Certification is an industry-owned and managed recognition scheme. Recognition of skills and experience of personnel is essential if we as an industry are to be part of the solution of sustainable water resources.

The intention is that ALL surface and groundwater Hydrographers will be registered on the AHA register of  Certified Professionals.

Certification is voluntary, however by becoming a certified Hydrographer, you’ll be helping to raise the profile of hydrometric monitoring as an industry, and improve skills, knowledge, standards across the Australia – which in turn will help the hydrometric monitoring industry control its own future and become more sustainable. There are personal benefits too – as a certified Hydrographer you’ll gain recognition for your skills and better prospects for your future career.

When certified, you can use a post nominal (i.e. the three letters) indicating the level of certification after your name, e.g. John Doe CPH

Apply for Certification

[NOTE:  Certification for oceanographic hydrographers is administered by the  Australasian Hydrographic Society.]

Certification Levels

1. AHA Certified Cadet Hydrographer (CCH)

This is a person who has  BOTH of the following:

It is expected that this level of certification is the first stepping stone towards becoming an AHA Certified Practising Hydrographer (CPH).

2. AHA Certified Associate Hydrographer (CAH)

This is a person who has  BOTH the following:

  • Proven in-house and/or external training or qualification in a discipline associated to hydrometric monitoring
  • Minimum 3 years proven experience in most aspects of hydrometric monitoring

[Prior to 1 July 2015, this level of certification was known as  Certified Practising Hydrographer]

3. AHA Certified Hydrometric Specialist (CHS)

 This is a person who has the following:

  • Minimum 5 years proven experience working in hydrometric monitoring or analysis.
  • Qualifications to the level of Certificate IV, or better, in a related field deemed appropriate by the AHA.

Examples of appropriate qualifications are listed below.

  • Qualifications in Water Quality Monitoring,
  • Groundwater Monitoring,
  • Batchelor of Science
  • Qualifications in Environmental Management (Natural Resources)
  • Bachelor of Engineering
  • Qualifications in Hydrometric Electronics / Telemetry / Instrumentation

4. AHA Certified Practising Hydrographer (CPH)

This is a person who has the following:

  • Minimum 5 years proven experience across ALL aspects of river and stream hydrometric monitoring

In addition to the experience, a CPH will hold a:

OR

[Prior to 1 July 2015, this level of certification was known as  Certified Qualified Hydrographer]

Apply for Certification

Certification Fees

Initial applications and renewals incur an Application Fee $55 plus an plus an Annual Fee. All fees exclude GST.

Level of Certification Annual Fee Discounted Annual Fee for AHA Members
AHA Certified Cadet Hydrographer (CCH) $165.00 $40.00
AHA Certified Associate Hydrographer (CAH) $195.00 $70.00

AHA Certified Hydrometric Specialist (CHS)

 $195.00 $70.00
AHA Certified Practising Hydrographer (CPH) $225.00 $100.00

NOTE: If a certified hydrographer believes their status or level of certification has changed at any time e.g. exceeds 5 years experience, completes Diploma etc. they may apply for re-classification at no extra cost.

Apply for Certification

Awarding AHA Certification

  • New certification applicants must submit an  Application Form and associated documents
  • Renewal of certification applicants must sumbmit their Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Log

When AHA receives your application it will assess your application to determine whether you qualify for certification/renewal. If you qualify, AHA will send an invoice covering the application fee and the annual fee. If you do not qualify, AHA will contact you to explain the additional steps needed to qualify for certification.

When payment is received, AHA will:

  1. Send documentation stating the Certification level and currency dates to the AHA Certified Hydrographer;
  2. Enter the Hydrographer’s name and level of certification on the AHA register of  Certified professionals

Certification is for twelve months and will expire 30 June. For applications received January-June, the initial period will extend to 30 June in the calendar year after your initial application.

1. New Certification Applications

  1. Submit the  application form
  2. Please provide copies of Qualifications, Statement of Attainment etc, along with details of relevant Hydrographic Industry experience. This should include a brief description of work practices carried out (i.e. open channel, closed pipe, groundwater, atmospheric measurement etc.).

AHA will undertake initial assessment from the documentation provided by applicant to determine the eligibility for level of certification that the applicant has nominated.

After certification, keep a CPD Log (see  Continuing Professional Development below) using the website CPD tracker.

2. Renewal of Certification Applications

Every 12 months, AHA will send an invoice to renew certification.

Every 24 months at renewal time, AHA certified hydrographers also:

  • need to show that they have remained active in the industry and have taken steps to keep up-to-date with new technology and information.
  • should submit for assessment your Continuing Professional Development (CPD) for the review period shown on the  register of  Certified Professionals.

Inactive Certification

Renewals are due each year after certification. If no renewal is received six months after expiry, the certification status of that hydrographer will be considered “Inactive” until this is rectified.

