Posted By George Wedgwood From the IOSH Royal Charter and Byelaws (2) on 'Membership of the Institution', we can see that a Fellow will be one of the Chartered Members who have "been a Member of the Institution for not less than five years and who have demonstrated an outstanding contribution to the discipline and profession of health and safety, and who continue to demonstrate that they are maintaining their competence through a mandatory programme of CPD" Quoting the website blurb on Membership categories; "Chartered Fellow (CFIOSH) As a Chartered Fellow of the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health, you are entitled to use the designation Chartered Safety and Health Practitioner and the designatory letters, CFIOSH. Along with Chartered Member status, this category of membership is the most prestigious and can be attained by progressing through the IOSH membership categories. All Chartered Fellows will need to maintain a Continuing Professional Development (CPD) record." So the difference between a Fellow and a Member is that some degree of 'eminence' is demonstrated and that mostly will come from serving the Institution in some way or from a contribution to the profession in a public way, a specific and major contribution (i.e. lead a step change in something that affects the future of the profession, dedication by way of continued contribution of some kind or a combination of all of these), as well as other things that make you 'stand out' as excellent in H&S. Somewhat intangible I hear you say? Well I have advised others on a path to Fellowship and I think the best advice is to get to know the Institution first, unless you are well advanced in leading H&S outside of it in a fairly public way. Joining committees or being elected to Council, or being accepted as a Trustee through interview etc., will help you understand the process better and give you a head start. I don't think it is that easy, but then again, it is not that hard if you can demonstrate the ctiteria (can be sent on application to the Membership Office - ask for the Fellowship Criteria) at a successful interview. IOSH has been training many of its Fellows in interview skills, so that we can successfully interview Members for Fellowship and the ambition is to increase numbers. So I feel the process is fair. Hope this helps a bit. Kind regards, George (CFIOSH and Council Member)

Posted By Advanced Safety Thanks Guys. Very helpful.