Recertification And Lifetime Certification 

Individuals who have earned a certification designation are required to be recertified every five years. Recertification demonstrates your continued dedication to stay up to date with the rapidly changing profession, is your pathway to further your knowledge, to continue to improve skills and practice. Recertification broadens your professional knowledge and makes you more valuable to your organization. It shows you are committed to your future and the future of your organization. 
 
 
Recertification Frequently Asked Questions
 
When Does Recertification Occur?
How To Recertify?
How Much Does Recertification/Lifetime Certification Cost?
How Do I Earn Continuing Education Points (CEPs)?
I Missed My Recertification Deadline, How Can I Reinstate My Certification?
What Are The ACI Lifetime Certification Requirements?
I Have Multiple ACI Certifications; Can I Recertify For All Of Them At The Same Time?
 
Application Forms For Downloading
 
Recertification Application Form
 
Lifetime Application Form

 
When Does Recertification Occur?
 
Recertification occurs every five years from the year you initially earned your certification or five years after your last recertification. Please submit your recertification application no earlier than 120 days prior to the expiration date on your current certificate.
 
How To Recertify?
 
To be recertified, you can use one of the two methods:
 
1.   Accumulating 10 Continuing Education Points (CEPs) during current (5 year) certification period.  Points may be earned in these two categories: A. College Courses (Taken or Taught); B. Continuing Education (Taken or Taught)


2.    Retaking the certification exam.
 
How Much Does Recertification/Lifetime Certification Cost?
 
Recertification is $100.  Lifetime Certification is $300.
 
 
How Do I Earn Continuing Education Points (CEPs)?
 
CEPs may be earned in the following categories:
 
1. College Courses (Taken or Taught).  
 
Two CEPs are provided per semester credit hour for courses in purchasing, materials management, supply management, management or other business-related subject matter (e.g., accounting, management, marketing, computers, economics, law, engineering, traffic management, communications, finance, statistics, physical sciences and behavioral sciences).  Most semester long courses provide 3 semester credit hours of credit, so they would be worth 6 CEPs.
 
One CEPs is provided for most other semester long courses, irrespective of the number of credit hours.
 
2. Continuing Education (Taken or Taught)
 
Public seminars (AMA, APICS, etc.), APS, ACI, IPSCMI, GNI, ISM, etc. seminars, seminars offered by your organization, conferences and other educational programs are eligible for points. Educational events are eligible for consideration if (a) the subject matter was purchasing, materials management, supply management, management or other business-related subject matter; and (b) the event was at least one hour in length. Documentation for each continuing educational event submitted by the applicant must include: (1) applicant’s name, (2) title of program, (3) date(s) of program, (4) name of sponsoring institution, (5) length of event in educational contact hours, and (6) signature of program director, instructor, or supervisor.
 
If credit is being sought for teaching a course, obtain a letter, which includes all of the pertinent information as described, from your supervisor at the institution. Only claim points once for teaching a course regardless of the number of times you may have taught it. Continuing Education Hours (CEHs) can be converted into Continuing Education Points (CEPs). 1 CEPs = 7 CEHs, 10 CEPs =70 CEHs. Lunch and break periods may not be used as part of the educational content hours claimed.
 
Programs that use Continuing Education Units (CEUs) will convert to CEHs as follows: One CEU = 10 CEHs. If both CEU credit and CEHs have been assigned for a particular course, the CEH assignment prevails.
 
I Missed My Recertification Deadline, How Can I Reinstate My Certification?
 
ACI provides each candidate with a one (1) year grace period to recertify their designation without penalty. This grace period does not lengthen your certification period — using this grace period will not change your next expiration date. Your expiration date will remain five years from when you were last certified or recertified.
 
For those failing to postmark your recertification application within one year of the expiration date, they will only be considered for renewal if the following criteria are met: 
 
1.     Submit a late fee of $50 for each year missed after the recertification due date.


2.     At minimum, the applicant must demonstrate an additional 2 points of continuing education activities for a total of 12 points over the past six years, and 14 points over the past 7 years, and the rest may be deduced by analogy.
 
What Are The ACI Lifetime Certification Requirements?
 
Those applying for ACI Lifetime certification must document at least 15 years of full-time professional purchasing and/or supply management experience.  In addition to 15 or more years of full-time professional purchasing or supply management experience, applicants must submit documentation of course completions and/or degrees earned since their first certification date. Applicants for Lifetime certification should apply as soon as they are eligible.
 
 
Years Since Original Certification        Total CEPs Needed
1 year or less                                            8 CEPs
1 but less than 2 years                             10 CEPs
2 but less than 3 years                             13 CEPs
3 but less than 5 years                             18 CEPs
More than 5 years                                    20 CEPs
 
5 CEPs are available for 15 years of full-time experience.
6 CEPs are available for 16 years of full-time experience.
7 CEPs are available for 17 years of full-time experience.
8 CEPs are available for 18 years of full-time experience.
9 CEPs are available for 19 years of full-time experience.
 
I Have Multiple ACI Certifications; Can I Recertify For All Of Them At The Same Time?
 
Those who hold more than one certification will have their recertification date extended to coincide with the second recertification date. Those people will be required to submit one application and pay one fee. Furthermore, 10 CEPs will satisfy the recertification requirements for all ACI designations held. All certifications must be current (not expired) to be eligible for this option.