To maintain EAC certification credential(s), editors who pass the November 2011 tests will be required to do the following:

1. uphold and apply the standards in EAC's Professional Editorial Standards
2. pay an annual fee for credential maintenance
3. over a 5-year period, earn 100 professional development points allocated over at least three of the following five categories
   • receiving education and training
   • delivering education and training
   • volunteering for EAC (EAC members only)
   • working
   • other

• Benefits of Credential Maintenance
• Professional Editorial Standards
• Annual Administration Fee
• Professional Development Points
• Credential Maintenance Reporting Form
• Sample Credential Maintenance Reporting Form
• Sample Credential Maintenance Schedule
• Credential Suspension

Benefits of Credential Maintenance

Credential maintenance adds value to your credentials and to the EAC certification program by

• assuring employers and clients that EAC-certified editors are keeping their skills and knowledge up-to-date
• supporting your skills and knowledge through your professional development
• encouraging certified editors to contribute to the editing community by sharing knowledge and skills

Frequently Asked Questions about Credential Maintenance

Professional Editorial Standards

As an EAC certification credential holder, you are responsible for knowing the standards in EAC's Professional Editorial Standards, upholding these standards in your work, and for keeping up to date with the standards as they evolve.

Annual Administration Fee

• $25 for members of EAC
• $100 for non-members of EAC

The annual administration fee covers the costs of tracking, auditing and notifying certified editors about credential maintenance requirements. The fee remains the same regardless of the number of credentials you have.

Professional Development Points

Professional development activities must be related to editing to qualify for credential maintenance points. Many activities you probably already do will qualify: taking courses, volunteering for EAC, giving presentations, reading and writing about editing, etc.

Professional development activities can be for any certification credential, not just the credential(s) you hold. For instance, if you're a certified proofreader, you can receive points for activities that involve stylistic editing.

Qualifying activities are assigned points weighted for the time and effort required, usually based on the number of hours involved. For example:

• taking a 12-hour substantive editing course earns 36 points (3 points per hour)
• spending 5 hours listening to podcasts of EAC branch presentations on editing children's books and production editing earns 10 points (2 points per hour)
• doing 20 hours of copy editing earns 20 points (1 point per hour)

Points for writing about editing are calculated based on the size of the published piece. For example:

• writing an 800-word article about self-publishing earns 4 points (1 point for every 200 words)

To maintain your credential(s), you must collect 100 points within a 5-year period after your first certification. The 100 total points must be allocated over at least three of the five professional development categories, not exceeding the maximum allowed for each category. The 100-point requirement is the same regardless of the number of credentials you have earned.

Activity Type	Supporting documents that may be requested
Category 1: Delivering Education and Training (maximum of 45 points per reporting period)
Developing or delivering editing-related courses, workshops or presentations (Weight: 3 points per hour)	course description that includes your name as instructor published material with your name as contributor
Leading editorial study groups; training or mentoring other editors (Weight: 2 points per hour)
Developing material related to editing (Weight: 1 point per 200 words)
Category 2: Receiving Education and Training (maximum of 45 points per reporting period)
Taking editing-related courses or workshops, in person or online; completing editing-related exercises (online or on hard copy) (Weight: 3 points per hour)	course description and receipt web page describing podcast name of publication
Attending editing-related presentations or webinars (Weight: 2 point per hour)
Reading about language, grammar, style, and other topics related to editing  (Weight: 1 point per hour to a maximum of 5 points)
Participating in editorial study groups; being mentored or trained by other editors (Weight: 2 points per hour)
Category 3: Volunteering (for EAC members only) (maximum of 20 points per reporting period)
Serving on EAC committees or volunteering for EAC activities related to the development of editing skills and knowledge (Weight: 1 point per hour)	document listing committee members (e.g., EAC annual report) letter from project chair
Category 4: Working (maximum of 40 points per reporting period)
Working in an editorial capacity, as defined by PES (Weight: 1 point per hour)	work sample memo about project,  email from client listed as editor in published work
Category 5: Other (maximum of 30 points per reporting period)
Professional development activities not listed above must be submitted to the Credential Maintenance Subcommittee at least 6 months before the end of the reporting period for consideration and point allocation.
Must earn a grand total of 100 points per 5-year reporting period

Note also that the following will be asked as part of the credential maintenance program.

