CERTIFICATION PROGRAM VALIDATION QUESTIONNAIRE Formatted: Top: (Single solid line, Auto, 0.

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This document outlines the issues that must be addressed in evaluating a certification
program. For a certification program to be valid, answers to all of the following
questions should be Yes:

Regarding the certification program itself:

1. Are testing/certification/recertification processes and decisions overseen by a
credible, knowledgeable, professionally recognized, third-party authority
independent from any course provider organization or personnel?
2. Are there publicly available, independently established, well defined standards and
best practices on which the certification instrument (test) is based?
3. Does the certification instrument (test) objectively measure individual knowledge
and skills that have been independently determined to be relevant to and required
for performance of the job (including real-life situations)?
4. Are the testing materials developed, maintained, reviewed and updated by a truly
independent group of Subject Matter Experts (SMEs)?
5. Are the SME selection criteria and review/approval process publicly available?
6. Are there safeguards in place to ensure that SMEs do not have any vested interest
or financial ties to the testing authority or to education/training course vendors,
course presenters (i.e., no conflicts of interest)?
7. Are SMEs shielded from inappropriate or undue influence, and do they agree to
protect the integrity of the certification program (typically through non-disclosure
agreements)?
8. Are all certification candidates rated against the same independently developed
standards?
9. Are all pre-requisites and requirements publicly available?
10. Is work experience required as a pre-requisite to take the certification test?
11. If there is a coursework pre-requisite, is that only one of several eligibility
requirements? (If only coursework is required, it is actually a certificate program.)
a. Are there publicly available, well defined standards upon which course
material is based?
b. Is the coursework available from more than one provider?
c. Are the curriculum and learning objectives developed, maintained, reviewed
and updated by SMEs, independently from the SMEs who work on the
certification test?

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 d. Can the course provider demonstrate that an objective method has been
used to determine the minimum level of individual course competency
(pass/fail grades)?
e. Are there publicly available criteria with a defined review and approval
process for selection of course presenters?
12. Is there a publicly available list of certified individuals, including full name,
certification title/type, and current certification status, with sufficient contact
information to confirm/ensure their identity?
13. Is continuing education and/or retesting required to maintain the certification at
specific intervals?
14. Are recertification, continuing education requirements, related standards and
approved providers independently determined and publicly available?
15. If the certification claims to be endorsed by the US Government, or to be accredited
by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) or other professionally
recognized accreditation organization, is there documentation to prove that)?
[NOTE: Formal ANSI accreditation is not the same as being an ANSI member.]

Regarding the organization administering the certification:

1. If the certification body is connected with a parent organization, does the certification
body have full control, independent of the parent organization, over eligibility,
certification, recertification, and decertification decisions?
NOTE: A valid certification provider or parent organization can be either a for-profit or
non-profit.
2. Does the provider or parent organization make only truthful claims which can be
substantiated, (e.g., US Government or industry endorsement, recognition,
support)?
3. Are logos and branding displayed on the providers and/or the parent organizations
websites and marketing materials approved in writing for use by the organizations
they represent?

NOTE: A trademark represents a brand. There is no correlation whatsoever between a

registered trademark (i.e. the superscript circle symbol with the R inside) and valid
certification. A registered trademark means someone filled out the paperwork and paid
the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) a fee. It is not a measure of content or
quality. Likewise, the symbols TM and SM are not a measure of content or quality. TM
and SM are simply a claim to alert the public of a "common-law" mark and do not require
USPTO registration.

[For questions, comments or suggestions regarding this questionnaire or its contents,

contact Betty Fishman, Certification and Testing Consultant, 301-742-7045,
bettyjfishman@gmail.com]