What we look for in an application

Applications are reviewed by people rather than by a form, which means the ones that succeed are the ones that make the reviewer's job easy. This is not a test of writing ability. It is a test of whether we can tell what you do, how long you have been doing it, and whether it falls within what this membership covers.

Edit this article to describe your own criteria. The structure below is the one most bodies end up with, whether or not they have written it down.

Eligibility comes first

Before anything else, we check that the applicant falls within the scope of the membership. Most declined applications fail here, and almost all of them could have been avoided by a two-minute conversation beforehand. If you are unsure, ask — it is not a mark against a later application.

Evidence, not adjectives

The description you submit becomes your directory profile, so it does two jobs at once. What works: what you do, who for, and since when. What does not: "passionate", "market-leading", "bespoke". Reviewers read a great many applications, and specifics are the only thing that distinguishes one from another.

Standing and conduct

We look for a working history that stands up to a light check, and for anything that would sit badly against the code members agree to. Nothing here is designed to catch people out. Where something needs explaining, explaining it in the application is always better than leaving it to be found.

What happens next

Applications are acknowledged on receipt and reviewed in the order they arrive. Where something is missing we will come back and ask rather than decline. Once accepted, the profile is published in the directory and the membership runs from that date.

If an application is declined, we say why, and we say what would need to change. A declined application is not permanent, and a fair number of members joined at the second attempt.