Professional association

Template:Short description A professional association (also called a professional body, professional organization, or professional society) is a group that usually seeks to further a particular profession, the interests of individuals and organisations engaged in that profession, and the public interest. In the United States, such an association is typically a nonprofit business league for tax purposes.<ref name="Speight">Template:Cite book</ref> In the UK, they may take a variety of legal forms.<ref name=":0">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Roles

The roles of professional associations have been variously defined: "A group of people in a learned occupation who are entrusted with maintaining control or oversight of the legitimate practice of the occupation;"<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> also a body acting "to safeguard the public interest;"<ref name="Harvey_1995">Template:Cite book</ref> organizations which "represent the interest of the professional practitioners," and so "act to maintain their own privileged and powerful position as a controlling body."<ref name="Harvey_1995"/> Professional associations are ill defined although often have commonality in purpose and activities.<ref>Template:Cite thesis</ref> In the UK the Science Council defines a professional body as "an organisation with individual members practicing a profession or occupation in which the organisation maintains an oversight of the knowledge, skills, conduct and practice of that profession or occupation".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The Quality Assurance Agency distinguishes between statutory bodies and regulators that "have powers mandated by Parliament to regulate a profession or group of professions and protect the use of professional titles" and professional bodies that "are independent membership organisations that oversee the activities of a particular profession and represent the interests of [their] members" and which "may offer registration or certification of unregulated occupations on a voluntary basis."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Many professional bodies are involved in accrediting degrees, defining and examining the skills and competencies necessary to practice, and granting professional certifications to indicate that a person is qualified in the subject area.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Many professional bodies also act as learned societies for the academic disciplines underlying their professions,<ref name=Speight/><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> such as the American Statistical Association.

See also

• Advocacy
• Affinity group
• Bar association
• Guild
• Inter-professional association
• Licensure
• List of international professional associations
• List of professional associations in the United Kingdom
• Professional order
• Regulatory college
• Syndicate
• Trade association
• Trade union
• Working group

External links

• List of Professional bodies in the United Kingdom
• List of Professional bodies in Australia
• List of Professional bodies in Canada
• Anders Kjellberg Union density and specialist/professional unions in Sweden, Lund University: Studies in Social Policy, Industrial Relations, Working Life and Mobility. Research Reports 2013:2