Continuing Professional Development

At the Edmonton Chapter's Annual Organizational Meeting last night, the subject of Continuing Professional Development (CPD) came up.  Even though we have sent the message many times and in many ways over the last two years - in Technology Alberta, in TechLINK emails, at Open House events and more - many members are still confused about the process.  So here are the basics of CPD...

CPD came about as a result of the legislation that made ASET a self-regulating profession.  If you'd like, you can click this link read the full text of the EGGP Act that brought about the change. As professionals, ASET members are now required by law to maintain a level of knowledge and professionalism in order to protect and serve the public. To assist members in keeping track of their professional development, ASET developed the CPD Program and website. The process is not onerous.  All members need to do to complete their CPD for the year is participate in two activities that fall into two of the four categories. It is not a 'points' system or dependent upon a certain number of hours; it's just two activities per year.

The categories are as follows:
1. Formal - instructed learning of at least 4 hours
2. Informal - self-directed or instructed learning of less than 4 hours
3. Peer and Professional Interaction - peer interaction, exposure to new ideas and technologies
4. Contributions to the Profession - professional or community activities.

So, as an example, if a member participates in an ASET chapter meeting (#3 above) and takes a day-long seminar (#1 above), that member is finished his or her CPD for the year. Or if another member attends a two-hour webinar on an aspect of his or her field (#2 above) and coaches his or her daughter's soccer team (#4 above), that member is also finished. All that remains to be done is to go online and enter that information as a record of those activities.  So in 2012, you might have activities in #1 and #3; and then in 2013, you might have activities in #2 and #4.  It is up to you how you complete your CPD.

CPD is something new that ASET members haven't had to do before, so the thought can be a little intimidating.  But now that we have this legislation that proclaims our members to be 'professionals', our members must now show that they are keeping up their skills. All other professional associations require this of their members and ASET is no exception. If you have been putting it off because you were concerned about how difficult it might be, please go to the ASET website and check it out. If you have any questions once you've seen the requirements, feel free to give the ASET office a call. We're always happy to answer your questions; we want it to be as easy as possible for you. Trust me, once you've done it, you'll wonder why you ever waited.