The Society of Certified Criminal Analysts (SCCA) is a professional body established to promote professionalism and high standards in analysis by establishing standards and testing and by certifying analysts. The Society was established by working analysts in 1989 to complement the work of the
(IALEIA), which is open to analysts and
intelligence officers worldwide.
As of 2005, over 200 persons worldwide have met certification standards. Members tend to be among the more experienced and educated analysts and frequently hold higher classifications in their respective organizations. Some agencies encourage SCCA certification for analysts seeking
promotion
Promotion may refer to:
Marketing
* Promotion (marketing), one of the four marketing mix elements, comprising any type of marketing communication used to inform or persuade target audiences of the relative merits of a product, service, brand or i ...
or
employment
Employment is a relationship between two parties regulating the provision of paid labour services. Usually based on a contract, one party, the employer, which might be a corporation, a not-for-profit organization, a co-operative, or any othe ...
.
SCCA is the
accreditation
Accreditation is the independent, third-party evaluation of a conformity assessment body (such as certification body, inspection body or laboratory) against recognised standards, conveying formal demonstration of its impartiality and competence to ...
arm of IALEIA in 1996 and IALEIA's support was re-affirmed by its Board in 2003. SCCA also entered into an agreement with the
Australian Institute of Professional Intelligence Officers
The Australian Institute of Professional Intelligence Officers (AIPIO for short) is a not-for-profit organisation which aims to promote the intelligence profession in Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sov ...
(AIPIO) to allow its members to qualify for certification without necessarily being members of IALEIA.
Countries in which analysts have been certified include
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
,
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
,
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
,
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
,
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
, the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
,
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
, the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
and the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
.
Certification is by way of examination which takes about 6 hours in total. Key features of the examination process include developing
intelligence
Intelligence has been defined in many ways: the capacity for abstraction, logic, understanding, self-awareness, learning, emotional knowledge, reasoning, planning, creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving. More generally, it can b ...
reports, use and application of
intelligence analysis
Intelligence analysis is the application of individual and collective cognitive methods to weigh data and test hypotheses within a secret socio-cultural context. The descriptions are drawn from what may only be available in the form of deliberate ...
tools and a depth of understanding in relation to intelligence concepts and models.
Certified analysts are required to undergo a re-certification process every three years to validate currency of
competence. There are two levels of certification, normal and 'life', the latter being achieved at a higher level and after a period of certification at the lower level.
Analysts gaining certification are entitled to use the
postnominals
Post-nominal letters, also called post-nominal initials, post-nominal titles, designatory letters or simply post-nominals, are letters placed after a person's name to indicate that the individual holds a position, academic degree, accreditation, ...
"CCA" in correspondence. In 2006 the SCCA was merged into the
.
References
Law enforcement-related professional associations
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