Eligibility Requirements FAQs

NAPO has sponsored the development of certification for professional organizers, which is governed by BCPO, an independent division of NAPO with its own ByLaws, Code of Ethics, audit, review, and disciplinary policies and procedures.

BCPO Certification Examination Eligibility Rules

I. Qualified candidates must have a minimum of a high school diploma or equivalent.

II. As a part of the application process, candidates must agree to adhere to the Code of Ethics for Certified Professional Organizers.

III. Candidates must be prepared to document a total of 1,500 hours of paid work experience in the last three (3) years. Paid work experience may include on-site organizing, coaching, consulting, training, virtual organizing, workshops and speaking engagements, or any form of paid work experience which, through client interaction, transfers or teaches organizing skills.

Q:	How do you define the last three years?
A:	If you are applying to sit for the exam in 2008, the last three years would be January 1, 2005 through December 31, 2007.
Q:	Why is transferring of skills so important? I may not know if the client really learned what I was trying to teach them.
A:	This exam cannot assess whether you or the client are ultimately successful. It is designed to determine whether you know the principles necessary for transferring skills.
Q:	I do hands-on organizing in client homes part-time, but do not have 1,500 hours of client interaction in the last three years. Is there any way I can qualify?
A:	If you have 1,250 hours of work in the last three years, you can reach the required 1,500 by substituting other activities as listed below. The minimum of 1,250 hours of client-based experience is mandatory.
Q:	I don't bill services by the hour, but sell programs as a package that includes a comprehensive assessment, written recommendations, system guidelines, training seminars, on-site system implementation, individual consultations, and follow-up sessions with the team and individuals. Much of this is developed off-site. Is any or all of my work eligible?
A:	Time spent on on-site assessment, development of the systems, training, on-site implementation and follow-up sessions are all eligible hours.
Q:	I am a veteran organizer who worked with clients for 20 years, but have not had 1,500 (or even 1,250) hours of work with clients in the last three years. Do I qualify?
A:	Certification is intended for active organizing practitioners who have met the published requirements, and demonstrated the minimum knowledge necessary to be credentialed.
Q:	I work for a closet manufacturer, and install custom closet systems in people's homes. Isn't that organizing?
A:	While you are providing a service that might lead to the client being more organized, you are not transferring skills to the client.
Q:	I install closet systems and garage systems as part of my organizing business, which entails an in-house assessment, design concept, installation, and working with the client to organize their stuff into the new system. How many hours of this work would count?
A:	Assessment, design, and working with the client to organize and replace items in the system developed for them would all be eligible hours, while time spent on installation would not.
Q:	The primary focus of my organizing work is moving and relocations. Am I qualified to sit for the exam?
A:	Elements of moving and relocation that transfer skills to the client would be eligible hours; packing and transport with no client interaction would not. For example, working with a client to pack and store items efficiently, teaching a client to purge items wisely prior to the relocation, working with a client to develop an action plan for tasks related to the move and relocation - these and similar activities would all be eligible hours. The applicant must be prepared to document hours spent on eligible activities.

While documentation of work hours is not required with the application, each application is subject to a random audit, at which time documentation must be provided. The audit will take place after the examination has been completed.

Any act or omission to obtain or to assist another in obtaining certification or recertification as a Certified Professional Organizer^® by fraud, misrepresentation or deception will be considered a violation of the Code of Ethics for Certified Professional Organizers.

How do I document my work hours if I'm audited?

Think about what you would provide for an IRS audit. You may use copies of invoices or contracts, or generate reports from accounting or time-keeping software. If you keep your client appointments in a calendar or track them in a spreadsheet, you could provide a log of hours worked. It would be to your advantage to provide documentation for hours worked or substitute hours (see below) earned IN EXCESS of the minimum requirements. For example, if you can provide documentation for 1800 hours and 300 hours are deemed ineligible in an audit, you will still have met the eligibility requirements.

It is the assumption that a professional seeking certification would maintain appropriate records of business activities. All information provided for an audit will be kept in strict confidence.

Up to 250 substitute hours of the required 1,500 can be earned via college degrees, continuing education courses or professional development activities in the organizing field. Substitute hours may also be earned via organizing related writing and speaking engagements, or relevant paid work experience prior to becoming an organizer and accrued in the three years prior to the application date, as detailed below.

Candidates may claim a maximum of 250 hours of credit towards the required 1,500 hours of paid work experience from one or more of the following substitute categories:

A. Formal Education (you may only claim credit for one degree)

AA Degree, 50 hours credit
Bachelor Degree, 75 hours credit
Advanced Degree, 100 hours credit

B. Organizing-Related Professional Activities (within the last 3 years)

Paid speaking engagements, actual hours, maximum of 10 hours credit

Why does speaking appear in both the regular hours level and the substitute level?

To be eligible for regular work hour credit, speaking would require some client interaction, such as working with a client to develop a customized presentation for their particular business or organization, or having interactive exchange in the process such as exercises or Q&A. A lecture or keynote type of speech that is "one size fits all" would be comparable to the client reading a book. While information may be transferred, this does not meet the client interactive requirement, but may be used as substitute hours subject to the limitations described above.

Mentor/Mentee/Apprenticeship, actual hours, maximum of 10 hours credit

Q:	I have been training on the job with an established organizer. Do these hours count, and in which category?
A:	You may use up to 10 of these hours in the substitute category.
Q:	I spend 5 hours a month mentoring new organizers. Where do these hours fit in?
A:	Both you and your mentees may claim up to 10 of these hours in the substitute category.

