Why fellowship? Peak professional bodies, peer recognition and credentialing in Australia

Article Outline

• Summary
• Peer recognition and the professional bodies
• Method
• Instrument
• Data analysis
• Results
• Discussion
• Conclusion
• References
• Copyright

Summary 

Background

Professions frequently distinguish themselves from trades or vocations, by creating professional peak bodies. Usually professional peak bodies offer two levels of subscription: membership and fellowship. Fellowship of a peak body is widely considered as offering status and prestige by recognising contribution made to one's profession. Fellowship therefore, often brings with it specific privileges of a symbolic or material nature, or both.

Aim

To describe the criteria for eligibility for fellowship; the perceived benefits of fellowship to individuals from the organisations’ viewpoint; the process of obtaining and maintaining fellowship across a range of professional peak bodies; and to apply the outcomes from the survey to nursing professional peak bodies.

Method

A telephone survey of 25 professional organisations representing a range of disciplines and industries in Australia was conducted. Each organisation was telephoned and the manager responsible for membership was invited to participate in a 10-min telephone survey.

Results

Of the 25 organisations approached, 24 agreed to participate (response rate 96%). For six (25%) of these participating organisations, membership was exclusively limited to nurses and/or midwives. Fellowship was offered in 22 organisations (92%). Significant professional experience (73%) was the most frequently cited criterion for fellowship. Professional leadership/contribution to the profession was listed by less than half (45%) organisations surveyed. Over half (55%) of those organisations that offered fellowship programs also were credentialing bodies. The main benefit of fellowship reported was the prospect of peer recognition and higher professional standing (77%).

Discussion

The majority of organisations reported offering fellowship status and all had criteria for fellowship. The most frequently cited criteria were, however, based on longevity in the profession and continued financial membership rather than demonstrated leadership within the profession. There was variability in how fellowship was attained and maintained which may be linked to whether organisations have a credentialing role or not. A more in depth study of fellowship is warranted.

Keywords: Peer recognition, Collegiality, Networking, Professional development, Credentialing, Professional peak bodies

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Peer recognition and the professional bodies 

Peer recognition is an issue for the professions which argue that their claim to a perceived (and real) higher status in the hierarchy of work and occupations is forged from the individual and collective status and human capital generated in the process of becoming a member of a particular professional occupational group. Access to the traditional professions (e.g. medicine and the law), is generally gained via a rigorous preparatory phase whereby novitiates acquire a primary qualification (at a tertiary level as opposed to the vocational level) and also accrue a degree of practical experience, skill and expertise on the journey toward their academic and professional credentials. The combination of higher qualifications and specialised skills affords members of the traditional professions the opportunity to participate in the meritocracy which by definition is how a profession is self- and socially identified. Most professions recognise and implement this idea of a meritocracy through hierarchies of importance in relation to increasingly senior and more complex levels of appointments within the profession. As well as these features, the professions strive to create work environments that ‘ensure the workplace is suitable; the salary commensurate with the work done; continuing professional development is in place; safe and flexible workplace practices are working; family friendly policies are on offer; and staff are consulted, reviewed, oriented, mentored and not discriminated against’ (Lumby and Osmond in Daly, Jackson, & Speedy, 2006, p. 237).

One mechanism widely adopted by the traditional professions as a means to securing their credibility and legitimacy as a profession (such as those mentioned above arising from a tertiary education) is the formation of a professional ‘peak body’ (DeLeskey, 2003). Professional peak organisations are comprised of those who have acquired the requisite professional ‘identity papers’ – the entry level qualifications and skills designated necessary to claim a title such a doctor, solicitor or nurse, for example. Just as the trades have their union bodies so too do the professions have their colleges, institutions and associations. These peak bodies perform a wide range of functions in terms of promoting, marketing and protecting the interests of the profession as well as those whom they serve (Bauman, 2008, Davies and Clark, 2006, DeLeskey, 2003, Van Hoy, 1993). Moreover, they become symbolic and actual identifiers of the professions in that they are able to speak on behalf of the members; represent them in various jurisdictions (such as the courts, tribunals and other forums); lobby governments, politicians and most importantly, the media; and provide ongoing opportunities for the members to advance their practice and theoretical skills and knowledge through educational and developmental events and activities (Carious, 2004, Gruen et al., 2000, Myers, 2007, Thackeray et al., 2005, Van Hoy, 1993). As well, some peak bodies regulate the profession by credentialing their members at certain levels of practice without which they cannot specialise and claim the privileges and status ascribed to a higher level of membership (as, for example, in the case of medicine and the law). Importantly, all peak professional bodies require individuals to pay a subscription in order to become a member and, usually, they must maintain it over time this if they wish to secure the privileges and rights that accompany their membership (DeLeskey, 2003). Indeed, many subscribe (and must do so) for the entire tenure of their professional lives.

