HRPA Designation Comparison Chart
| Requirements | CHRP | CHRL | CHRE |
|---|---|---|---|
| HRPA Membership in good standing | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Education Coursework Credential | Yes – courses in 9 required subject areas | Yes – courses in 9 required subject areas | No |
| Knowledge Exam | CHRP Knowledge Exam or CHRL Knowledge Exam | CHRL Knowledge Exam | No |
| Employment Law Exam | CHRP Employment Law Exam or CHRL Employment Law Exam | CHRL Employment Law Exam | No |
| Degree Requirement | No | Yes – but does not need to be in HR | No |
| Experience Requirement | No | Yes – 3 years of professional level HR experience | Yes – 10 years of HR experience with significant experience at the executive level |
| Job Ready Program | Yes | No | No |
| Continuing Professional Development | Yes – once designation has been granted | Yes – once designation has been granted | Yes – once designation has been granted |
As part of its long-term plans, HRPA intends to further enhance the CHRL designation by making the following updates:
- Revise the existing coursework requirement
- Replace the existing experience requirement with supervised experience
- Add a Professional Program (similar to the Job Ready Program for the CHRP)
These updates are in the early stages of development and no implementation dates have been set. Once these updates are ready to be implemented, registrants in the process of obtaining the CHRL at that time will have the opportunity to complete the process without the updated requirements applying to them.
The Value of a Designation
Not only are the HRPA’s designations improving respect for HR professionals, they are also increasing their job opportunities and pay. We undertook a landmark study to quantify the value of an HRPA designation, see the results here.
HRPA Competency Framework
Developed in 2014, the HRPA Competency Framework organized 213 individual functional HR competencies and 15 enabling competencies into a model which provides precise definitions for how these specific competencies would be demonstrated and assessed at each of the three levels: CHRP; CHRL; and CHRE.
Learn more about the HRPA Competency Framework.
Other Important Resources
Designation Completion Timeframes
For each of the designation requirements, we have estimated the amount of time it takes for completion. Learn more here.
Continuing Professional Development
To maintain your professional designations, you are required to complete ongoing professional development. Learn more.
Requests for Deadline Extensions
It is HRPA’s policy to provide reasonable extensions to deadlines related to the requirements for earning a designation on human rights grounds. Learn more.
Designation Guides
HRPA has prepared a series of guides to each of the designations: Guide to the CHRP, Guide to the CHRL, Guide to the CHRE TOFIX. Internationally Educated Professionals (IEPs) may also wish to review the Guide to Designations for IEPs.
If you have questions regarding the designation process, please contact the Office of the Registrar at registrar@hrpa.ca or book an appointment to speak with someone from the Office of the Registrar by phone.
Subscribe to the HR Insights Newsletter
Not yet a member of HRPA but still keen on keeping up with trending topics in HR? Subscribe to the HR Insights newsletter for a monthly round-up of all things human resources, including HR best practices and information about designations, HRPA conferences and professional development programs.