Certification Committee

(NOTE: The following is all for discussion purposes. We put here some users' suggestions for creation of this Committee)

Mission
This committee will work to define a technical and objective program to certification of professionals (maybe companies too) in OSGeo projects.

Goals

 * Define all stages to professional obtain the certification (standardized mechanism for testing and certificate of candidates)
 * Study the costs envolved in all stages
 * Define rules in participation of companies (It's expected full cooperation between OSGeo and FOSS companies)
 * Choose the first software to certification program
 * Define a woking plan to start the certification program
 * Define how many groups must integrate this committee and the security level of each one

Initial Concerns about OSGeo Certification

 * To ensure the certification implies some real depth of knowledge.
 * To ensure the certification process has, and is seen to have integrity.
 * To ensure certification is done in cooperation with the relevant project committee.

Committee Members
''We have a hard (and long) work to put OSGeo Certificaton "on the road". So we need help and you can add yourself or invite another users to participate. Some suggestions to profile of participants: professionals with training or certification expertise, professionals with some kind of "organization support" (the hours that you will provide to this program will be an investiment of some commercial company, for example, that has interest in the OSGeo certification - because we need a group able to work for months). If you don't have time to work in this committee, please don't put your name! If you have good ideas, please put them in discuss list or in an appropriate topic in this page. ''

Organization Member

 * Helton UCHOA - OpenGEO Company and Geolivre.org.br Community - Brazil

Links and Additional Information

 * Japanese company SRA has started a Professional certification for PostgreSQL since 1st March 2005. Details about the Certification are available at http://osb.sra.co.jp/postgresql-ce/about_en.html. The testing is managed by Pearson VUE. Details are available at www.vue.com/sra. As per "Fujitsu Inc. is promoting 400 employees to take PostgreSQL CE".
 * Linux Professional Certification offers accredited training and conducts training thru LPI approved training center the worldover. Candidates can register to take LPI exams at Pearson VUE testing centres worldwide and Thomson Prometric. "LPI holds special exam labs at major Linux and IT tradeshows and conferences around the world, often offering LPI certification exams for substantially reduced pricing or in some cases free of cost."
 * Bradford Learning also offers LPI certification apart from various others including apache, samba, mysql etc.
 * Some other listed as LPI sponsors also offer/manage Professional certification.