Use your real world experience to gain the professional accreditation employers respect, using our Experience Assessment tool
Experience Assessment offers a direct route to membership for those with recent experience in the people profession, without the need for additional study.
It lets you showcase your skills, knowledge, and career achievements to demonstrate that you have the necessary real-world expertise required for your desired CIPD membership grade. The evidence must come from the last five years of professional experience.
You can also use Experience Assessment if you are already in CIPD membership and want to upgrade to Chartered Member or Chartered Fellow, without additional study.
We’re committed to making Experience Assessment accessible and inclusive for all candidates. While we follow a standard assessment approach, we offer a range of adjustments and support options to help make this the best possible experience for you.
Some of the adjustments we offer include:
We consider all requests based on individual need, and we’ll work with you to find the best way to support your experience.
When you register for Experience Assessment, we’ll ask whether you need any adjustments to support you. You’ll be shown examples of the adjustments we typically offer, and you can either select those that apply or tell us about anything else you might need. We’ll confirm all adjustments within five working days.
If you'd like to talk about the assessment and reasonable adjustments, email us at ea@cipd.co.uk or call us on +44 (0) 20 8612 6208 (09:00 - 16:00 Mon - Fri UK time) to find out more.
Use the membership standards to identify which membership grade is right for you. Depending on your level of experience, you can achieve one of the following CIPD membership grades with Experience Assessment:
Once you have successfully completed your Experience Assessment, as a CIPD member you will be able to showcase and share your membership status with a digital badge or a digital certificate. Find out more about digital badges and certificates.
Use our free 10-minute pre-assessment tool to find out if you're eligible for Experience Assessment. The pre-assessment can also help you to choose the right grade to apply for and identify areas for development.
Choose when to start your assessment within three months. After registration and payment, you'll get access to your CIPD member benefits, including a range of materials, online research and communities that’ll help and support you throughout your online assessment.
Your online assessment will take about three days over a four-week period. It comprises two elements: knowledge and impact report, and information on your professional development.
You’ll have a virtual discussion with an experienced CIPD assessor to talk about your career and explore your evidence in more detail. This discussion takes around 1.5 hours.
You'll get the outcome of your Experience Assessment within four weeks. If you're successful, you'll be awarded Associate Member, Chartered Member or Chartered Fellow grade and receive your CIPD certificate.
Our membership year runs from 1st July to 30th June, and you can join membership at any time.
*The one-off assessment fee is non-refundable
**Your Membership fee covers up to 12 months, valid until 30 June 2026
***Next time you renew your membership, you’ll pay the membership fee for the grade you’re awarded.
Join us 7 March for this member-exclusive online event. Gain practical insights, network and get career advice.
Use your career experience to become a Chartered member, without exams or extra study.
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