I am familiar with any revisions made to PES within this five-year time frame. Version: _________  Date read:____________

Credential Maintenance Reporting Form

We recommend keeping track of the time you spend on activities that contribute to your professional development. Record this information regularly, as you complete each activity. Starting in January 2012, you can record your activities using EAC's online Credential Maintenance Reporting Form. The form will allow you to

• briefly describe each activity
• list documents that confirm you have completed the activity
• indicate when you completed the activity
• record the number of hours allocated and points you've earned
• submit the form every five years

Random periodic checks may require that you provide proof of your professional development. You must save documents and receipts that confirm your activities.

Some activities may qualify for more than one category. As you can receive credit for each activity only once, you must decide which category is best for your purposes.

If after reviewing the instructions you are not sure where an activity belongs, or if you want to report an activity in the "Other" category, contact the Credential Maintenance Subcommittee through EAC's national office.

Sample Credential Maintenance Reporting Form

An online form similar to the one below will be used to report your professional development activities. The online form will tally and record your points as your enter your hours for each activity. Totals will be updated automatically with new entries.

Professional Development Activity Type	Brief Description	Proof of Activity	Year	Hours / Words	Completed Points
Delivering education and training
Developing or delivering editing-related courses, workshops, or presentations (Weight: 3 points per hour)	Central College 3 hour workshop: Beyond the Serial Comma (instructor)	College catalogue; invoice	2011	3	9
	Elm Tree High journalism class: What Editors Do (speaker)	Thank you letter from teacher	2013	1	3
	EAC conference 1 hour session: Editing Textbooks	Conference program	2014	1	3
Leading editorial study groups (Weight: 2 points per hour)	Simcoe Twig Proofreading Study Group; 5 study groups held	Letter signed by study group members	2012	5	10
Training and mentoring other editors (Weight: 2 points per hour)	Mentor for Toronto Branch Mentor Program; 5 hours	Letter from mentee	2015	5	10
Publishing material related to editing (Weight: 1 point per 200 words)	Article (600 words) on copy editing for Ryerson University publishing program newsletter	Copy of newsletter	2015	600	3
Delivering education and training subtotal (maximum 40 points per 5-year period for this category)					38

Sample Credential Maintenance Schedule

The table below outlines a sample schedule of how credential maintenance will be implemented over the next few years.

November 2011	Write stylistic editing test and copy editing test
January 2012	Begin tracking professional development activities in anticipation of receiving credentials in March
March 2012	Receive notice of passing both tests (2012 is the credentialing year)
January 2013	Receive notice that annual credential maintenance fee of $25 ($100 for non-members) is due Pay annual maintenance fee Receive reminder to undertake and record professional development activities for the January 2013 to December 2017 reporting period
January 2014	Pay annual maintenance fee Receive reminder to undertake and record professional development activities
January 2015	Pay annual maintenance fee Receive reminder to undertake and record professional development activities
January 2016	Pay annual maintenance fee Receive reminder to undertake and record professional development activities
January 2017	Pay annual maintenance fee Receive reminder that one year remains in reporting period that began on January 1, 2013, and that you will need to submit your completed Credential Maintenance Reporting Form in 2018
January 2018	Receive notice that your completed Credential Maintenance Reporting Form for January 1, 2013, to December 31, 2017, is due on March 1, 2018 Submit form for review Pay annual maintenance fee
June 2018	Receive new seals for your certificate(s), confirming that you are a certified editor in good standing
January 2019	Pay annual maintenance fee Receive reminder to undertake and record professional development activities for the January 2018 to December 2022 reporting period

Credential Suspension

Your certification remains in effect as long as you comply with the credential maintenance requirements.

If special circumstances prevent you from earning 100 points during your five-year reporting period, contact the Credential Maintenance Subcommittee through EAC's national office.

Should you fall behind in your maintenance obligations, EAC will contact you and offer you the opportunity to comply before it takes any action to suspend your credential(s).

If you do not pay your annual fee, EAC will remove your name from the Online Roster of EAC-Certified Editors until you pay the fee.

Should you choose to stop the Credential Maintenance program (e.g., because you are retiring or you are leaving the industry), please notify the Professional Development Coordinator at EAC's national office.

Frequently Asked Questions about Credential Maintenance