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Without close inspection, the value, effectiveness, and differences between licensure and certification, two important credentialing qualifiers for audiologists, can be difficult to appreciate fully by both practitioners and consumers. Efforts to credential various health care providers have led to educational and political alliances with various groups that assist professional organizations and their members in developing guidelines and standards from conception to implementation. This article seeks to help the reader understand the history, nature, and goals of licensure and certification, and the role of continuing education in the process of maintaining one's private certification and licensure to practice in the profession of audiology.Learning Outcomes: As a result of this activity, the participant will be able to (1) differentiate between state licensure and national certification, and the various processes to acquire these credentials; (2) describe the evolution of credentialing and the value to the profession; and (3) list accepted types of continuing education to maintain licensure and/or certification.Licensure and certification are two important credentialing qualifiers for audiologists. Certification, at the national level, sets minimal knowledge, skills, and experiences, establishing standards consistent among audiologists and across state lines. National certification is available through the American Speech-LanguageHearing Association (ASHA) and the American Board of Audiology (ABA). Licensure, on the other hand, specifies requirements for practice in a particular state. Licensing of professions and occupations has existed since the 1600s and many health care professions require licensure. It is state licensure, not

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While professional development is most typically thought of as continuing education beyond the master's degree, we have formulated a process for master's degree students in speech-language pathology to identify and selfevaluate their own professional development. Current standards for preparing graduate students in speech-language pathology focus primarily on introducing students to an extensive array of academic and clinical topics (e.g., disorders, conditions, service delivery models, evidence-based practice). However, indirect support for self-directed professional development can be found in two CAA standards, Standard 3.1B (i.e., "breadth and depth of the scope of practice") and Standard 4.2 (i.e., reasonable accommodations). The authors describe a series of self-reflection activities that are integrated within speech-language pathology course work for the purpose of fostering professional development at the preservice level. Student comments and outcomes to date are described.

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