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Recertification Policy

One of the requirements of a psychometrically valid certification program is that each certification must have an expiration date. A certified individual must periodically provide evidence that they still have the necessary skills required by the certification.

The BSDA certification expires at the end of five years. In order to remain BSDA certified, the certificate holder must apply for recertification using one of the methods listed below. These methods reflect standard psychometric practices as well as the community-based approach of the BSD Certification Group.

BSDA certified individuals can apply for recertification up to six months before their certification expires. Individuals with a unique circumstance requiring an earlier recertification should contact the BSDCG. There is a six month renewal grace period after a certification expires. When a successful application for recertification occurs, the certification will be renewed for five years starting at the expiration date of the prior certification. If recertification is not attempted during this period, the individual is no longer considered certified and must meet the BSDA certification requirements as a new certification applicant should they wish to pursue certification at a later time.

When applying for a recertification, select one of the two renewal methods:

Method 1: Retake and pass the BSDA exam at either a hosted exam event or at a testing center. Upcoming events and testing center locations are listed here. The BSDA Certification Requirements document should be reviewed to determine if any study is required. This document is available for download here.

or

Method 2: Provide evidence that you continue to use the skills covered by the BSDA Certification Requirements during the five years of certification. A list of acceptable activities, their BSDA Recertification Unit (BRU) values, and examples of verifiable evidence are provided in the following "Evidence of Continuing BSD Skills Chart". In order to recertify, you must demonstrate a total of ten BRUs and demonstrate how your listed activities relate to the exam objectives within the BSDA Certification Requirements document.


If you choose this method of recertification, send an email which details your evidence to chair@bsdcertification.org and pay the recertification fee. Once your email and recertification payment are received, the BSDCG review committee will review your evidence. If clarification is needed, an email will be sent requesting further information. Once the evidence is validated as meeting the ten BRUs requirement, you will receive an email indicating the new expiry date and a new certificate will be shipped to the mailing address that you provided to the BSDCG when you registered for your BSDCG ID.

Evidence of Continuing BSD Skills Chart

In order to recertify, you must provide verifiable evidence representing a total of ten BSDA Recertification Units (BRUs). BRUs are used to demonstrate how activities relate to the exam objectives within the BSDA Certification Requirements document. When providing evidence, explain which BSDA exam objectives are covered by that activity.

ActivityBRU ValueExample Evidence
Full-time employment as a BSD system administrator or consultant. 2 BRUs per year of full-time employment up to a maximum of 10 BRUs. Provide employer name(s), dates of employment, the job duties which relate to the BSDA exam objectives, and contact information of a manager to verify employment dates and job duties. Employment must be within the 5 year period between certification date and certification expiry date.

Part-time employment as a BSD system administrator or consultant (10-30 hours per week).

1 BRU per year of part-time
employment up to a maximum of 5 BRUs.

Provide employer name(s), dates of employment, the job duties which relate to the BSDA exam objectives, and contact information of a manager to verify employment dates and job duties. Employment must be within the 5 year period between certification date and certification expiry date.

Provide BSD training. 1 BRU per day of training up to a maximum of 10 BRUs.

Include URL to course description, your trainer biography, and teaching
dates. If this information is not available online, include employer's name and contact information.

Publication, article, or how-to directly related to BSD.

1 BRU per publication (minimum 1500 words).

Include URLs to online publications or page numbers within paper publications, In the event that a publication is only available in print periodicals or behind a "pay wall," attach a copy of the article.

BSD presentation at a conference, user group, or post-secondary institution.

1 BRU per presentation (minimum of 30 minutes).

Include URLs to presentations or your speaker biography at the event's website. If the presentation is not available online, attach a copy of the presentation.

Diploma course. 2 BRUs per semester. Provide a course outline and a copy of the diploma or course credit. List the BSDA exam objectives covered in the course.

Industry certification. 2 BRUs per certification. Include a copy of the certification. List the BSDA exam objectives covered by the certification.
BSD technical blog. 1 BRU for every 5 posts averaging 300 words each. Include URL to blog.

System administration of
BSD server (e.g. mail server, webserver).
1 BRU for each yearly summary.

Server must run on BSD platform. Provide a yearly summary of administrative activities, such as the maintenance log, history of software patching, upgrades, DNS renewal, and scripting activities. Include URL
of public server or contact information of employer if server is private.

Contributions to a BSD project as a non-committer. 1 BRU per year of active
contributions to a BSD project. This may include code, patches,
documentation, or system
administration assistance to the
project or for the project community.

Include URLs to patches, code, documentation or a summary of your contributions.

Code committed to a BSD project as a committer.

2 BRUs per year of active commits. Commits can be to code or documentation.

Include your valid BSD project email address and a summary URL of your commits.

BSDA

BSD Associate

The BSDA certification is an entry-level certification on BSD systems administration.

BSDP

BSD Professional
The BSDP certification is an advanced level certification for senior administrators of BSD systems.

Recertification Policy

Here is the BSDA Recertification Policy.

SME Policy

To collaborate on developing the examinations as a Subject Matter Expert (SME) please read the SME Policy Document.