The American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS) professional and technologist certification programs have each received accreditation from the Council of Engineering and Scientific Specialty Boards (CESB). CESB voted to approve accreditation for the professional Certified Photogrammetrist (CP), Certified Mapping Scientist/Remote Sensing (CMS/RS) and Certified Mapping Scientist/GIS-LIS (CMS/GISLIS) programs, along with three related technologist certification categories Photogrammetric Technologist, Remote Sensing Technologist and GIS/LIS Technologist.
Accreditation of the ASPRS Certification Programs is a major accomplishment and significantly elevates their authority, said Michael Renslow, chair of the ASPRS Evaluation for Certification Committee. Those individuals holding ASPRS Professional and Technologist Certification have personally passed a rigorous review, and now the Programs have also passed a demanding review which places them on par with other important nationally accredited certifications in engineering and related scientific fields. The ASPRS programs are currently the only accredited geospatial certifications in the United States.
During the review process leading to accreditation, CESB required ASPRS to make a few minor changes to the Programs, including: shifting the continuing education requirement from the previous proprietary points-based system to Professional Development Hours (PDH); increasing the PDH requirement from 75 hours to 100 hours for the professionals and 50 hours to 60 hours for the technologists; re-designating the provisional certifications, designed to assist students during their transition to professional status, in order to avoid using the term certified; and isolating any training related to the Program. However, the strong foundations of the existing certifications have been retained and enhanced.
The overall strength of the ASPRS Certification Program was previously well understood and respected in the geospatial community, and these changes only serve to further improve the Program said ASPRS Executive Director James Plasker. Accreditation also brings increased credibility to those individuals holding the various levels of ASPRS certification, with the result that the value and importance of their credentials is further enhanced he added.
CESB is an independent, voluntary membership body created for its member organizations who recognize, through specialty certification, the expertise of individuals practicing in engineering and related fields. CESB, as an accrediting body, provides:
basic criteria and guidelines for the establishment and operation of specialty certification programs for engineers, technologists, technicians, and related scientific,
it serves as a recognizing body for organizations that certify individuals,
it represents its members in communications and, when appropriate, in negotiations with public and private agencies, groups, and individuals with respect to matters of common interest,
and, it informs employers, specifiers, public officials, the public, and engineering and related practitioners of the benefits of specialty certification.
CESB awards accreditation in three-year epochs; the ASPRS accreditation runs through December 31, 2015.
Information regarding the requirements and guidelines for ASPRS Certification can be found online at http://www.asprs.org/Certification-Program/Certification-and-Recertification-Guidelines.html.
Founded in 1934, ASPRS is an international professional organization of 6,000 geospatial data professionals. ASPRS is devoted to advancing knowledge and improving understanding of the mapping sciences to promote responsible application of photogrammetry, remote sensing, geographic information systems and supporting technologies.