Most professional peak bodies have two layers of subscription. Firstly, there is a basic or standard level offered to all who hold the minimum levels for entry to the profession itself usually called membership. In nursing, for example, membership of either of the two main professional peak bodies (Royal College of Nursing and the College of Nursing) requires a bachelor of nursing or a certificate of enrolled nursing. Membership brings with it a range of services and privileges that the professional body provides (again to varying levels depending on the resources the body has at its disposal; the more members a peak body has the larger the financial and social base from which it can develop and deliver such services).

Then there is a higher order level of membership usually called fellowship. Despite a reasonably exhaustive literature review we were unable to uncover any material referring specifically to fellowship as a category of membership or outlining any perceived or actual benefits of fellowship over membership. This, in part, impelled us to initiate this study to describe the criteria for eligibility for fellowship, the perceived benefits to individuals from the organisations’ viewpoint and the process of obtaining and maintaining fellowship across a range of professional peak bodies.

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Method 

A convenience sample of 25 professional organisations representing a range of disciplines and industries in Australia were invited to participate. Each organisation was telephoned and the manager of the membership and/or the fellowship program was identified (herein called the manager). The manager was given verbal information about the study and invited to complete a 10-min telephone survey.

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Instrument 

The first question in the two-paged survey instrument asked managers if the organisation offered fellowship (one question). Where fellowship was offered, the managers were asked to specify the criteria for fellowship eligibility in their organisation (one question).

The managers then were asked if their organisation was a credentialing body and, if so, whether fellowship was part of the credentialing process (two questions). Next, managers were asked if fellowship was initiated by an invitation issued by the organisation, or by application from an individual (one question). The managers were then asked about the cost of fellowship to their organisation and to compare this cost to the annual subscription fee for standard membership (two questions).

Managers were asked to identify the main benefits to individuals associated with fellowship of their organisation (one question). Managers next were asked how their organisation acknowledged their new fellows, for example by holding an investiture ceremony or by issuing of a certificate or otherwise (one question). The managers then were asked if ongoing proof of professional activities was required to maintain fellowship status (one question). Managers also were asked if their organisation employed formal processes to select fellows for professional award nomination such as Australian Honours awards (one question). Our next questions asked whether the organisation held an annual oration (or equivalent), and if that oration formed a part of the investiture process (two questions).

The final part of the questionnaire concerned internally run education programs. The managers were asked if the organisation ran its own educational programs (one question), and asked to identify the kind of recognition given to student graduates for completion of these programs and any link with fellowship where relevant (one question).

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Data analysis 

Data were analysed using SPSS Version 14.0. Frequencies for questionnaire responses were calculated for all variables. Key words and themes in the open-ended response items were identified and coded.

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Results 

There were 25 representatives of professional organisations invited to participate in our survey (Box 1). Of these, 24 agreed to participate (response rate 96%). Twenty-one of the 24 (86%) had the word ‘college’ or institute’ in their title. The majority of managers stated that their organisation offered fellowship (n=22, 92%). Managers from these 22 organisations outlined 12 criteria for eligibility of applicants for fellowship of their organisation. The most frequently cited criteria were: significant professional experience (n=16, 73%); continuous financial membership of the organisation for at least the specified minimum period (ranging from 2 to 7 years) (n=13, 59%); and peer references from a current member or fellow (n=12, 55%). Professional leadership/contribution to the profession was cited as a criterion for eligibility for fellowship in less than half the organisations surveyed (n=10, 45%) (Table 1).

