Continuing Education FAQ

No. ASHA CEUs are just one way that you can meet the professional development requirement for certification maintenance. You may also use activities that are not registered for ASHA CEUs, such as:

• employer-sponsored in-service training programs
• other professional organizations’ continuing education activities
• college or university course work from an institution that holds regional accreditation or its equivalent
• courses offered by any provider authorized by the International Association for Continuing Education and Training (IACET)

No, you do not. Your activity will be accepted as long as

• it occurred during your 3-year maintenance interval
• you have determined that the activity’s content meets the certification maintenance standard’s definition of professional development
• you have obtained acceptable documentation

You were sent a bill/invoice because you submitted an ASHA CEU Participant Form (bubble sheet) at a course or one of our ASHA CE Providers submitted one on your behalf. When you submit a CEU Participant Form, we presume you are interested in and eligible to earn ASHA CEUs and use the CE Registry. You may sign up for the Registry or cancel the invoice by calling 800-498-2071. If you decide to cancel the invoice, the ASHA CEUs will not be awarded and will be permanently deleted from your records.

No. Dual certificate holders only need to accumulate 30 total Certification Maintenance Hours. The hours can be earned in either the field of Audiology or Speech-Language Pathology; however, dual certificate holders must submit a Compliance Form for both areas of certification.

We know that financial issues are a concern for many of our members right now. Conferences and workshops can be expensive, but they are not the only way to earn Certification Maintenance Hours. You can earn hours by:

• Joining an ASHA Special Interest Group to take advantage of CEUs offered for a nominal fee through the Perspectives newsletter. Affiliation costs only $35 per year.
• Getting a group of colleagues together to participate in a Web/Telephone Seminar. The larger your group, the lower the per-person cost.
• Using ASHA’s CE Course Search to find courses offered by all ASHA approved CE Providers.

No. The 30 required professional development hours must be completed within each 3-year maintenance interval. The Council For Clinical Certification (CFCC) determined that 30 hours of professional development every 3 years is a minimum number of hours that would demonstrate a commitment to life-long learning and assure currency in the field. Most ASHA certificate holders are participating in more than 30 hours every 3 years.

ASHA is no longer granting exemptions in the Other/Extenuating Circumstances category. The exemption categories of Medical Disability, Active Military Deployment, or Retirement continue to remain available for those who qualify.

If you do not accumulate 30 hours during your 3-year maintenance interval, your certification status will lapse. The ASHA Code of Ethics states that ASHA members who do not hold current certification are prohibited from providing or supervising the provision of clinical services. Once certification has lapsed, you will be required to submit an application for reinstatement (audiology/speech-language pathology) and certification standards in effect at that time must be met.

You can access your account information through My Account, which is found at the top of each and every ASHA web page. Login and click on the Certification Maintenance link. Also, each year after you pay your annual dues, you receive your ASHA ID card. Your interval is printed alongside of your card on the surrounding material.

After you submit your Certification Maintenance Compliance Form, ASHA will determine if you are in the audit. If you are chosen you will be notified, and only at that time will you need to provide documentation of participation. Please do not send documentation to ASHA prior to sending or with your Compliance Form—they cannot keep track of your certification maintenance hours and they will be discarded.

Yes. All certificate holders, whether or not they choose to participate in the ASHA CE Registry, must complete the Compliance Form. This form includes all aspects of the certification maintenance requirements, not only the requirement to participate in professional development. The requirements for maintaining certification also include adherence to the ASHA Code of Ethics and payment of annual dues.

The benefit of using the ASHA CE Registry program to maintain your CCCs is that you will not have to keep record of your activities. If you are randomly selected for audit, you will not be required to report your activities or to submit verification of participation for your activities—your ASHA CE Registry transcript will be your verification of participation. In addition, many state regulatory agencies and boards of education recognize ASHA CE Providers and accept ASHA CEUs for the renewal of state licenses or board of education recertification.

If you do not send in a Compliance Form indicating that you accumulated 30 hours during your 3-year maintenance interval, your certification status will lapse. The ASHA Code of Ethics states that ASHA members who do not hold current certification are prohibited from providing or supervising the provision of clinical services. Once certification has lapsed, you will be required to submit an application for reinstatement (audiology and/or speech-language pathology) and certification standards in effect at that time must be met.

Yes, there is assistance available. You can contact the WVSHA CEA at or the ASHA Action Center at 800-498-2071 if you have general questions about the certification maintenance process.