There are a number of options available for professional
accreditation. Interested students should consult the governing bodies
to
determine what elective courses may be needed to help them meet the
requirements for professional standing in a particular organization and
to learn about the various levels of accreditation.
The College of Applied Biology of British Columbia
was established in 2003. It operates under a legal statute by an Act of the
British Columbia
government, the
College of
Applied Biology Act. It is the governing body for members of the College,
including at present Registered Professional Biologists (RPBio) and soon to also include
Registered Biology Technologists and Applied Biology Technicians. Currently, a student taking all of the courses needed to complete the Wildlife and Fisheries Major at UNBC should meet the education requirements for eligibility as a Registered Professional Biologist (RPBio) in BC. This is unofficial, however, because the accreditation is done for individual applicants by British Columbia’s College of Applied Biology and no degree or major at any university is accredited in advance by the College of Applied Biology. Each applicant is responsible for proving compliance with the education requirements of the College. The Wildlife and Fisheries major at UNBC currently includes the 25 science courses, 15 biology courses and a course in Chemistry, Math, Communications, Introductory Biology, and advanced courses (i.e., second year or higher) in Systematics or Classification, Cellular Biology, Organismal Biology, Ecology, Applied Biology, and Statistics required by the College of Applied Biology. Following graduation, students also must gain three years of progressive experience practicing applied biology and complete a professional report to apply for RPBio status. Because an undergraduate thesis that is subsequently published can count for this professional report, students should consider exploring options to complete an
Undergraduate Thesis at UNBC. All rules defining the qualifications for membership in the College of Applied Biology can be found at:
http://www.cab-bc.org/files/Schedule 3 2008.pdf Information on the College can be found on the College of Applied Biology website (
www.cab-bc.org/). To help students with their application process, the Wildlife and Fisheries Curriculum Committee maintains a document with detailed course content for the courses taken in the degree -- you will need this information when you apply to the College. To obtain a copy of this document, please contact
Dr. Chris Johnson -- please be sure to specify the year that you graduated from the Wildlife and Fisheries Program.
The Wildlife Society of North America administers the
Certified Wildlife Biologist Program. The
Wildlife Society, founded in 1937, is an international, non-profit
scientific and educational organization serving and representing
wildlife professionals in all areas of wildlife conservation and
resource management. Its goal is to promote excellence in wildlife
stewardship through science and education. Information on the Certified
Wildlife Biologist Program can be found on the Wildlife Society website (
www.wildlife.org/certification/index.cfm?tname=cwb).
The American Fisheries Society (AFS) offers a
Professional Certification Program,
which evaluates the education and experience of fisheries
professionals. Successful applicants are awarded certification on
a two-tiered system. Applications are evaluated on an ongoing
basis, and applicants do not have to be AFS members.
Certification may be used as: 1) a basis for evaluation for employment;
2) demonstration of expertise; 3) continuing professional activities;
and 4) education and verification of professionalism. Information
on the Professional Certification Program can be found on the AFS website (
http://www.fisheries.org/afs/education.html ).
