Standard for Assessment-Based Certificate Programs

ICE 1100 2010(E) - Standard for Assessment-Based Certificate Programs (PDF file) © 2009 ICE

Free Download (members only) - ICE is proud to publish the first American National Standard for certificate programs, ICE 1100 2010(E) – Standard for Assessment-Based Certificate Programs (2009).  The Standard specifies essential requirements for certificate programs and provides guidance to program providers, consumers, and others on what defines a high-quality program.  This Standard is free to ICE members and is available to non-members for a fee of $75 per copy.  Please download the publications order form to purchase your copy.

Background Information

In January 2007, ICE established a Certificate Task Force, comprised of ICE members and other key parties, to:

• identify characteristics of quality certification and quality assessment-based certificate programs;
• outline the distinguishing features of each; and
• explore what ICE’s future role might be with respect to assessment-based certificate programs.

This effort resulted in the publication of a document entitled Defining Features of Quality Certification and Assessment-Based Certificate Programs, which highlights the similarities and differences between the two types of programs.

Based on the recommendations of the Certificate Task Force, the ICE Board established the Main Committee for Assessment-Based Certificate Programs in January 2008 and charged the committee with developing a national standard for assessment-based certificate programs.

The 41-member Main Committee included representatives from the following key stakeholder groups:

• providers (organizations that provide assessment-based certificates);
• users (individuals or organizations that use assessment-based certificate programs in some capacity, such as individuals who participate in such programs, employers, public advocacy organizations, accrediting bodies, and organizations that award continuing education credit);
• government (any government agency having jurisdiction over assessment-based certificate programs or which uses assessment-based certificate programs in some capacity); and
• general interest (an individual or organization directly impacted by certificate programs, e.g., consultants or vendors who provide services to the certificate industry, but do not fall under any other category).

The Main Committee met in February 2008 to identify the essential elements of quality for assessment-based certificate programs. Three working groups were subsequently formed to discuss the essential elements further and develop specific requirements pertaining to these elements. These groups were: the Administration Working Group, focusing on program administration, quality management, and program evaluation; the Education/Training Working Group, focusing on the content, design, and delivery of the education/training; and the Assessment Working Group, focusing on the design, conduct, and evaluation/scoring of assessment methods. Each working group consisted of 10-13 individuals from the Main Committee, as well as stakeholder representatives not serving on the committee. The groups were convened on an ongoing basis from March through June 2008 to develop the draft standard.

In July 2008, the preliminary draft standard was published on the ICE website, along with an invitation to all interested parties to participate in a series of web conferences to review and discuss the standard. Participating in the web conferences were the Main Committee members and other stakeholder representatives. This open review process was completed on July 29, 2008. A second open review period for the standard was initiated on September 11 and completed on October 10, 2008. On September 26, 2008, the Main Committee approved the draft standard by affirmative ballot. The ANSI public review period was completed on December 29, 2008 and the standard was approved as an American National Standard on March 25, 2009. In 2010, a committee was formed to develop an accreditation program based on this standard.

More Information about the Development of the Standard

Background Paper on the ICE 1100 2010(E) Standard

Free Download - This paper provides detailed information on the development of the ICE 1100 certificate standard.  This publication is free to anyone and provides a wealth of information on the development of the standard, rationale for key requirements, and linking the requirements to industry best practices.  If you would like a copy of the standard itself, members may download a copy for free using the link provided above.  Non-members who wish to purcahse a copy of the standard must download the publications order form.