Professional Designations & Certifications

The following post features a List of Professional Designations & Certifications (by Industry).

Pursuing professional designations is an investment in yourself and your career. Getting certified is a great way to build knowledge and demonstrate your mastery.

Read: List of Professional Associations & Organizations (by Industry)

Related: How to Build Your Network Using Professional Associations

Explore: Free RBT Practice Exam

Adding professional designations to your Resume and LinkedIn profile helps recruiters and hiring managers see that you meet industry standards and are qualified for specialized roles.

I suggest doing your own research to find the best designation for your goals, timeline, and budget. Click the links below to visit each individual site for more information on the credentialing programs.

Here’s the List:

Accounting

• View the compilation of Accounting Professional Designations.

Administrative

• View the compilation of Administrative Professional Designations.

Aerospace

• Certification in Aerospace Physiology (CAsP) program demonstrates competency in the characteristics of the atmosphere, acceleration, and spatial disorientation.

Agile

• Leading SAFe® provides certification in coordinating and leading a Lean-Agile transformation at enterprise scale.

Animal Care

• Certified Professional Animal Care Provider (CPACP) program is geared toward individuals in the daily handling of animals within professional pet care business.
• Certified Manager of Animal Resources (CMAR) program is designed to raise competency and professionalism in the field of laboratory animal resources management.

Appraisal

• Certified in Entity and Intangible Valuations (CEIV) credential is intended for professionals who perform fair value measurements for public company financial statement reporting purposes.

Association Leadership

• Certified Association Executive (CAE) is the marker of a committed association professional who has demonstrated the wide range of knowledge essential to manage an association.

Aviation

• Professional Traffic Operations Engineer (PTOE) is a powerful demonstration of requisite knowledge, skill and ability in the specialized application of traffic operations engineering.
• Pilot Pathway Program is an elite career-focused accelerated pilot training program.

Broadcasting

• Certified Broadcast Technologist (CBT) recognizes and raises the professional status of broadcast engineers by providing standards of professional competence.

Business Intelligence

• Certified Business Intelligence Professional (CBIP) credential is the business intelligence and data warehousing industry’s most meaningful and credible certification program.

Career Services

• View the compilation of Career Services Professional Designations.

Childcare

• Certified Child Life Specialist (CCLS) credentialing program is a rigorous, examination-based professional certification credential to increase the proficiency of child life professionals.

Construction

• Certified Construction Manager (CCM) is the gold standard in personnel credentials for the construction management profession.
• Certified Welder (CW) tests welders to procedures used in the structural steel, petroleum pipelines, sheet metal, and chemical refinery welding industries.
• Construction Health and Safety Technician (CHST) is devoted to the prevention of construction illnesses and injuries.
• Lean Construction Institute-Certified Practitioner-Construction (LCI-CPC) demonstrates the ability to effectively apply Lean to real-world construction projects.

Counseling

• View the compilation of Counseling Professional Designations.

Criminal Justice

• National Certified Corrections Officer (NCCO) is one of several NIJO certification programs for jail and detention officers, supervisors, administrators and sheriffs.

Cryptocurrency

• Certified Blockchain Expert (CBE) program for skilled professionals who understand Blockchain and how to build Blockchain-based applications for enterprises and businesses.
• Certified Enterprise Blockchain Professional (CEBP) is a professional credential for anyone with expertise in blockchain and its use cases.

Culinary

• Accelerated Culinary Arts Certificate Program (ACAP) gives you a hands-on understanding of the professional kitchen and expand your career opportunities.

Dental

• Licensed Dental Hygienist (LDH) program ensures dental hygienists practice in accordance with requirements of individual state dental practice acts.

Design

• Certified Design Thinking Professional (CDTP) recognizes innovation professionals who have demonstrated an advanced understanding of the key topics relating to various design methods.

Economics

• Certified Economic Developer (CEcD) program develops one’s core competencies across the breadth of topics necessary to being a well-rounded and successful economic developer.

Emergency Management

• View the compilation of Emergency Management Professional Designations.

Energy

• NABCEP Associate Program recognizes qualified individuals in the application, design, installation, and operation of photovoltaic, solar heating or small wind energy systems.

Engineering

• View the compilation of Engineering Professional Designations.

Event Management

• View the compilation of Event Management Professional Designations.

Facility Management

• View the compilation of Facility Management Professional Designations.

Finance

• View the compilation of Finance Professional Designations.

Fitness

• Certified Personal Trainer (CPT) designation teaches research-based techniques to help people of all fitness levels reach their personal fitness goals.
• Personal Fitness Trainer (PFT) is proudly accredited through the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA), which is the industry standard.

