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Designations-CertDir explained
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Certified Director Explained

A person that holds this designation will demonstrate their:


  • Proficiency of governance knowledge
  • Commitment to continuous professional development
  • Commitment to moral and legal duties
  • Commitment to uphold standards of good corporate governance in South Africa

The designation is underpinned by the following E’s

Education

Necessary NQF Level and
IoDSA Cert Dir Pathway Programmes

Experience

Relevant senior manager, executive management and/or directorship experience*.

Examination

Write and pass the Cert Dir exam.

Ethics

Subscribe to the IoDSA Code of Professional Conduct.

How To Become A Certified Director

Entry criteria*

To be eligible for the Certified Director designation, an applicant must:

  • Be an IoDSA Member
    Note: Individuals currently holding Future Leader membership do not qualify
    Click here to view more information on IoDSA membership or contact that the team by emailing membership@iodsa.co.za

  • Hold an NQF Level 6 SAQA-registered qualification or be able to demonstrate at least 3 years’ of appropriate directorship experience within the past 5 years. Applicants with foreign qualifications must provide a SAQA Certificate of Evaluation confirming the equivalent NQF level at the time of application

  • Demonstrate at least 3 years' senior management job-levelling experience or higher within the past 5 years

  • Maintain a record free of any past or present conduct that could bring the IoDSA or the designation into disrepute

  • Complete the Certified Director Pathway Training Programmes
    For the purposes of writing the Cert Dir® Exam, individuals must complete the associated training programmes and provide evidence of completion through a Letter of Completion. Each training module and exemption is valid for a period of 36 months from the date of attendance, after which it must be repeated before access to the exam can be granted. Available dates for associated programmes can be accessed on our Training Calendar. Programmes can be booked from the IoDSA website. 

    • IoDSA Being a Director Programmes Part 1 to 4 and associated multiple choice questions
    • IoDSA Being a Director Part 5: Board Simulation Programme (*Exemptions may apply)
    • IoDSA Governance of Ethics Programme and associated multiple choice questions (*Exemptions may apply)
    • IoDSA Financial Insights for Non-Financial Directors Programme and associated multiple choice questions (*Exemptions may apply)


*Change in criteria

From 1 January 2026 new entry criteria will become effective as outlined in the IoDSA Certification Policy.

To support candidates who have already started their certification journey in 2025 under the previous entry criteria, the above transitional arrangements will apply prior to the new entry criteria coming into effect.

To complete the certification process under these transitional arrangements, individuals must:

  • Write the Certified Director exam in 2025
  • If applicable, complete the final rewrite of the exam in 2026

 

Please note: If an individual fails the re-write or does not make use of the re-write opportunity in 2026, they will need to meet the new entry criteria in order to be eligible to register again. All new applications received from 1 January 2026 onward will be assessed against the updated entry criteria only. Click here to view the new criteria as contained in the IoDSA Certification Policy.


Evaluation stages

The Certified Director application and assessment process comprises three stages.

Stage 1: Application
During the application stage an individual’s eligibility through supporting documents is evaluated. Click here for further information.

Stage 2: Assessment
Write and pass the Certified Director examination. Exams are hosted in-person on set dates throughout the year at venues in Johannesburg, Durban and Cape Town. Registration links to upcoming exams are provided once an applicant is approved as having met the entry criteria. 

Stage 3: Approval
Based on the IoDSA Delegation of Authority, various IoDSA Governance Structures oversee and approve the awarding of designations. The Certified Direction® designation is awarded by the Certification Committee, and outcomes are communicated after the quarterly Certification Committee sittings, approximately 8 – 10 weeks following examination dates.

Note: Reputational Risk is evaluated across all stages

 

Maintaining Your Designation

Once a person has been awarded the designation, they need to maintain the designation by meeting the following annual requirements:

  • Renew their annual membership subscription
  • Earn, and report, a minimum of 30 CPD hours per annum (see CPD policy)
  • Subscribe to the IoDSA Code of Professional Conduct
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Designations FAQs

The Certified Director designation is aimed at recognising knowledge (proficiency) underpinned by the Director Competency Framework. The Chartered Director (SA) designation is aimed at recognising mastery of directorship and requires demonstration of a proven track record of directorship experience against all 30 competencies within the Director Competency Framework.

The main benefits of attaining the designation are therefore:

  • Commitment – by volunteering to participate in the assessments required to attain the designation, individuals are signalling their commitment to the professionalisation of directorship in South Africa;
  • Compliance – individuals attaining the designation also signal their compliance with the requirements of the King IV Report on Corporate Governance™ in South Africa, 2016;
  • Competence – the successful completion of the assessment demonstrates an in-depth understanding of the knowledge underpinning a director’s roles and responsibilities and corporate governance in general;
  • Code – ascribing to the IoDSA Code of Professional Conduct, a designee commits to a higher standard of professional conduct and ethical values; they also acknowledge that they can be disciplined should their conduct be in breach of this code; and,
  • Continuing Professional Development (CPD) – designated individuals commit to ongoing learning and development, indicating their desire to always strive to be better and grow the profession.

Being a Cert.Dir is not a requirement, but completing the programmes in the Cert.Dir learning pathway is a good method of sharpening the knowledge that you need to display when being assessed for CDSA.

No, the higher of the two designations will be recognised. If a Certified Director qualifies for the Chartered Director SA designation, (s)he will be removed from the Certified Director Register and added to the CDSA Register.

The training programmes associated with the Certified Director learning pathway remains valid for a period of 36 months (3 years). If the assessment is not completed before the expiry of these programmes, the programmes falling outside of the 36 months (3 years) need to be repeated before the exam can be registered for.