Chartered Archaeologists are to be a reality

[Marc Berger]

Peter Hinton, IfA's Chief Executive, says: "If there remained any doubt that archaeology is a profession, uncertainty ends here.' "Things will be different now. Our influence is massively strengthened. The award of a Royal Charter will not be the end of a process but the best possible opportunity to increase the effectiveness of our campaign to enhance the status of archaeology and archaeologists, to raise standards of archaeological practice and so to give yet better service to clients and the public.'

Is Mr Hinton an archaeologist?

I had a look at this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chartered_(professional). Apart from the fact that these charters are either Victorian or created after 2002 a lot of these bodies seem to base the status of their members on accredited graduate courses. Does anybody know if the ifa is going to accredit any graduate courses?

[kevin wooldridge]

Is Mr Hinton an archaeologist? I had a look at this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chartered_(professional). Apart from the fact that these charters are either Victorian or created after 2002 a lot of these bodies seem to base the status of their members on accredited graduate courses. Does anybody know if the ifa is going to accredit any graduate courses?

Simple answers here. YES: Peter Hinton is an archaeologist.....NO: At present Chartered status only applies to the Institute and not to members. I haven't seen any plans yet for the Institute to accredit members with any status other than those currently on offer, so its unlikely that they have plans to accredit graduate courses.

The 'Archaeologist Formerly Known As...' has come a bit late to this thread and clearly hasn't read all of the previous posts.

[Marc Berger]

I don't know who you formerly knew me as kevin, sorry I didn't realise that Mr Hintons archaeological credentials had been asked about. Its not too difficult to google Sheffield BA graduate, molas for six years. Now BA, FSA, FRSA, MIfA, MIAM. I imagine there is more.

At present Chartered status only applies to the Institute and not to members. I haven't seen any plans yet for the Institute to accredit members with any status other than those currently on offer, so its unlikely that they have plans to accredit graduate courses.

I don't understand the concept of institution charteredness-possibly if it was a chartered institute for members which were themselves also chartered institutes it make some sense. Hasn't the ifa by the very fact that it has changed its status has also changed the status of its members/ROs. Now if Mr Hinton is a graduate and it took six years working for a government quango maybe that is a definition for membership. Being a graduate of Sheffield might mean that its courses would likely be accredited. Are you saying from your not having seen any plans that the nature of the institutes' charter is that it is not in a position to accredit any graduate course as part of a qualification to be a digger?

[kevin wooldridge]

Chartered status explained ....http://www.archaeologists.net/charter.

[Marc Berger]

Hello Mr Wooldridge. I have read Chartered explained and their strategic plans and reviews and as you say they are not "changing" anything at the moment. Becoming chartered was reviewed as a small part of one of six priorities reviewed last year in http://www.archaeologists.net/sites/defa...ew2013.pdf. These other priorities include the want to be taken more seriously and to increase the cpd and professionalism.

S2.3 advocate training and professional development
[SIZE=3]Update
[/SIZE][SIZE=3]we have reviewed our NVQ assessment centre and developed and implemented a business plan. We have gathered case study material to promote the success of our bursary schemes (http://www.archaeologists.net/trainingtoolkit), and discussed the development of apprenticeship models with sector partners. We are involved in the Historic Environment Forum heritage skills summit and task force.
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They make no mention any where about graduate archaeologists of which this country produces about 2000 a year, as against an ifa membership of only a few thousand.

But if the ifa were to encourage graduates how is it that you say "so its unlikely that they have plans to accredit graduate courses". The ifa seem to say that they want to be taken more seriously as a profession and a majority of the current members appear to be graduates who then have worked as archaeologists before becoming ifa members as archaeological managers and public servants such as the example of Mr Hinton