Certification

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Certification is an integral component of keeping with The Society for Human Resource Management’s mission to serve the needs of HR professionals (STP) and advance the human resource profession (ATP).

Certification is an individual voluntary action in the human resource profession to support this mission and ensure our professionals have met a stated level of training and work experience. Certified individuals are usually issued a certificate attesting that they have met the standards of the credentialing organization and are entitled to make the public aware of their credentialed status, usually through the use of initials (i.e., PHR, SPHR, GPHR) after their names.

The Human Resource Certification Institute (HRCI) is the leading independent, internationally recognized certifying body for the HR profession. HRCI offers three certifications for HR professionals:

PHR® (Professional in Human Resources)
SPHR® (Senior Professional in Human Resources)
GPHR® (Global Professional in Human Resources)

Certification Preparation in Arkansas

Spring, 2010:

Arkansas SHRM State Council online, web-based study group
Beverly Petty, SPHR

870-926-3038
Course: ASU Delta Center for Economic Development (Jonesboro, Little Rock, and Mountain Home)
Bridget Taylor

870-972-3850
CAHRA (Central Arkansas HR Association) Study Group
Toni Hardin
University of Memphis

901-678-6000
A&M Corpus Christi – study group
Jerry Henry, PHR
University of Arkansas Global Campus
www.globalcampus.uark.edu/shrm
479-575-3605

Certification eligibility requirements are changing in 2011 as follows:

PHR Eligibility

4 years of demonstrated exempt-level HR experience with less than a Bachelor’s degree or no degree
2 years of demonstrated exempt-level HR experience with a Bachelor’s degree
1 year of demonstrated exempt-level HR experience with a Master’s degree

SPHR Eligibility

7 years of demonstrated exempt-level HR experience with less than a Bachelor’s degree or no degree
5 years of demonstrated exempt-level HR experience with a Bachelor’s degree
4 years of demonstrated exempt-level HR experience with a Master’s degree

GPHR Eligibility

4 years of demonstrated exempt-level HR experience (with 2 of the 4 being global HR experience)
3 years of demonstrated exempt-level HR experience (with 2 of the 3 being global HR experience)
2 years of demonstrated global exempt-level HR experience with a Master’s degree or more

Did You Know? As of August 18, 2009:

Total Number of Certified Professionals – 102,664

PHR – 57,661
SPHR – 43,271
GPHR – 642
PHR-CA – 164
SPHR-CA – 274
PHR/GPHR - 127
SPHR/GPHR – 514
SPHR-CA/GPHR –11

Of these totals, 746 certified professionals are in Arkansas:

Arkansas PHR – 500
Arkansas SPHR – 242
Arkansas GPHR – 1
Arkansas SPHR-CA – 1
Arkansas SPHR-GPHR – 2

Visit the following links to find out more about Certification:

Your local professional HR Chapter may have resources available to you to help you meet your Certification goals, as well as The Society for Human Resource Management’s Learning System at http://www.shrm.org/learning/.