Why did you decide to pursue a BCRSP Certification?
I was promoted from the floor at the manufacturing site I worked it to a supervisor role, shortly into that role (2 weeks) I was told I was going to be the safety coordinator as well. I started taking some safety training and tried to learn as much as I could. It was about a year in, and a safety consultant came to our site, and he shared with me some ways to progress in safety. He mentioned taking an OHS certificate through Ryerson University and to look at becoming a Canadian Registered Safety Professional (CRSP).
How did you find out about the certification?
The safety consultant I mentioned above told me about it as he was a CRSP. It seemed like a daunting task, going back to school, the application process, the interview and exam. But it was the best decision I made in my career.
How long have you had your certification and why do you still maintain it?
I’ve been a CRSP since 2014. I maintain it as it keeps me learning and taking more courses and keeping my training up to date. I will maintain it as I love to learn new things and the maintenance points holds me accountable to do that. Life and work can get busy and you may want to push off taking additional training at times, maintaining your points gives me that extra push.
If you could give some advice to someone about why they should pursue certification with the BCRSP, what would you tell them?
The first thing I would ask them is “Do you care about people?”. Working in EHS is so people based and if you don’t care about other people’s safety and well being this is not the career for you. However, if you do care about people and want to get involved in EHS, pursuing a certification with the BCRSP will push you to grow, not just in education, but the application of safety in your field of work. If you follow the process, take the courses and I’ll pause here as well. I would strongly recommend taking OHS certificate courses or OHS based education. I know you can use your degree from another discipline; however, I would strongly encourage a new person to take OHS focused education. And the last thing I would tell them is my decision to pursue my certification and work in the EHS field was the best decision I’ve made in my career.