Missouri State University-West Plains will offer a 45-hour review course this fall for area residents interested in taking the Associate Professional in Human Resources (aPHR), Professional in Human Resources (PHR) or Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) certification exams offered through the HR Certification Institute.
The sessions will be from 5:30 to 8:20 p.m. every Tuesday from Aug. 20 through Dec. 3 at the Greater Ozarks Center for Advanced Technology (GOCAT)
The fee for attending the program is $650 for individuals interested in taking the aPHR exam and $850 for individuals interested in taking the PHR or SPHR exam. The fees include all course materials.
The deadline to register is Aug. 1. For more information or to register, contact Sheila Barton, GOCAT workforce development manager, at 417-255-7784 or at sheilafbarton@missouristate.edu.
The importance of HR certifications
Human resources certifications provide an opportunity for HR professionals in different roles and stages of the profession to demonstrate relevance, competence, experience, credibility and dedication to human resources and their employers, university officials said.
Materials developed for this program include content review, test tips and sample exam questions, officials said. Course content is structured using lecture, case studies, and individual and group exercises. Although no one course of study can guarantee a passing score, HRCI review materials have been successful in preparing aPHR, PHR and SPHR exam participants for more than 40 years.
The aPHR, PHR and SPHR exams are based on U.S. laws, regulations and practices and are generalist in nature (i.e., they assess all the functional areas of the HR field). They differ in terms of focus and the cognitive level of questions:
- aPHR questions tend to be more entry level for the student who wants to examine a career in HR;
- the PHR is designed for operational/technical level;
- the SPHR questions tend to be more at the strategic and/or policy level for those HR professionals who have worked in HR for several years.
Once the review session is complete, participants are eligible to register for the exam through HRCI. There is an additional fee to take the exam, which is administered through a Pearson Vue testing site. To determine eligibility for taking the exam, to register for the exam, and to locate a testing site, visit www.hrci.org.