We get this question quite often and our honest answer is “We don’t know.” We are honored that some of our clients believe we are the certifying body for some EH&S certifications, especially those we have exam prep courses for.

However, that’s not what we do. Determining your eligibility is up to you and here’s why.

Each EH&S certification has a certifying body that determines the requirements and/or credentials needed to achieve that certification. These certifying bodies require an application and upon review of your application, they will confirm whether or not you are eligible to sit for the exam.

Each certification comes with different requirements. You may meet some and be unsure of others. If you aren’t sure if you meet all of the requirements, it’s best to start with the appropriate certifying body.

For the ASP^® and CSP^® exams, The Board of Certified Safety Professionals (www.BCSP.org) is the place to go. Their Safety Certifications At-A-Glance download is a great place to start. Here you can find the minimum education and training requirements. If you need to dig deeper, take a look at the Complete Guide To Safety Certification.

Do you have what it takes to become a CIH? That’s the question the American Board of Industrial Hygiene (www.ABIH.org) wants to help you answer. You can find the criteria you need to meet under Become Certified. They even provide an Eligibility Self-Assessment Checklist for you to download.

The eligibility requirements to become a Certified Hazardous Materials Manager (CHMM) can be found on the Institute of Hazardous Materials Management’s website: www.IHMM.org. View the requirements under the applicants tab: Eligibility Requirements: CHMM. For detailed information you can download the Candidate Handbook.

Finally, if laser safety is your thing, consider becoming a Certified Laser Safety Officer (CLSO). The Board of Laser Safety (BLS) is the certifying body for this certification. The CLSO requirements can be found on their website: www.lasersafety.org under CLSO Requirements. Download the application and begin your journey.

If you can’t find what you need or want further clarification on a specific requirement, give them a call. Their customer service reps are very knowledgeable and will be able to give you the information needed to put you on the right track toward certification.

When you do determine that you are eligible to sit for the exam, the next step is determining if you need help preparing for it. That’s where we come in. Give us a call, send us an email, or chat us up online. We're here to help you determine the best path to prepare for exam success.

~The Bowen EHS Team