<!doctype html public "-//w3c//dtd html 4.0 transitional//en"> <html>   Bdshull@aol.com wrote: <blockquote TYPE=CITE>Hi, Wim, Here our natural tendency towards independence works against us some, I think.  If there is a time when a collective commitment to an educational standard within the PTG is important, this is it.  Well over 1500 colleges and universities use piano technicians or tuners;  we don't know how many use RPT's, but we know that a sizable number do not use RPT's, and don't have any incentive to.</blockquote> A very excellent point Bill, on all counts. <blockquote TYPE=CITE>The certification ensures us that within the PTG we are sufficiently educating CAUTs in their specialized area to a standard which we believe is important for the profession.</blockquote> It wont unless it very clearly and undeniably demonstrates a high level and broad range of learned skills. In fact, I would suspect that if any such certification is anything less then this, it will do more damage then good. You dont want to create some certification that will appear as some scheme for makeing in RPT looks somehow magically more proficient then he/she is. If Admin folks can sniff out anything... its that kind of thing.   <blockquote TYPE=CITE>But at least as important is the marketability of the CAUT-credentialed technician to colleges and universities.  A corresponding effort to educate the university on using the CAUT-trained RPT should, over time, result in a dramatic change from the current situation, where a large number of schools do not even use RPT's.  We all know about these nightmare stories.  A CAUT-credentialed RPT is most likely to serve the needs of a university best.  And the language of credentialing is language a school understands.</blockquote> Only if this CAUT credentialed RPT is synonomous with a level of demonstratable proffesional skills that institutions will come to respect and recognize. You try and sell these folks something less and they will smell it out, and that word will spread even faster. <blockquote TYPE=CITE>Keep in mind that many of these schools - especially smaller and midsized schools - use part-time and contract techs.  It is not uncommon for a contract tech to have accounts at more than one school.   The CAUT credential should help all the way around.  The school can be better assured their contract tech is staying up to speed in the profession, and the contract tech will have better tools with which to serve the school. Bill</blockquote> -- Richard Brekne RPT, N.P.T.F. UiB, Bergen, Norway <A HREF="mailto:rbrekne@broadpark.no">mailto:rbrekne@broadpark.no</A> <A HREF="http://home.broadpark.no/~rbrekne/ricmain.html">http://home.broadpark.no/~rbrekne/ricmain.html</A> <A HREF="http://www.hf.uib.no/grieg/personer/cv_RB.html">http://www.hf.uib.no/grieg/personer/cv_RB.html</A>  </html>