Profession Of Evaluation

Whether evaluation is a profession has been debated for years. The American Evaluation Associations claims “promoting evaluation as a profession” as part of its mission. However, others argue that the field has not met the traditional criteria to qualify as a profession. This ambivalence of the status of evaluation is apparent in the Australasian Evaluation Society's homepage, which refers to evaluation as a process used by many other professions; at the same time, the AES claims to be the premier professional evaluation organization in Australia and New Zealand.

Why should there be concern about whether evaluation is profession? First, if the field is a profession, this provides potential benefits to society. A hallmark [Page 332]of a profession is certification or licensing of members of that profession. ...