Many industries offer 'Chartered' status for professionals to demonstrate their expertise and up to date knowledge. The CIM is one of those. We receive a lot of questions about this. Here are the answers to the questions we receive, but for full details, check the CIM website.

Chartered Marketer status sets professionals apart from the competition and allows the use of post-nominals (letters) after your name. If you're new to this concept, here is some advice on how you could become Chartered and the best ways to stay there. 

What is Chartered Marketer status?

Chartered Marketer status is conferred by the CIM to marketers who can have experience, or CIM Diploma, or CIM Digital Diploma. The marketer has to agree to undertake Continuing Professional Development (CPD) every year. 

As a qualified marketer you must:

  • Be at Associate (ACIM) Member (MCIM) or Fellow (FCIM) membership grade
  • Complete two consecutive years of CPD

What is CPD?

Continuing Professional Development (CPD) is a way of improving your skills and knowledge to remain current and effective as a marketing professional. You set the goal that you want to achieve, and spend a minimum of 35 credits across the year learning. Everything from work-placed development and qualifications to attending exhibitions and conferences counts. 

Self-directed learning – credits capped at 25% (8.75 credits)

  • General reading
  • Research
  • Informal networking (social media contribution, blogging)

Practice-based learning – credits capped at 50% (17.5)

  • On the job training
  • Work shadowing
  • Projects outside scope of role

Professional activity – credits capped at 50% (17.5)

  • Job promotion
  • Professional journals
  • Attending exhibitions

Formal learning – no credits cap (35)

  • Qualifications
  • Training
  • E-learning

You would record all the learning and development activities that you have undertaken over the year through the CIM portal. 

What is a credit?

The CIM sets the level of credits each activity gains. For CPD, you must achieve 35 credits. This used to be set as 35 hours and that may still be a helpful shorthand way to think of credits. Note that 1 hour does not always equal 1 credit and you could achieve 35 credits through doing more or less than 35 hours

How do I decide what to learn in CPD?

You can follow your own interests. If you are not sure, the CIM's Professional Marketing Competencies can help you to identify gaps in your knowledge.

How do I become Chartered?

You have to have the following:

  • membership of the CIM 
  • 3 years’ experience (or level 6 qualification);
  • 2 years of recorded Continuing Professional Development (CPD);
  • and completion of the Chartered assessment (waived if you have a Level 7 qualification)

With a current ACIM CIM membership, you need to log 35 credits of CPD for two consecutive years. You then complete the online Chartered Marketer assessment. You will have up to five attempts to complete the assessment.

If you have a Level 7 qualification (such as the CIM Marketing Leadership Programme or CIM Post-Graduate Diploma), then you do not have to take the assessment. 

With a current CIM Membership (MCIM) or Fellowship (FCIM), you need to complete four reflective statements per CPD year.

How do I stay a Chartered Marketer?

This depends on your level of CIM membership.

  • If you are an ACIM, you continue to log 35 credits of CPD each year.
  • MCIM’s and FCIM’s to complete four reflective statements during each CPD year
  • Chartered Marketers must have current CIM membership

What do I get as a Chartered Marketer?

You will be demonstrating your commitment to your career and professional development. You will be: 

  • Added to the CIM's Chartered Marketer Directory, unless you request otherwise
  • Issued with a Chartered Marketer certificate in recognition of your achievement
  • Granted use of the Chartered Marketer logo for your personal stationery and website
  • Able to use the designation “Chartered Marketer” or “CMktr” after your name.


Updated 9 March 2022 to clarify the requirements for CPD