The International Accounting Education Standards Board (IAESB), an independent standard-setting board within the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), is seeking proposals for research into approaches adopted by a range of professions to the measurement of Continuing Professional Development (CPD). It is anticipated that this will lead to the publication of an International Education Paper (IEP) on this subject in 2008.

The full Request for Proposal: Approaches to CPD Measurement is available on the IAESB's home page at http://www.ifac.org/Education/downloads/Approaches_to_CPD_Measurement_Request_for_Proposal.pdf. The deadline for submission is 12:00 pm (EST), January 12, 2007.

International Education Standard (IES) 7, Continuing Professional Development: A Program of Lifelong Learning and Continuing Development of Professional Competence, came into effect on January 1, 2006. It prescribes the obligations that IFAC member bodies have with respect to CPD for all professional accountants. Research on how CPD learning activities can be measured effectively will enable the IAESB to develop additional guidance that will be of use to IFAC member bodies. It is anticipated that a new IEP on this topic will also be of interest to a wide range of external stakeholders involved in CPD, including the academic community, accounting educators, policy makers, researchers, regulators, and professional accountants themselves.

"All professional accountants have a responsibility to maintain and develop their competence through participating in CPD throughout their working lives," states Henry Saville, IAESB Chair. "IFAC's member bodies help their members to do this, and the IAESB, in turn, wishes to help member bodies establish effective CPD systems for their members. This research project will identify global best practices in CPD which can be shared with the profession."

IFAC is the worldwide organization for the accountancy profession dedicated to serving the public interest by strengthening the profession and contributing to the development of strong international economies. Its current membership consists of approximately 160 professional accountancy bodies in 120 countries, representing more than 2.5 million accountants in public practice, education, government service, industry and commerce. IFAC, through its independent standard-setting boards, sets standards on auditing and assurance, ethics, education, and public sector accounting. It also issues guidance to encourage high quality performance by professional accountants in business.