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Re: Certification



I am impressed by the effort put into this discussion so far and wanted to
add my thoughts.

First, certification is not just a test.  The application process includes
educational, work experinece, and professional reference components.  I
think that the issue revolves around 1. whether you think that there is a
body of knowledge all Archivists should share 2. and whether the ACA through
the exam is able to test for this body of knowledge.

Applying that knowledge is an additional issue

I don't think it is an issue of "Education vs. Certification" and it seems
to me that other fields (teacher education, engineering, law, medicine) have
both accredited post-secondary departments for education AND profession-wide
testing/certification.

Tom



Tom Heard, CA
AIG Archives-Executive Records
American International Group, Inc.
Suite 4301
70 Pine Street
New York, NY 10270

Phone: 212-770-7258
Fax: 212-770-8060


> -----Original Message-----
> From: Hamson, Susan [SMTP:susanh@CHEMHERITAGE.ORG]
> Sent: Wednesday, October 10, 2001 12:36 PM
> To:   ARCHIVES@LISTSERV.MUOHIO.EDU
> Subject:      Re: Certification
>
> Hi all.
>
> Not being "certified" at the moment, I thought I'd write with my own
> skeptical viewpoints of certification.
>
> As has already been mentioned, a number of employers have begun requiring
> certification for applicants (or at least stating "C.A. preferred.").  I
> wonder how many of them know what a "certified archivist" is.  Does it
> just sound good, or does it really mean something?  I also wonder the same
> thing when I see job advertisements requiring an M.L.S.  You can pass a
> test and you can get an M.L.S., but it doesn't mean you really know
> anything about archives.  I know some "certified" individuals who know a
> lot about theory, but can't apply it.  And I know plenty of librarians who
> are clueless when it comes to archival practice.
>
> And the question of money always makes me skeptical.  I pay $50.00 to
> apply to the exam.  If I pass I pay $150.00 and then I pay $50.00 every
> year thereafter.  In five years I pay $50.00 to take the exam again and so
> on and so on.
>
> So I'm paying a lot of money out of pocket to have the privilege of adding
> two letters after my name and announcing that I belong to an elite group
> of successful test takers.  It's not like getting a C.A. will insure that
> my salary increases (I saw one ad cross my desk awhile ago that required
> an M.S., and M.L.S. and a C.A.--and it was only paying $29,000.00/year in
> the northeast United States).  The yearly fee doesn't give you the
> "protection" of a union.  I pay union dues where I teach and it gives me
> some measure of salary and job security, fair treatment, and professional
> respect--or I'll join others on a picket line.  I mean, all that I can see
> is that the A.C.A. provides a receipt for my fees and dues and the
> opportunity to say I "belong" to them--oh, and it tells other archivists
> that I'm supposedly somebody.  Well, it tells "some" archivists that I'm
> somebody.  Most of the archivists I know don't care for certification,
> either.
>
> I don't know.  I've never been one to buy into the argument that a degree
> or special designations means you're worthy of one thing or another.  I
> know that in the real world others are impressed and swayed by this, but a
> C.A. offers me a vastly different impression than someone flashing an M.A.
> or a Ph.D. at me.  It tells me only that someone passed a multiple choice
> test and nothing more.
>
> Oddly enough, sometimes I get up and sit on the fence when thinking about
> this issue.  But inevitably I always jump down to the side of the
> skeptics.
>
> Susan
>
> ---
> Susan Hamson
> Archivist
>
> Othmer Library of Chemical History
> Chemical Heritage Foundation
> 315 Chestnut Street
> Philadelphia, PA  19106-2702
> susanh@chemheritage.org <mailto:susanh@chemheritage.org>
> Voice: 215-925-2222
> Fax: 215-925-6195
>
> The views expressed here are those of the individual author only and not
> necessarily those of the Chemical Heritage Foundation.
>
>       -----Original Message-----
>       From: Suzanne Durham [mailto:sudurham@VUU.EDU]
>       Sent: Tuesday, October 09, 2001 3:23 PM
>       To: ARCHIVES@LISTSERV.MUOHIO.EDU
>       Subject: Certification
>
>
>       At the risk of opening old wounds, could I learn from this list what
> the arguments/opposition are against certification and the Academy of
> Certified Archivists? Maybe this list has hashed out the certification
> issue, but I'm fairly new to this list so bear with me.
>
>       I was just finishing graduate school when certification came into
> existence. I heard grumblings from the professionals around me then about
> what hoops these were to jump through. However, in the intervening years,
> I've never heard an argument against certification that will also address
> the need for a professional standard. In other words, ANYONE can call
> themselves an archivist. And our salaries and status in organizational
> charts usually reflect that.
>
>       Maybe a multiple choice test isn't the best measure of professional
> expertise, but it's way better than - nothing. I notice many job
> descriptions now asking for certification, especially among the private
> sector. In fact, I wonder if the majority seeking certification aren't
> from the private sector, that there is some dis-incentive for public
> sector archivists to pursue certification.
>
>       I'm a private sector archivist who was recently certified. I
> considered it a professional development activity, which is important in
> an academic setting. This is all meant to solicit other viewpoints from
> the profession. Please reply to the list.
>
>
>       Suzanne K. Durham, C.A.
>       Special Collections Librarian & University Archivist
>       L. Douglas Wilder Library
>       Virginia Union University
>       1500 N. Lombardy St.
>       Richmond VA 23220
>
>       Ph. 804/278-4124
>       Fx. 804/257-5818
>
>
>
> The views expressed in this message are those of the author and not
> necessarily those of the Chemical Heritage Foundation.
>

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