An “Inactive” Certification status prevents the hydrographer from practising as an “AHA Certified Hydrographer” until they renew their certification. If the inactive period is less than one year, renewal can be made by paying all renewal fees and submitting sufficient CPD points to cover the inactive period.

If the inactive period is for more than one year, the certification is forfeited and re-certification will require the applicant to start the certification process over from the beginning.

Apply for Certification

Continuing Professional Development (CPD)

Go to My CPD Tracker

Renewal of certification is dependent on two criteria being passed:

  • Completion of sufficient Continuing Professional Development CPD
  • Payment of Certification fee.

Up to 2025 the assessment of CPD and payment of fees were on a different time cycle with CPD assessment occurring every two years and payment being required annually. This caused significant management and user issues with keeping track of when CPD assessment took place and user confusion of payments in years without CPD assessment or users’ assumption that payment was all that is required.

Moving forward, CPD logging and assessment will occur annually and payment will also occur annually. The shift to annual renewal has been designed so that the CPD and financial burdens have not increased. Whilst CPD logging will need to occur annually, the provision of an online tool for CPD logging will greatly the decrease the overall effort required for CPD logging.

Those failing to earn the required PD points will be considered “Inactive”.

CPD Points Required for Re-Certification

CPD points requirements for re-certification (see below):

  • Remain active in industry in an area related to certification in hydrometric monitoring.

You will need to record activities to claim points every 1 year:

  • Certified Cadet Hydrographer (CCH) - 3 points
  • Certified Associate Hydrographer (CAH) - 3 points
  • Certified Hydrometric Specialist (CHS) - 3 points
  • Certified Practising Hydrographer (CPH) - 4 points

Record Activities & Claim Points

Go to My CPD Tracker

NOTE: Documented proof is required to claim points.

Activity Description Points per activity Maximum activity points per year Evidence Required

Attend an AHA approved hydrometric monitoring conference, trade show or field day with published agenda, Gauging Regatta

Providers such as the AHA, professional associations or societies, universities, colleges or technical institutes.

1 point per day of event attendance

  3

Evidence such as an invoice, certificate of attendance, or documented evidence of attendance.
Continuous active participation in field and or office activities specific to hydrometric monitoring. This would require written proof, endorsed by a manager of continuous ability to carry out field and/or office activities that include tasks 1 1 Provide written evidence endorsed (by manager) stating the type of activities and duration.

 In house training - AHA approved

A training course provided by an employer that has been assessed and approved by the AHA. Minimum course duration 0.5 days.

1

5 

Name of approved course to be recorded

 In house training - unapproved

In house training course of minimum 0.5 day duration. Topic to be directly related to performing hydrometric activities.

 0.5

4

Certificate of completion detailing:
- Learning outcomes.
- Course date, start and finish.
- Course presenter, name and contact details
- Course location.
- Course material to be provided on request.

 Workplace health and safety training

Participation in accredited work place health and safety training that has direct relevance to performing hydrometric activities.

1

1

 Copy of Certificate of completion

Mentoring – Hold a senior role in hydrometric monitoring, such as: Team Leader, Supervising Hydrographer, Hydrographic Training Officer etc.

Individuals need to have at least 5 years of experience in hydrometric monitoring and mentoring.

 1

 1

Provide documentation endorsed by Manager describing role title and mentoring undertaken.

Industry training long - AHA approved

 A training course provided by a third party (e.g. a vendor) that has been assessed and approved by the AHA. Minimum course duration 0.5 days.

 1

 5

 Copy of Certificate of completion.

Industry training long - unapproved

A third party (e.g. a vendor) provided training course directly related to Hydrometric monitoring and data management. Course duration minimum 0.5 day. The training course is not assessed by the AHA.

 0.5

1

Certificate of completion detailing:
- Learning outcomes.
- Course date, start and finish.
- Course presenter, name and contact details
- Course location.
- Course material to be provided on request.

Industry training short - AHA approved

A training course provided by a third party (e.g. a vendor) that has been assessed and approved by the AHA. Minimum course duration 0.25 days.

0.5

5

Evidence of attendance and completion.
Industry training webinar - AHA approved A training course provided by a third party (e.g. a vendor) that has been assessed and approved by the AHA. 0.5 5 Evidence of attendance and completion.
Completion of AHA Hydrography course subject (CCH only) Completion of AHA diploma course subject. 1 5 AHA Trainers certify completion.
Teach or author a paper relevant to hydrometric monitoring presented at a short course, seminar, technical conference, in-house training class or published in a Journal. Prepare and deliver new material for a paper, publication or training course. Only the initial submission will be allowed when presenting a paper repeatedly. The AHA will assess these activities for relevance. 2 2 Copy of paper including details of publication, or a copy of the outline of short course and details of participants.
Exceptional activities Activities that do not fall into any other categories may be submitted for the management committee for review. The AHA will assess these activities for relevance. Activities might include overseas study tour or industry leadership activities. 2 2 Documented evidence describing the exceptional nature of the activity.
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