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The Missouri Land Title Institute 

Professional Certification Program

 

Text Box: What Is Certification?
Text Box: Home Welcome A Letter from the Chairman What is Certification? Benefits of Certification Certified Members FAQ’s News Governing Documents Committees Examination Schedule Forms Index History MLTA Home
Text Box: What are the three initials after the following names: Mary Smith, CFP; Harry Jones, CAE; Delores Rio, CLS/CLC? They are recognition designations offered by private organizations: “Certified Financial Planner,” “Certified Association Executive,” and “Certified Land-Title Searcher/Certified Land-Title Closer,” respectively. They are not academic degrees (like Ph. D or M.D.), but are instead credentials granted by private trade or professional associations. In 2000, two hundred thousand automobile service technicians were “certified.” So too were 33,000 pharmacy technicians and 9,000 Microsoft project managers. Missouri Realtors can receive a “GRI” or “CRS’ designation among others. While there are no official statistics maintained for the size of the credentialing industry, one conservative estimate contains descriptions of 1,700 national voluntary certification programs. The credentialing process has exploded during the past two decades. Not only do professional and trade organizations offer credentials to both members and non-members, but even corporations now sponsor customized, in-house credentials to their employees. In many cases these corporate credentials are prerequisites to further advancement and/or carry bonus/salary incentives. There is no governmental or private agency that sets mandatory minimum standards for a credentialing program. Licensing, though mandatory and imposed by the state, is a regulatory mechanism and not a “credentialing” process. Because there is no regulation, it would be possible for anyone to create a low-quality credentialing program for members of the land title and escrow industry and to apply inconsistent or confusing terms to the steps in the process, which might themselves be misleading or inconsistent, resulting in an unreliable and confusing ultimate outcome. What are sound reasons to make certification part of the industry’s professional development activities? · Innovation: The nature of the work in the title industry has changed rapidly and dramatically in the past few years. Not only does the ALTA revise and revamp forms, but legislation and regulation continues to affect the day-to-day operations in the business. Customer pressure to produce more – quicker and cheaper – has forced multi-tasking on title agents and resulted in offices where very few employees wear just one hat. Workers are expected to adapt to these changes by continuously acquiring new knowledge and skills. · Demand for Standards: The public has become more and more aware of the impact of professional incompetence on public welfare in the past few years. To date, the protection of the public from low quality results in title searches, exams and settlement services has been furthered through a process of educational options provided by various sponsoring organizations, the MLTA included. However there is no formal process whereby the end results of those combined educational opportunities or the knowledge and skill that comes with years of experience are measured or quantified. · Competition: Other related industries already provide certifications for their members (most notably the National Realtors Association). A few of the state title organizations have adopted certification programs. Avoiding any public impression that Missouri land title and escrow professionals are somehow “unworthy” of such professional designations in and of itself justifies the creation of this Certification Program.
 

 

 

 

 


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