institute of Education, University of London. Archived from the original on 27 June 2016. Retrieved 30 June 2016.
^"Chartered Member". Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity. Archived from the original on 14 May 2016. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
^"Find an Accountant". Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy. Archived from the original on 12 September 2013. Retrieved 6 October 2013.
^"About". Register of Chartered Security Professionals. Chartered Security Professionals Registration Authority. Archived from the original on 27 May 2016. Retrieved 23 June 2016.
^"Royal Charter, Bye-Laws, Regulations and Standing Orders". Institution of Structural Engineers. Bye-law 4. Archived from the original on 11 August 2016. Retrieved 25 June 2016. Subject to regulations, Fellows, Members and Associates may use the description "Chartered Structural Engineer", Associate-Members may use the description "Incorporated Structural Engineer", and Technician members may use the description "Technician Member of the Institution of Structural Engineers".
^"Member (MRICS)". Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. Retrieved 27 June 2013.