Box 1. List of professional organisations surveyed (in alphabetical order) (n=24) [colleges involving membership exclusively of nurses and/or midwives shown in bold (n=6)].

Australasian Association for Quality in Health Care

Australian College of Critical Care Nurses

Australian College of Educators

Australian College of Health Service Executives

Australian College of Midwives

Australian and New Zealand College of Mental Health Nurses

Australian College of Operating Room Nurses

Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine

Australian College of Veterinary Scientists

Australian Institute of Agricultural Science and Technology

Australian Institute of Management

Australian Institute of Medical Scientists

College of Nursing

Institute of Engineers, Australia

Recruitment and Consulting Services Association

Royal Australasian College of Dental Surgeons

Royal Australasian College of Physicians

Royal Australasian College of Surgeons

Royal Australian College of General Practitioners

Royal Australian Institute of Architects

Royal College of Nursing, Australia

Safety Institute of Australia

Sports Medicine Australia

Victorian College of Optometry

Table 1. Fellowship management practices.

	n (%)
Do you have fellowship? (n=24)
Yes	22 (92)
No	2 (8)
Criteria for fellowshipa (n=22)
Significant professional experience	16 (73)
Continuous financial member of organisation	13 (59)
Peer references from current member or fellow	12 (55)
Professional leadership/contribution to the profession	10 (45)
Peer reference from current fellow only	5 (23)
Continuing professional development	5 (23)
Postgraduate qualifications	4 (18)
Pass fellowship entrance examination	4 (18)
Evidence of published scholarly work	2 (9)
Evidence of research grants	2 (9)
Current employment in an accredited organisation	2 (9)
Minimum age requirement (>35 years)	1 (5)
Credentialing organisations (n=22)
Yes	11 (50)
No	11 (50)
Fellowship is part of the credentialing process (n=11)
Yes	6 (55)
No	5 (45)
Fellowship is initiated by (n=22)
Either invitation or application	10 (45)
Application only	9 (41)
Invitation only	3 (14)
Main benefits of fellowship statusa (n=22)
Peer recognition/professional standing	17 (77)
Acknowledgment of industry service	7 (32)
Opportunities for professional advancement	4 (18)
Superior benefits to those of regular members	3 (14)
Fellows are recognised through (n=22)
Certificate but no investiture	15 (68)
Both certificate and investiture	5 (23)
Investiture but no certificate	2 (9)
Additional othera
Post-nominal	9 (41)
Badge, plaque	4 (18)
Ongoing proof of professional activities required to maintain fellowship status (n=22)
Yes	6 (27)
No	16 (73)
Award selection (e.g. Australian Honours) (n=21)
Formal processes for candidate nomination	15 (71)
No formal processes	6 (29)
Annual oration held (n=24)
Yes	21 (87)
Forms part of the investiture of fellow (n=22)	15 (68)
No	3 (13)
Organisation runs education programs (n=24)
Yes	17 (71)
No	7 (29)
Student graduates are recognised bya (n=17)
Certificate	7 (41)
Professional development points towards gaining fellowship	5 (29)
Internationally recognised graduate credentials	1 (6)
Student of the year award	1 (6)
Listed in recruitment journal	1 (6)
National accreditation of course	1 (6)
Listing in the members record	1 (6)
Letter of attendance of educational program	1 (6)

Of those organisations who offered fellowship programs (n=22), half were ‘credentialing bodies’ (n=11, 50%), that is those organisations to which membership confers a ‘credential’ or license to a certain level of practice within the profession. Managers of over half of these reported that fellowship was part of their credentialing process (n=6, 55%). Managers from just less than half (n=10, 45%) of organisations with fellowship programs stated that fellowship could be initiated either by a direct invitation from the organisation to an individual or by application from an individual (Table 1).

The cost of an annual subscription for regular membership in the participating organisations ranged from $100 to $2000, with the median membership subscription fee $308. The cost of an annual subscription for fellowship of the participating organisations ranged from $100 to $3600, with the median fee $411 per year. For those participating organisations with fellowship programs, almost half of the managers (n=10, 46%) stated that annual subscription fees for fellows and regular or standard members were either the same or only nominally different. A further two-fifths of managers (n=9, 41%) stated that annual fellowship subscription fees exceeded regular membership fees; this fee difference ranged from an additional $50 to $2800 per year.

