IATCB CEU Policy

IATCB CEU Policy

Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to provide consistent, clear guidelines that can be applied by the International Avian Trainers Certification Board (IATCB) when determining whether to approve or deny applications for Continuing Education Units (CEUs).

 

Eligibility and Calculation of CEUs

Educational Events

CEUs may be granted to the following types of educational events or learning events:

  • Academic class (offered by an accredited academic institution, usually a college or university)
  • Tele-class (both live and taped)
  • Online class
  • Seminar (live – not videotaped)
  • Learning Course
  • Blogs
  • Podcasts
  • Workshop
  • Conference

CEUs will only be granted to learning events whose content covers one (1) or more of the knowledge domains defined for certification already held by the applicant. These domains include learning principles, applied training, husbandry and enrichment, public education, and professional ethics.

Learning event content must be based on current, scientifically valid principles.  The IATCB reserves the right to request additional information regarding the validity of the content.  Knowledge domains and additional information can be found in the Candidate Handbook (http://ptcny.com/clients/iatcb/).

▫   As an Attendee/Participant

  • Attendees/participants will receive 1 CEU per hour of in-class lecture time.

▫   As a Presenter

  • Presenters can earn 1.5 CEUs per hour of presentation/lecture, when the learning event includes information from at least one of the approved five subject domains: Learning Principles, Applied Training, Husbandry and Enrichment, Public Education, Professional Ethics. Animal training classes regularly offered to the public as part of a Certificant’s animal training and/or behavior consulting business do not qualify for CEUs.

▫   As a Workshop Coach or Mentor

  • Coaches and mentors in approved educational events will be granted 1 CEU per hour of in-class lecture attendance during the event.

 

Online Webinars and Virtual Conferences

  • Hosts of webinars and virtual conferences may provide a code word as proof of attendance.  The code word should be submitted to the host; they will provide an Event Attendance Form to the participant and this should be submitted to ceus@iatcb.org.
  • Webinars viewed in a group setting should have a supervisor complete an Event Attendance Form.
  • Form for each participant, these should be emailed to ceus@iatcb.org.
  • A maximum of 15 CEUs from online webinars (live or pre-recorded) per certification period will be accepted without an Event Attendance Form. Certificants are still required to submit a completed CEU Request Form for online webinars.
    • Note: If proof of event registration is available (registration confirmation, receipt, etc.), please send this along with your CEU request form.

 

Degree courses taken through accredited colleges

  • 5 IATCB CEUs will be granted for each college semester credit hour.
  • 3 CEUs will be granted for each college quarter credit hour. No more than 30 CEUs will be awarded for accredited college courses in a single certification period.

IATCB CEU opportunities

  • Certificants may earn CEUs by writing test items. One (1) CEU is awarded for every 5 test items accepted. Test items are questions with four "answers" to the question. Only one answer should be correct, with the other three answers being distractors. Distractors should seem plausible and not obviously incorrect.
    • Download the Item Developers' Guide written by our testing company, PTC, for full details of item writing.
    • Please email board@iatcb.org for more information about how to write and submit test items.
  • Articles submitted for the IATCB newsletter will be granted 1 CEU for 500 words. Please submit articles to info@iatcb.org
  • IATCB sets the passing score for exams every two years. IATCB members can participate in the exam score pass setting process. Participants who complete the process with us will receive 10 CEUs. Trainers with less than 5y training experience are encouraged to apply.
    • Please submit a letter/email of interest and a resume to info@iatcb.org

Publications

Authoring Articles

Authoring an article published in an animal industry or peer-reviewed publication which meets the subject matter and scientific qualifications described below may qualify for 2 CEUs.

  • An “article” is a researched piece of work, approximately 1000 words or more, and should include references, quotes and citations where appropriate.
  • An animal industry publication is defined by IATCB as printed or electronic reproductions distributed by an industry organization for sale to the public or as a benefit of paid membership.
  • An author may only request CEUs once per article regardless of the number of publications in which it was published.

 

Authoring Books

Books covering one or more of the knowledge domains defined for the certification may be granted CEUs.

  • 12 CEUs may be earned for a published book whose target audience is animal behavior professionals.
  • 8 CEUs may be earned for a published book aimed at the public.

 

Other Eligibility

  • Awards of CEUs for other types of events or publications may be granted at the discretion of the Board.

 

Please remit the completed forms to ceus@iatcb.org

 

 

CEU Credit Limitations

  • Multi-speaker learning events lasting more than three (3) days in length will not be granted more than 30 CEUs.
  • Single speaker learning events regardless of length will not be granted more than 20 CEUs.
  • No more than one-third of CEUs earned in a certification period, i.e. 20 CEUs, can be earned from a person’s own employment as a consultant, teacher, coach, or mentor, for presenting or attending seminars, workshops, lectures, etc. The same rule applies to authoring books in a single certification period.
  • Presenters may apply and receive CEUs only once per presentation, per certification period, regardless of the number of times they present the same presentation within that certification period.
  • CEUs are awarded and available for recertification only during a single certification period.  Once CEUs are used to gain recertification, any balance of CEUs held by the certificant is lost.

 

Verification of Attendance for CEU Credit

 

Application for CEUs

  • An individual or organization hosting a learning event (“Host”) may request CEUs prior to the learning event using the IATCB CEU Request Form. Attendees can use the CEU Attendance Form to obtain CEUs.
  • If the Host did not request CEUs, a Certificant may request CEUs for a learning event using the IATCB CEU Request Form.
  • All ongoing/on-demand courses will be approved for a term of three years, from January 1 to December 31, starting on January 1st of the year of application/approval.

 

Verification of Attendance

  • If a host provides a Certificate of Completion/ Attendance Certificate, a copy should be submitted by the attendee as proof of attendance when applying for CEUs. 
  • In all other cases, the applicant must submit an Event Attendance Form signed by the host.
  • The Certificate of Attendance/Completion or Event Attendance Form should be e-mailed to ceus@iatcb.org within 2 months of the event.
  • A maximum of 15 CEUs from online webinars (live or pre-recorded) per certification period will be accepted without an Event Attendance Form. Certificants are still required to submit a completed CEU Request Form for online webinars.
    • Note: If proof of event registration is available (registration confirmation, receipt, etc.), please send this along with your CEU request form.

 

 

Please note: All CEUs MUST be claimed within two (2) months of the event.  Submissions will not be accepted after this period!

 

CEUs and Multiple Credentials

When Certificants have multiple credentials, e.g. CPBT-KA and CPAT-KA, CEUs earned will be applied to both credentials.

 

Appeal for Denied CEUs:

If a CEU application is denied, the applicant may appeal to IATCB Board of Directors at info@iatcb.org.  The applicant must submit evidence and information in support of the application in writing to support the appeal.  The IATCB Board of Directors may, at its sole discretion, request additional information prior to ruling on the appeal.  Approval of an appeal requires a 2/3 majority to pass.  If the appeal is not granted by the IATCB Board of Directors, the applicant may not reapply for CEUs for the same learning event unless the event content has been significantly altered.

Download PDF of CEU Policy

Updated October 2025.