STC Certification

I have to admit that I was a little confused over discussions of "certification" in the last couple of STC-Aus meetings. The topic kept turning to "classes", available only in the U.S., and sanctioned by the STC. When I ran across this FAQ today, outlining the differences between "certification" and "certificate", much was explained.
The recently established STC Certification process seems rather straightforward to me. "The Certified Professional in Technical Communication (CPTC) credential provides assurance to employers and the public that the certified practitioner possesses the knowledge, skill, and ability expected of a competent technical communicator to meet the demands of technical communication projects, today and tomorrow," is the way they describe it. The fees for this service, good through the end of the year, are $99 (USD) for the application, $495 for the assessment, and a $49 yearly maintenance fee. The assessment cost goes up to $595 in 2012.
There are also a list of prerequisites that will definitely be of interest to anyone wanting to obtain certification. And the FAQ is another good place to start and investigate. If there is enough interest, we are also hoping to invite Certification Commission Chair Steven Jong for an online discussion and Q&A session to walk us through the process and answer questions that we might have.
I suggest you start by reviewing the available information, think through what the process might be like for you, then give us feedback on whether or not a group session with Steven would be useful. Together we can move forward from there.