The majority of managers reported that the main benefit of fellowship was the prospect of peer recognition and higher professional standing (n=17, 77%). Less than one-third of participants reported formal acknowledgement of service to the industry as a benefit (n=7, 32%). A minority of managers reported that fellowship conferred superior benefits to those of regular members (n=3, 14%) (Table 1).

The majority of managers stated that their organisation acknowledged new fellows by awarding them a certificate (n=20, 91%). Five of these 20 organisations (23%) also conducted an investiture ceremony in addition to awarding a certificate to new fellows. Availability of post-nominals specific to fellowship was reported by nine managers (41%) (Table 1).

Over one quarter (n=6, 27%) of organisations with fellowship programs required fellows to submit ongoing proof of professional activities in order to maintain their fellowship status.

Almost three quarters (n=15, 71%) of the organisations surveyed had established formal processes for nominating members/fellows as candidates for professional award selection, such as Australian Honours awards.

Almost all of the managers from the 24 participating organisations (n=21, 87%) reported that their organisation held an annual oration or equivalent event. Of those organisations that offered fellowship (n=22), the annual oration formed a part of the fellowship investiture in just over two-thirds of cases (n=15, 68%).

More than two-thirds of managers stated that their organisation ran education programs (n=17, 71%). The most frequently reported methods of recognising the student graduates of these programs were by issuing a certificate of program completion (n=7, 41%). Five managers reported that their organisation awarded graduates professional development points to support an application for fellowship of the organisation (n=5, 29%).

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Discussion 

Fellowship was an integral part of the majority (92%) of the organisations surveyed as a method to acknowledge service and a significant contribution to the profession. The use of criteria for eligibility for fellowship, that is, ‘fellowship qualifiers’ confirm the notion of a profession as a cultural phenomenon that values the criteria of constancy and consistency in an individual's performance and recognises and rewards merit and ambition. Most (88%) of the professional bodies surveyed adopted the rubric of ‘college’ or ‘institute’ thus defining themselves as a body of learned men and women who have higher knowledge and skills than one would expect or require of the general lay public (Box 1).

On closer examination of the criteria for fellowship, the following were the most frequently cited as necessary for this level of recognition: significant professional experience (73%); continuous financial membership of the organisation (59%); peer references from a current member or fellow (55%). Of note, and worryingly professional leadership/contribution to the profession was an essential criterion for fellowship cited by less than half (45%) of participating organisations. This seems especially puzzling in the face of the 73% that required significant professional experience before fellowship could be considered. We pose the question: how would one ‘measure’ the value of significant professional experience in the absence of a significant contribution to a profession? Is not one's contribution to a profession a measure of one's significant experience? It would also seem that fellowship can be obtained on the basis of professional longevity and continued financial membership rather than demonstrated leadership. Further, evidence of published scholarly work, one method of establishing contribution to a profession, was a criterion for fellowship in only two (9%) organisations.

One differentiating factor amongst those surveyed were those peak bodies for whom fellowship signified a professional credential which then enabled the holder to practice at a higher level within the profession (e.g. a consultant surgeon or physician as opposed to a resident or registrar). Unlike nursing professional bodies (which comprised 25% (n=6) of those surveyed), more than half of all the organisations (55%) were credentialing bodies. This raises some interesting issues about the ways in which the various professional groupings regulate and promote themselves as professions. By credentialing one's own members a profession demonstrates a very high level of self-regulation and self-promotion in comparison with those that do not or cannot. In a sense it almost creates a hierarchy within a hierarchy amongst the professions themselves. This point is particularly salient for a still struggling (quasi) profession such as nursing which has not used its peak professional bodies to credential, and therefore self-regulate and promote nursing in the same way or to the same level as has medicine. Our study was limited by its small convenience sample; a larger sample size may reveal more meaningful differences for fellowship practices between credentialing and non-credentialing organisations.