Food Service / Nutrition

• Certified Nutrition Specialist (CNS) certification is held by clinical nutritionists, physicians and other advance-degreed healthcare professionals with a specialty in nutrition.
• ITMA Certified Tea Sommelier is a prestigious title in the tea industry representing a significant level of tea knowledge and expertise.
• ServSafe Manager program provides food safety training, exams and educational materials to foodservice managers.

Fundraising

• Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE) designation for individuals demonstrates the highest standards of ethical and professional practice in serving the philanthropic sector. 

Funeral

• Certified Preplanning Consultant (CPC) program has set the highest standard of professional excellence in preplanning.

Healthcare

• View the compilation of Healthcare Professional Designations.

Human Resource

• View the compilation of Human Resource Designations.

Information Technology

• View the compilation of IT Professional Designations.

Insurance

• Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter (CPCU) is a leading credential for risk and insurance professionals specializing in risk management and property-casualty insurance.

Interior Design

• National Certified Interior Design Qualification (NCIDQ) is the globally recognized hallmark of a highly qualified interior designer.

Legal

• Esquire (ESQ) is a term used in the United States to designate a person who may practice law (lawyers are licensed by a state agency in each state).
• Professional Legal Secretary/Certified Legal Professional (PLS/CLP) is the designation for lawyer’s assistants who want to be identified as exceptional.

Marketing

• View the compilation of Marketing Professional Designations.

Manufacturing

• Certified Forklift Technician (CFT) program is to certify and recognize individuals who demonstrate core competencies involved in repair and maintenance of forklift vehicles.
• Manufacturing Specialist (MS) certification demonstrates a certain level of industry-wide technical skills in the math and measurement; and spatial reasoning and manufacturing technology categories.

Maritime

• Charter Boat Captain commands a small vessel as a master, captain, or skipper and may contain a sailing endorsement for sailing vessels and/or a commercial towing endorsement.

Non Profit

• Certified Nonprofit Professional (CNP) credential is the only national nonprofit credential preparing students (undergraduate, graduate and professionals) for leadership in the nonprofit sector.

Occupational Safety & Health

• Occupational Hygiene and Safety Technicians (OHST) are persons who perform occupational health and safety activities on a full-time or part-time basis as part of their job duties.

Pharmaceutical

• View the compilation of Pharmaceutical Professional Designations.

Project Management

• Certified ScrumMaster (CSM) helps project teams properly use Scrum, increasing the likelihood of the project’s overall success.
• Project Management Professional (PMP) is the most important industry-recognized certification for project managers.

Public Safety

• Chief Fire Officer (CFO) is open to chief officers serving at or above the level of battalion chief.

Real Estate

• Accredited Buyer’s Representative (ABR) designation is designed for real estate buyer agents who focus on working directly with buyer-clients at every stage of the home buying process.

Sales

• View the compilation of Sales Professional Designations.

Science

• Registered Behavior Technician (RBT) is a paraprofessional who practices under close, ongoing supervision and is primarily responsible for the direct implementation of behavior-analytic services.

Security

• Certified Protection Officer (CPO) is designed for security officers and students who wish to learn more about security/asset protection.
• Loss Prevention Qualified (LPQ) is a benchmark certification that canvases loss prevention practices, core competencies, foundational tools, business processes, and best practices.

Social Work

• Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) designation for working with clients in order to help deal with issues involving mental and emotional health. Regulated by each individual state.

Sports

• Certified Personal Fitness Trainer (PFT) is an NCCA accredited certification for starting your fitness career.
• Certified Specialist in Sports Dietetics (CSSD) program for experienced registered dietitians who apply evidence-based nutrition knowledge in exercise and sports.

Telecommunications

• Certified Fiber Optic Technician (CFOT) is a leading certification for fiber optic technicians involved in design, installation, and operation.
• Digital Video Engineering Professional (DVEP) certifies knowledge in the engineering aspects of digital media systems as deployed in the cable telecommunications industry.
• Registered Communications Distribution Designer (RCDD) for professionals in design, implementation, and project management of telecoms and data communications technology/infrastructure.

Training & Development

• Associate Professional in Talent Development (APTD) is designed for talent development professionals who are in the early part of their careers.
• Certified Professional in Talent Development (CPTD) measures a professional’s knowledge and skill application across the breadth of talent development capabilities.

Urban Design

• Certification in Urban Design (CUD) recognizes an individual’s knowledge, experience, and application of design principles.

Warehousing

• Certified Warehouse Logistics Professional (CWLP) designation is for seasoned individuals who have broad career experience and who have pursued additional professional education.

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