ABSTRACT
Our chapter focuses on the certification of HRD professionals and considers its potential impact on the field. Certification is a process in which a professional demonstrates competence in a field (Carliner 2012) by “fulfill[ing] a set of requirements or satisfy[ing] a set of standards” (Hale 2012: 1). Although actual certification processes vary, they often include one or more of these components: fulfilling an educational requirement (such as completing a certain vocational, or professionally related degree in a particular area), successfully passing a knowledge exam that tests familiarity with a body of knowledge, successfully demonstrating skill in the field through an annotated work sample or responding to a scenario, agreeing to maintain the certification through continuing professional development and active participation in the profession, and agreeing to adhere to a code of ethics (ICE 2013; Fisher 2011). The code of ethics usually includes a provision to remove the professional should he or she violate the code.
