Overview of the Certification
Society of Human Resource Management — Certified Professional (SHRM-CP) certification is the industry standard certification for HR professionals. This certification is most useful for those who implement strategies and policies, act as SPOC for employees, deliver HR services, and perform operational HR roles.
SHRM designed this certification after consultation with four major corporations, including Boeing and Walmart, and four major research institutions, including Michigan State University, Pennsylvania State University, Lusiada University (Lisbon, Portugal), and the University of North Carolina-Charlotte. Because of its unique ability to test the candidates on both academic and real-life situations, SHRM-CP is poised to become the new industry standard for HR professionals across the world. Even today, a lot of job opportunities require that HR personnel get this certification before they become eligible for the certification.
According to SHRM, The SHRM Certification preparation program will include:
- The new global Body of Competency and Knowledge (SHRM BoCK);
- A comprehensive exam; and
- The world-class instructional materials and certification preparation tools you have come to expect from SHRM.
Eligibility Criteria for the SHRM-CP Certification
SHRM does not allow just about anyone to sit for its exam. It has strict eligibility criteria and protocols that aspiring candidates should follow for the exams. The eligibility criteria are well-defined, and only candidates that follow them strictly are eligible to sit for the exam. Once you submit your details, SRHM verifies if your candidature matches the criteria that SRHM has set. If it does, then SRHM will send you a certificate stating that you are allowed to sit for the exam. Only after that can you log in to the SRHM portal and apply for the exam(1).
The eligibility criteria for SRHM-CP vary based on the academic qualification that you have. For that purpose, it is divided into three categories.
- Less than a Bachelor’s degree
- Bachelor’s Degree
- Graduate Degree
Less than a bachelor’s degree includes: working toward a bachelor’s degree, associate’s degree, some college, qualifying HR certificate program, high school diploma, or GED.
Less Than a Bachelor’s Degree
If a candidate has less than a bachelor’s degree, then he should have at least 3 years of work experience, working in an HR role if the degree he possesses is in HR program. If that can’t be met, then the candidate should have at least 4 years of experience working in any HR role if the degree he has is not aligned with any HR program. At the end of the day, whether the candidate has a degree in HR or not, he must have work experience in the HR role only
Bachelor’s Degree
If a candidate has at least a bachelor’s degree, then he should have at least one-year work experience working in an HR role if the degree he possesses is in an HR program. If that can’t be met, then the candidate should have at least two years of experience working in an HR role if the degree he possesses is in anything other than the HR program. At the end of the day, whether the candidate has a degree in HR or not, he must have work experience in the HR role only
Graduate Degree
If a candidate has at least a graduate degree, then he should have current work experience working in an HR role if the degree he possesses is in an HR program. If that can’t be met, then the candidate should have at least one year of experience working in an HR role if the degree he possesses is in anything other than the HR program. At the end of the day, whether the candidate has a degree in HR or not, he must have work experience in the HR role only.
| Experience for Various Degree Programs | ||
| Degree | For HR-related Program | For Non-HR Related Program |
| Less Than a Bachelor’s Degree | 3 years in an HR role | 4 years in an HR role |
| Bachelor’s Degree | 1 year in an HR role | 2 years in an HR role |
| Graduate Degree | Current Experience in HR | 1 year in an HR role |
Exam Fees
The fees for the exam depends on whether you are a member or not. If you are a member, then you are eligible to get a discount of 100 USD on the total fees. All fees includes 50 USD exam application fee that is non-refundable. So, the total fee you will pay will automatically include the application fee and you don’t need to pay anything extra.
If you pay early, then you will be eligible for a discount of 75 USD. What constitutes early bird depends on the exam schedule that SRHM releases. It announces the exam fee payment dates and when those dates will constitute earlybird. The fee structure is as follows
- If you’re a member, and you avail the early bird offer, then the fee you pay is 300 USD. But if you’re a non-member and you avail the early bird discount offer, then you must pay 400 USD
- If you’re a member and you didn’t avail the early bird exam fee, then you must pay the standard fee. In that case, the fee you will pay is 375 USD. But if you’re a non-member and you didn’t avail the early bird offer, then you’ll have to pay 475 USD.
- SRHM allows transfers. The fee for such transfers is 100 USD irrespective of whether you’re a member or not
- Every retest you take if you fail, you will have to pay the full fee irrespective of the number of retests
| Application Costs | Fee if you’re a member | Fee if you’re not a member |
| Early bird fee | 300 USD | 400 USD |
| Standard Fee | 375 USD | 475 USD |
| Transfer Fees | 100 USD | 100 USD |
| Retests | Full price | Full price |
The fee structure above is clear that if you’re a member, then you get to pay 100 USD cheaper. If you avail the early bird offer, you get to pay 75 USD lesser than otherwise.
[ Read: Is Independent HR Consulting The Right Job For You? ]
Where to Get Online Resources for the Exam?
SRHM offers a comprehensive set of guides, study material, and other books for the training purposes. All these books and materials are available for purchase. However, each of those books costs about 1000 USD. If you feel that is too costly then you can always check if your employer will shoulder the costs. If there is no affiliate program where you can get the certification that way, then you can always look for third parties that offer the study materials. There are a lot of portals that offer the books and other resources for sale at much cheaper prices
In these cases, it also helps to reach out to your HR network and identify if anyone has completed their exam. If they have, it helps to ask them if they still have their learning material. That will be much cheaper. However, you should remember that the relevance of study material changes slightly each year. As long as you don’t rely on them completely, you can get the study material that’s closest to your year.
Apart from that, there are other parties like Udemy, Edureka, and others that offer training for this exam, and resources for the exam
