From the Accreditation Board
With the next accreditation exam a little more than a year off at the time of the conference, the AB was keen to get aspiring candidates thinking about the exam and developing a 12-month plan to prepare for it.
We run detailed preparation workshops in the 6 months leading up to the exam, but the idea of this workshop was to support people who might be thinking about doing the exam but feeling nervous about it, or not sure whether they’re ready, or not yet committed to it.
Our main aim was to take the fear out of the exam and show that with the right preparation the exam is well within the reach of most editors.
We spent some time talking about the philosophy of the exam and how it relates to everyday editing practice, and went into some detail about the marking process. We also talked about what happens in the 12 months leading up to the exam and what to expect on the day. And we did practical exercises relating to each part of the exam (Language, Manuscript and Knowledge) to give participants a chance to assess their knowledge and particularly what knowledge gaps they might have.
A small group of 7 people attended the workshop. All were thinking about doing the exam but were at various stages of commitment to it. It was a very interactive workshop with lots of discussion and questions. Feedback was very positive and all felt that we had achieved our aim of taking the fear out of the exam.
Originally Amanda Webster AE was going to take the lead presenter role, with Charlotte Cottier AE and Ted Briggs AE as facilitators. But unfortunately Amanda was ill and couldn’t attend, so Charlotte took over as lead presenter, supported by Ted and Claire McGregor AE, who came along just to observe but joined in as a facilitator as well. Thanks to Amanda for making our jobs easier by preparing the workshop materials so well!
The next exam is scheduled for Monday 24 August 2026. More information is available on the Accreditation exam pages of the IPEd website and will be updated as the exam draws closer.