Initiation of fellowship by either invitation or application from an individual was possible in less than half of organisations surveyed (n=10, 45%), with a further 41% (n=9) relying on applications alone without invitations. Organisations wishing to promote fellowship to their profession should consider more actively targeting key, high performing individuals within their profession.

The majority of managers reported that the main benefit of fellowship status was peer recognition and professional standing (n=17, 77%). This may be a largely symbolic benefit and a largely personally symbolic benefit at that. Data on the benefits of fellowship from the individual's perspective rather than from an organisational perspective of perceived benefits for individuals would further inform this issue. It is possible that since nursing transferred all undergraduate education and most postgraduate education to the tertiary sector that the professional colleges have lost some of their prestige as a result. Prior to the 1980s, the colleges of nursing were the only bodies with the capacity to confer a level of professional status on individual nurses and recognise their contributions to nursing scholarship and practice as a consequence. Since then, the universities now confer higher degrees and doctoral qualifications which are increasingly in evidence across clinical practice and the academy. While one nursing college offers professional education leading to a graduate certificate (and soon to diploma) qualification these levels of award are generally not held in the same esteem as degrees. Both colleges do however, issue a certificate of fellowship as was reported in the majority of organisations (n=20, 91%) with and without a formal investiture ceremony.

Ongoing proof of professional activities was not necessary in the majority of organisations in order to maintain fellowship (n=16, 73%). Such a requirement would have significant resource implications and organisations would need to consider the trade-off between the benefit to the profession and the cost of authenticating or recognising specific professional activities for this purpose before implementing such a process. Clearly for those peak bodies which only confer fellowship as a credential (e.g. medicine) proof of ongoing competence is essential as advanced practice depends on a strong commitment to ongoing professional development and the maintenance of a high level of practice skills. For such bodies members must provide evidence of such ongoing professional education in order to maintain their level of accreditation (i.e. fellowship).

Managers from 71% (n=15) of organisations surveyed reported formal processes for nomination of fellows for awards such as an Australian Honour award. This seems inconsistent with our arguments above about the function of a peak body which is to enhance the standing of the profession and recognise and reward the contribution of its members. We suggest a professional peak body should formally undertake this process in order to reward its fellows further still by nominating them for the Australian Honours and similar prestigious awards.

An annual oration was a frequently reported event (n=21, 87%) and this formed part of the investiture of new fellows in 68% of cases. An oration is a talk usually given by an esteemed member of the profession to the members at the investiture. An investiture is usually modelled on the university tradition of the graduation ceremony at which degrees are conferred on those who have so completed the necessary requirements. A university graduation ceremony is replete with formal pomp and circumstance, dramatised with processions of richly enrobed officials and academics, and marked by formal procedures and rituals for the conferring of the degree or award. A peak body's investiture models very closely on this format such that in some case, investitures are sometimes held in university great halls as if they were a graduation ceremony (which in some respects, they are).

Almost three quarters of the organisations surveyed ran education programs (n=17, 71%). Interestingly, over a quarter of these organisations (n=5, 29%) recognised completion of these courses towards fellowship application thus supporting maintenance of the knowledge and skills of its fellows through a rigorous and strong commitment to continuing professional development. This is clearly not as a strong a commitment however, as those professional peak bodies which mandate such activities for ongoing status as fellowship (but it is at least consistent in this regard).

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Conclusion 

The data presented here provide a snapshot of the ways professional bodies across Australia recognise and reward their members and highlight a range of similarities and differences in form and function. However, the similarities appear to outweigh the differences which suggest a level of consistency about what constitutes a peak professional body, and more significantly, how fellowship is constructed as a category superior to membership.

It would also appear that the difference in the processes and outcomes of fellowship of a professional body are related to the way each of the professions credentials (or otherwise) its members. This survey has highlighted the need for a more nuanced and deeper interrogation of the role and function of professional bodies and, specifically, the category of fellowship than has been presented here. In terms of further research in this area a profession-wide survey canvassing the opinions of members and fellows of the professional peak bodies might shed more light on the issues raised here. This could also be augmented by a series of case studies which highlight the value of fellowship within the professions. In any event, the authors hope this report raises conversation amongst the readership and generates new debate about how best to recognise and reward our professionals in Australia and what role the peak bodies should and could play in such a strategy.

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