Government People Group and the CIPD - in partnership
Information and support for civil service HR staff
Information and support for civil service HR staff
Government People Group and the CIPD have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) which highlights a powerful commitment to build a strong, high-performing HR community that can best support the hundreds of thousands of employees in the wider civil service workforce. One of the opportunities highlighted by the partnership is access to professional membership and, in turn, a range of research and development tools to support civil service HR practitioners in their current role and their career development.
On this page you'll find information about the three routes into CIPD professional membership: Upgrading, Experience Assessment and Professional qualifications.
Once you formally apply for professional membership, further FAQs will be provided to guide you through the full assessment with hints and tips on how to prepare.
Your membership level should reflect your level of HR knowledge, responsibility and impact at different points of your career. Upgrading your professional membership level recognises your knowledge and capability, and enhances your credibility and relevance.
You don’t necessarily need to upgrade through each membership level, i.e. Associate member to Chartered Member to Chartered Fellow. You should apply for the level of membership that is most relevant for you.
Experience Assessment (EA) is a direct route to CIPD professional membership. It doesn’t require you to sit an exam, nor do you need a qualification in HR to be eligible. Instead, we ask you to provide written examples of your HR work experience from the last three years to showcase how you meet the membership criteria. You’ll then be invited to a Professional Discussion with an Assessor from CIPD to talk through your knowledge and experience in more detail.
Experience Assessment offers you the opportunity to gain professional recognition for your HR experience and achievements. The assessment encourages you to reflect not only on the business impact of your work but also gives you a chance to focus forwards on your own continuous development.
Find out first-hand from people who've been through experience assessment - watch our video: The non-study route into CIPD membership: Experience Assessment.