Little
Mistakes Which Cause Delay or Rejection of Renewals
By
Deborah Crandall, MA, ACC, CRmT1
Have
you ever waited what seemed like a year to get your
NCCAP renewal back, only to find out it will be delayed,
or worse yet, rejected, due to some error you are sure
is not of your doing? Certificate reviewers see a lot
of mistakes and omissions on a regular basis. Individually
they are small, but certain information is required
by NCCAP and therefore, must be present on the application
or attendance certificates. One or two will delay your
renewal; several will most likely cause a rejection
of your application. Take a moment or two to check over
your certificates. This can save a lot of aggravation
and time.
Attendee's
Name (believe it or not, these are often omitted or
incorrect)
Title of Education Session (clearly identifying what
education session covered: see below)*
Location
of Meeting (specific: Name of a hotel or convention
center, city & state)
Sponsor of Meeting (often a district or host facility)
Date
and Time of Education (if the session is over 8 hours,
a breakdown is required)
Instructors Name & Credentials and/or Signature
of sponsor or instructor
NCCAP Pre-Approval (# optional).
*A word about Education Session Titles. It is important
to remember that our educational endeavors should reflect
our professionalism. It is truly amazing how often titles
of programs are rejected due to our inability to determine
the content of, or from where in the Body of Knowledge
(BOK) the session came. Granted, we like to do fun things
and not every session needs to be a brain buster. However,
where would one find "Saddle Up" or "Just
in Time" in the BOK? If you have to have a cute
name, make sure to include an identifier title in a
subtitle AND to make it even clearer, include it in
the category of BOK where it can be found.
Note
to District Education Coordinators or Education Hosts:
Make sure the information on each one of your attendance
certificates is correct and complete. All too often
the delay is due to missing information on these certificates.
Some districts, where education is offered in conjunction
with district meetings, either before or afterwards,
offer a 'hostess packet'. This includes a master copy
for the Attendance Certificate, along with a checklist
to make sure all goes smoothly the day of the district
meeting. This ensures all the necessary information
is included so as to not delay the applicant at renewal
time. It also is helpful for speakers when they are
renewing their own certifications.
We dislike the extra paperwork almost as much as you
hate receiving the Need More Info (NMI) notification.
So, if you are wrapping up your renewal, take that extra
few minutes to make sure ALL the information is complete
and correct on both on your application and all of the
certificates of attendance you may send. Remember, almost
all of these mistakes are avoidable, as are the delays
and rejections. Remember, if you have any questions
or problems, don't hesitate to call the NCCAP office
for help. NN
|
