In Nigeria, under the existing regulations, to become a practising:
Chartered Engineer = COREN
Chartered Accountant =ANAN and so on and so forth.
Chartered IT Practitioner = CPN
CPN stands for Computer Professionals Registration Council of Nigeria. CPN was established by an act of the Federal of Government of Nigeria to regulate the IT profession and set standards for computing and information technology practice, including accreditation of IT and computing programmes in higher institutions of learning in Nigeria.
CPN is domiciled in the Federal Ministry of Education.
CPN is also authorised by Act No. 49 of 1993 of the Federal Government of Nigeria to serve as an educational training institution for IT and Computing programmes. This explains the reason CPN has developed professional certification programmes aligned with conventional academic qualification structures.
When an applicant undergoes structured learning from CPN through any of its accredited centres, an end exam called the Continuous Professional Examination (CPE) is administered.
1. CFE Foundation = SSCE
2. CPE I = OND or ND
3. CPE II = HND or BSc
4. CPE III = MSc
It is interesting to note that all CPN qualifications are officially accepted for academic progression and for government jobs in Nigeria and will also be accepted globally when a global certificate of equivalent (e.g. WES in Canada or SAQA in South Africa, UK Ecctis, etc) is obtained in the country or region where one wants to use it.
To become a Chartered IT Practitioner (CITP), you must pass all the CPN examinations.
In situations where you have acquired formal computing education, you are given waivers, depending on the level that formal education equates and also if the formal credential was from an accredited institution by CPN. If not, you will be required to take all the CPE I, CPE II and CPE III.
Again, if you graduated with NYSC like 10 years ago, and have acquired a post-graduate degree in addition, you may be granted waivers and requested to undertake a Mandatory Executive Training to become a Chartered IT Practitioner.
Level 03- Professional Certificate Examinations:
The CPN Professional Certificate (CPC) Examinations are for those that are desirous to be ultimately certified as a full-fletched IT Professional through a combination of formal and informal training. Hitherto, this category was conceived as one content fits all model for everyone. But the emerging trend in the world of Information Technology knowledge acquisition is towards specializations. In conventional tertiary institutions, rather than a monolithic department, faculties are increasingly being set up with various themes to reflect the skills that the practice of the profession dictates.
It is in recognition of the subsisting situation that the CPC examinations are now five (5) tracks towards demonstrable expertise specializations in the following areas:
1. Multimedia Technology (MMT)
2. Computer Information Systems (CIS)
3. Software Engineering (SEN), and
4. Computer Engineering (CEN)
5. Telecommunication and Network Security (TNS)
Prospective aspirants for CPN qualifications and certifications now have a choice of varying disciplines that will facilitate improved performance and service delivery in the increasingly demanding field of Information technology.
I will next week be rounding up the CPE III programme in readiness for the journey towards becoming a Chartered Information Technology Practitioner.
Please note that certain Federal government IT jobs/contracts cannot be awarded to someone who is not a Chartered IT Practitioner. Also, certain job responsibilities in IT would be advertised, asking for someone who MUST be a member of the Nigeria Computer Society (NCS) and CPN.
If a university seeks accreditation for its Computing and IT courses, and the faculty members are not members of CPN and Chartered too, such a university may not receive accreditation for computing and IT programmes.
Read more:
https://www.cpn.gov.ng/metro/?ref=metro/content&show=36
DESTINY YOUNG | IT Operations and Technology Infrastructure Engineer