Publishing books, 20 per book, maximum of 40 hours credit

I am a professional organizer who specializes in writing books. My last book, published last year, took more than 1,500 hours to write. Do I qualify?

No, because while writing a book qualifies you as an author, the hours spent do not meet the eligibility requirements with regard to transferring skills through client interaction. A book may also be the result of collaboration with other researchers, writers, editors and publishers and may not represent the true body of knowledge of the author, or his/her ability to transfer that knowledge to another individual.

Authoring articles (minimum 500 words per article), 10 per article, maximum of 30 hours credit

Q:	I wrote a series of articles for my local newsletter and then collected and printed them into a book I give to my clients. Do these qualify in the substitute category?
A:	To qualify, a book, even if self-published, must be formally published with an ISBN number. To receive credit for an article, the applicant would need to be able to provide data as to where the article was published, along with relevant circulation statistics for any publications that may not be generally known.

Professional Association Membership, maximum of 10 hours credit

Q:	Do I have to be a member of NAPO and/or POC to become certified?
A:	No, any professional organizer who meets the eligibility requirements may sit for this examination. Membership in any professional association whose purpose is specifically related to the organizing profession can count towards these substitute hours.

Trainer/Teacher, maximum of 10 hours credit

Q:	I used to work personally with clients, but I have reduced my own client interaction, and hire and train employees who are sent to do the work. I spend the majority of my time speaking, training and writing books. Am I eligible for certification?
A:	In this scenario, time spent training other organizers and in speaking engagements as described above, would represent substitute hours.

Serving on an Organizing Entity's Board of Directors, maximum of 10 hours credit

Q:	What does serving on a board have to do with organizing skills?
A:	The assumption is that directing the activities of an organization whose purpose is specifically targeted to the organizing profession would involve the development and promotion of industry best practices.

Volunteer Work as an Organizer, maximum of 10 hours credit

Q:	I thought the requirements were for paid organizing hours?
A:	If an organizer has worked for a client who could not afford to pay, or if the organizer chooses to lend his/her skills to community service or a charitable institution, hours spent in client interaction would count towards this substitute category.
Q:	What about credit for volunteering on something like a professional association committee?
A:	That may or may not qualify, depending upon whether or not the work relates directly to organizing. Only volunteer work directly related to organizing is eligible.

C. Continuing Education Courses relating to Organizing (within the last 3 years)

For each course, the candidate may claim the actual hours attended, to a cumulative total of 250 hours. Sixty minutes of coursework is equal to one credit hour regardless of any number of continuing education credits (CEUs) another institution may have awarded for completion of the course.

Q:	How do I know which courses qualify?
A:	BCPO is not able to approve an official list of courses. As a result, there is no way to determine in advance whether or not a course will qualify. If an application is audited the audit committee will make a determination on a case by case basis. An applicant must simply use his or her best judgment in selecting the courses that he or she intends to include on the application. With regard to classes, tele-classes, or educational programs offered by conferences of organizing entities throughout the United States and Canada (such as NAPO chapters, NSGCD, POC), or any continuing education outlet, it is the applicant's responsibility to research the background and credibility of the course provider. Ask for references and speak to other organizers who have taken the course. Review the BCPO Examination Content Outline and assess whether you think the course will contribute to your body of knowledge as an organizing practitioner. Attendance at a professional conference could earn a large number of CEU hours in only a few days. If you belong to a professional association that offers educational programs that are at least an hour long, such as NAPO chapter programs or professional development seminars, many of these may be eligible if the content meets the criteria as described above.
Q:	If I'm audited, how can I prove that I attended enough courses?
A:	Submit copies of program brochures listing agenda, time and date of courses or activities. When you register for a course, request a certificate of attendance or confirmation of completion. If you take a course from a formal educational institution, they should be able to provide you with a transcript. If you'd like to download a sample form for tracking your CEU activities, one is provided, but in no way required.

D. Relevant Paid Work Experience Prior to Becoming an Organizer

Twenty-five (25) per full/time year (maximum 3 years or 75 hours credit.) Experience must include the same criteria for transfer of skills as described in the 1500 hours requirement.

What do you mean by relevant paid work experience?

Experience must meet the same criteria for transfer of skills as described above for paid work as an organizer. If prior to your work as an organizing practitioner you were, for example, a full-time office administrator, you might have already been transferring organizing skills. On the other hand, being organized does not make you an organizer. If you developed systems to run the office more efficiently and primarily administered them yourself, you were doing your job, not transferring skills. If you were developing customized solutions and training others to use them, you were transferring skills.

Recertification

After initial certification, recertification is required every three (3) years to ensure that a practitioner maintains his or her competence over time. Recertification may be achieved by either (a) asserting 1,000 hours of paid work in any area related to organizing, plus earning 45 organizing-related continuing education hours, during the 3-year period; or (b) retaking the examination. If the individual chooses to recertify by examination and fails, he or she may not then recertify via the Experience/Continuing Education method, and the prior certification is immediately revoked. Providing the eligibility requirements are met, he or she would be eligible to submit a new application for future examinations.

While it seems easier than retaking the examination, I am worried about finding 45 hours of relevant continuing education courses. Isn't this a high number?

Continuing professional development is essential to maintaining your professional skills. If you look at this as 15 CEU hours per year, you are committing to only a little over an hour a month to professional development. Attendance at a professional conference could earn a large percentage of those hours in only a few days. If you belong to a professional association that offers educational programs that are at least an hour long, such as NAPO chapter programs or professional development seminars, many of these may be eligible if the content meets the criteria as described above.