Institutional Qualification Creditable or not?

Submitted by Robert Roden MCMI on Mon, 04/04/2011 - 19:41

In today's growing business you have to be competitive this includes education. Most companies when applying for a job as a Manager want individuals with HE like Bachelors or Masters Degrees, but what about the individual who worked from the bottom to get to a Managerial position and is then laid off. They have a family to consider and can,t afford full or part-time education. They look to institutions such as CMI not just to further their knowledge but for recognised qualifications. Once they have a recognised qualification say Level 6 in Management and Leadership or even a level 7 in Strategic Management & Leadership, do organisations around the world and at home in the UK really recognise these qualification or is it better to get an MBA?

I have never seen a job advert with "Those with an MBA need not apply we want experienced individuals".

Is a level 6 really equivalent to a Bachelors or a Level 7 a Masters if so why doesn't organisations state Bachelors or equivalent Level 6, Masters or equivalent Level 7

Some businesses wont even consider certain Institutes. CMI is recognised and at least you can get a foot in the door for an interview. The outcome for the job is then based on the individual and their knowledge. Thank God for recognised institutions.

Let me hear your point of view on the subject.

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Submitted by Mike Davies on Tue, 05/04/2011 - 10:13

"Those with an MBA need not apply we want experienced individuals"

Very odd. Can MBA holders not have experience too? I don't know how well CMI qualifications are regarded in industry to be honest, although it is a little bit confusing trying to map the 'levels' across to things like a bachelors or masters degree. If that could be made clearer it would help I think.

Submitted by Robert Roden MCMI on Tue, 05/04/2011 - 13:23 Profile image

Mike, you are of course right those with MBA's can have experience however I was referring to young individuals who have gone from school to University and then completed their MBA. Companies tend to grab MBA personnel straight from University over experience, but is this because they may not be established with family and overheads so it’s at a cheaper rate or because they can bring more to the table than an experienced manager with no MBA.

I think it would be a good idea to see where the CMI qualifications sit within educational levels. A national qualification framework states that a Level 6 is equal to an Honors’ degree and a level 7 states equal to a Masters degree. See link below.

http://www.ofqual.gov.uk/qualification-and-assessment-framework/89-articles/250-explaining-the-national-qualifications-framework

However is this really the case? Am I correct that a Level 7 in Strategic Management and Leadership is the same as a Masters or Postgraduate Cert or Diploma? The OU specify that a Level 7 with the CMI has a credit transfer of 65 points if you already have a Degree.

http://www3.open.ac.uk/credit-transfer/professional/inst000140.shtm

I would like to know what the real attribute is and also rather than people starting again in Education being able to use their professional qualification like the CMI to put towards a HE qualification if they see fit, thus saving years of study to only 4-6 years to achieve an MBA (Part-time study that is).

Any thoughts or answers to the above questions with CMI qualification I would be grateful.

Submitted by Robert Roden MCMI on Tue, 05/04/2011 - 12:34 Profile image

I have found this on the Register of Regulated Qualifications (previously the National Database of Accredited Qualifications (NDAQ).

http://register.ofqual.gov.uk/

For CMI on the Register of Regulated Qualifications incase you are interested see links below.

http://register.ofqual.gov.uk/Organisation

http://register.ofqual.gov.uk/Organisation/Details/RN5128

http://register.ofqual.gov.uk/Qualification?recognitionNumber=RN5128

Vocational Qualifications see links

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/EducationAndLearning/QualificationsExplained/DG_181951

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/EducationAndLearning/QualificationsExplained/DG_10039017

Well I may have answered my own questions with this small investigation, however I am not sure. Any further guidance would be much appreciated.

Submitted by Roger Trueman CMgr MCMI on Tue, 05/04/2011 - 12:37

Coming at this question from another angle - I have just passed my 3year Chartered re-qualification, an achievement I am very proud of.

However, I am currently working within a particular sector (Construction & steel fabrication) where very few people give two hoots about my CMI qualifications, which is disheartening.

I was made redundant in August 2009, and it took me 10 months to secure adequate new employment. In all that time my Cmgr status did very little to give me an advantage in order to demonstrate my set of transferrable management skills and experience. I do appreciate that the labour market was saturated at the time, but everything was geared aroung HE qualifications.

I do think this will change over time, and I am certainly considering the long game regarding my own development and career.

Submitted by Robert Roden MCMI on Tue, 05/04/2011 - 13:41 Profile image

One of the things i am wondering is if any qualification can be converted to an equivalent for those who work abroad.

Submitted by Nicola McGinley on Wed, 06/04/2011 - 09:56 Profile image

Hi Rob

All CMI qualifications on the QCF Framework are mapped to the European Qualifications Framework (EQF) which means they are recognised overseas. I have attached the link below which may provide more information.

http://ec.europa.eu/education/lifelong-learning-policy/doc44_en.htm

As for how the levels sit in line with traditional academic qualifications, the Level 7 is “the same level as but not equivalent to” a Masters Degree. To clarify, the Level 7 in Strategic Management and Leadership is not the same as a traditional Masters but the knowledge required to complete it is of the same level required to complete a Masters.

Nicola