Home  >  Making your Shortlist  >  Qualifying for a profession

If you are thinking of qualifying for a particular profession you need to check out what's required direct with the professional body (or bodies). Most professions are graduate entry only. A degree in itself is seldom sufficient qualification to practice - but some degrees will help towards the final qualification whilst others will not.

The websites and information packs of the professional bodies are usually excellent and tell you what is required, which degree courses they recognise, what you need to do to qualify and how long it takes. Contact details for the main professional bodies are listed below.

Accountants, chartered

England & Wales. Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales (ICAEA). Website www.icaew.com/careers

Scotland. Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS). Website www.icas.org.uk.

Accountants, chartered certified

The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) Website www.accaglobal.com.

Accountants, public finance

Chartered Institute of Public Finance & Accountancy (CIPFA). Website www.cipfa.org.uk.

Acoustics

Institute of Acoustics. Website www.ioa.org.uk.

Actuaries

The Actuarial Profession. Website www.actuaries.org.uk.

Advocates (Scotland)

Faculty of Advocates. Website www.advocates.org.uk.

Air force

RAF. Website www.raf.mod.uk/careers.

Air pilots & air navigators

The Guild of Air Pilots & Air Navigators (GAPAN). Website www.gapan.org.

Architects

Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). Website www.architecture.com.

Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS). Website www.rias.org.uk.

Army

Army. Website www.army.mod.uk/join.

Barristers

England & Wales. Bar Standards Board. Website www.barstandardsboard.org.uk.

Northern Ireland. Council of Legal Education (Northern Ireland), Institute of Professional Legal Studies. Website www.qub.ac.uk/ipls/.

Chiropractors

The General Chiropractic Council (GCC). Website www.gcc-uk.org.

Curators

Museums Association. Website www.museumsassociation.org.

Dentists

British Dental Association (BDA). Website www.bda.org.

Dietitians

The British Dietetic Association. Website www.bda.uk.com.

Doctors

General Medical Council. Website www.gmc-uk.org.

Ecologists

The British Ecological Society. Website www.britishecologicalsociety.org.

Economists

The Royal Economic Society. Website www.res.org.uk.

Engineers

Engineering Council. Website www.engc.org.uk.

Journalists

The National Council for the Training of Journalists. Website www.nctj.com.

Logistics & transport

The Chartered Institute of Logistics & Transport (UK). Website www.ciltuk.org.uk.

Management accountants

Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA). Website www.cimaglobal.com.

Marketers

The Chartered Institute of Marketing. Website www.cim.co.uk.

Mathematicians

The Institute of Mathematics & Its Applications. Website www.mathscareers.org.uk.

Merchant navy

Merchant Navy Training Board. Website www.careersatsea.org.

Navy (Royal)

Royal Navy Careers. Website www.royalnavy.mod.uk/careers.

Nurses & midwives

Nursing & Midwifery Council. Website www.nmc-uk.org

Occupational Therapy

College of Occupational Therapists. Website www.cot.org.uk.

Opticians

General Optical Council. Website www.optical.org.

Osteopaths

The General Osteopathic Council. Website www.osteopathy.org.uk.

Pharmacists

Royal Pharmaceutical Society. Website www.rpharms.com.

Physiotherapists

The Chartered Society of Physiotherapy. Website www.csp.org.uk.

Podiatrists & chiropodists

The Society of Chiropodists and Podiatrists. Website www.feetforlife.org.

Psychologists

The British Psychological Society (BPS). Website www.bps.org.uk.

Psychoanalysts

The International Psychoanalytical Association. Website www.ipa.org.uk.

Radiographers

The Society of Radiographers. Website www.sor.org.

Social workers

General Social Care Council (GSCC). Website www.gscc.org.uk.

Solicitors

England & Wales. Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA). Website www.sra.org.uk.

Northern Ireland. Council of Legal Education (Northern Ireland), Institute of Professional Legal Studies. Website www.qub.ac.uk/ipls/.

Scotland. The Law Society of Scotland. Website www.lawscot.org.uk.

Speech & language therapists

Royal College of Speech & Language Therapists. Website www.rcslt.org.

Stockbrokers

Chartered Institute for Securities & Investments (CISI). Website www.cisi.org.

Surveyors

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). Website www.rics.org.

Teachers

The Training & Development Agency for Schools (TDA). Website www.tda.gov.uk.

Town planners

The Royal Town Planning Institute. Website www.rtpi.org.uk.

Toxicologists

British Toxicology Society. Website www.thebts.org.

Translators & interpreters

Institute of Translation & Interpreting. Website www.iti.org.uk.

Veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses

Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons. Website www.rcvs.org.uk.