General Certification

To qualify for Certified Environmental Practitioner status, you need:

• an environment-related degree, or a degree with a substantial environmental component, and evidence thereof.
• nomination by three respected environmental professionals who are willing to act as referees for the candidate.
• five years of full-time equivalent experience in the functional areas of environmental practice during the last twelve years.
• evidence of past commitment to training and professional development completed over the past 2 years.
• evidence of ongoing commitment to training and professional development (CPD plan for the future to meet the requirements once certified).
• evidence that the candidate is a respected, competent, ethical and active member of the profession in the form of at least two referee statements (at least one should be external to current employer), a detailed curriculum vitae, reports, publications, citations, conference / seminar presentations, etc.
• a signed (and witnessed) statement of claim covering qualifications, experience, ethics, commitment and the accuracy of materials provided to the Certification Board.

Applications can be submitted online anytime during the year. Upon receipt of a valid and complete application, the applicant will be requested to attend an interview within two months. Applications are usually processed within 6 months, but the process may take up to 12 months, if an application is incomplete.

Please note:

• your online application for certification is active for 30 days. After 30 days, your application is voided automatically on our systems.
• you can save your application and resume for 30 days. When clicking the ‘Save and Resume Later’ button you will receive a link to your application via email. If you do not send yourself the link, you will have to start the application again.
• incomplete or flawed applications will be delayed until all missing documentation is received. This may delay your application process.

Application fees

Application fees are non-refundable unless it is obvious to the Registrar that the applicant cannot meet the certification criteria. In this case the application will be returned to the applicant together with a portion of the application fee.

The annual renewal fee for the first year is calculated on a pro-rata basis from the month they were certified.

Educational qualification

An environment degree or a degree with a substantial environmental component will generally constitute the minimum requirement. In the case of the latter, further information verifying the environmental content must be provided (e.g. a transcript or academic record).

Evidence of your qualifications is required in the form of certified copies (see suggested Authorised Signatories in Australia, and in New Zealand). These must be uploaded and submitted together with the online application. Alternatively, direct access via My eQuals is also accepted.

In exceptional circumstances, ten years of appropriate work experience may be submitted in lieu of a suitable tertiary qualification.

Work experience

The minimum requirement is five years of full-time experience in the functional areas of environmental practice gained during the last twelve years*.

*The 12-year window should allow part-time workers as well as those returning to the workforce from a long leave period associated with caring, illness or parental leave, to meet the required full-time equivalence work experience.

Full time work is defined as per the Australian Public Service Commission or the New Zealand State Services Commission as Full Time/1.0 (35 hrs/week), 4 days/0.8 (28 hrs/week), 3 days/0.6 (21 hrs/week), 2 days/0.4 (14 hrs/week), 1 day/0.2 (7 hrs/week). No more than 35hrs per week will be recognised (even if working for more than one employer at the time).

Volunteer work, research, policy, regulation, community development work, teaching and supervision may contribute to the minimum years of ‘functional experience’, providing you can demonstrate how these have contributed to relevant competence.

The experience claimed for the minimum five years must be fully relevant to management and improvement of the environment and be independently verified by signature (e.g. current or former employer, senior colleague, referee who knew the applicant at that time). These individuals may be contacted during the application process.

The applicant must nominate a maximum of three areas of Environmental Practice. The nominated areas will be discussed during your interview and once certified these nominated areas will be used in online profiles and directories.

NB: An area of environmental practice is a field you are currently or have been working in. It is not recognised as a CEnvP specialisation.

Evidence of your qualifications is required in the form of certified copies (see suggested Authorised Signatories in Australia, and in New Zealand).

A certified copy of your educational qualifications must be uploaded and submitted together with the online application. Please do not send us your academic transcripts as they will neither be considered with your application nor returned to you.

Your CV must be detailed and fully describe experience, roles and responsibilities, skills, outcomes, achievements, citations, presentations etc.

Previously accrued CPD is assessed as part of the application process. Please upload CPD Log or a statement explaining how you accrued your CPD points over the past 2 years.

Additional information

Information may include but not necessarily be limited to testamurs, academic records, publications, citations, reports, training records, written statements of service, or information supplied by a witness, associate or referee.

Statement of claim statutory declaration

All applicants are required to sign a statutory declaration that the materials they have provided are accurate and complete in the presence of an appropriately authorised witness authority (e.g. Justice of the Peace or other relevant qualification in the jurisdiction). Applicants must provide the details of the location where the declaration is being made.

All the supporting material can be submitted online at the time the online application form is completed and submitted.

The EIANZ Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct is within the online application form. Please ensure you have read, understood and ticked that you will abide by it before proceeding onto the next section of the form.

Three respected environmental professionals willing to act as referees are required. Each must have known the applicant for at least two years. They should be familiar with the applicant’s skills and attributes as they relate to environmental practice, ethics and professional integrity, and cover these aspects in the referee report. The applicant should include information on referees’ qualification, employment and relationship to the applicant.

At least two of the three nominees are required to complete the referee report. At least one of the referee reports must be from a referee external to the applicant’s current place of work.

Once an application has been successfully submitted online, the nominated referees will automatically receive an email notifying them that they need to complete the referee report, attached in the email. Referees must follow the instructions and complete all questions separately as marked on the online form, otherwise there may be delays in your application.

Once accepted for certification, applicants must keep a log of professional development undertaken. A points system has been devised to describe the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) and the total of 100 points requirement every two years. Please see CPD guidelines for more information.

A practitioner is re-certified every two years. At this time the applicant will need to provide evidence of CPD and a statement verifying any changed circumstances including employment and ethical conduct.

It is advised to provide evidence supporting your claim of any recent CPD activity with your application. These activities include:

• formal courses at accredited education or training institutes, which may be directly face-to-face, by distance learning (correspondence), internet course, or a combination of these where there is a formal assessment at the completion;
• short courses for which there is no actual assessment, but which will result in a Certificate of Attendance (evidence of doing the course)
• participation at technical meetings, seminars and conferences relevant to the environment profession;
• dedicated volunteer assistance with the CEnvP Scheme in roles such as Registrar, Interview Panel Member, SEAC Member, or assisting a similar professional organisation with a strong environmental component in a similar capacity;
• presentations at conferences, seminars and technical meetings;
• publication of technical or research papers in journals;
• part-time or guest lectures in environmental studies at accredited education or training institutes or organisations;
• assistance to junior members of the profession through the mentoring program;
• private study of journals, magazines and reference texts;
• provision of pro bono advice and assistance to community groups, including expert witness duties and expert advice for the Environmental Defenders Office (promotion of the environment profession and principles); and
• industry/professional involvement for academia.