Qualifications

We offer the UK’s only professional qualification in electoral administration. A sound career platform, it has become regarded as an essential criteria for the majority of electoral administrator posts.

Delivering personal development and professional benefits, we offer a progressive qualification route from Foundation Course to Certificate to Diploma.

Our qualification also offers advantages to employers through staff improvement and raises standards and professionalism across the UK electoral community.

Candidates must be AEA members when they register and remain so throughout the qualification process.

General requirements

To register for the Certificate programme in England and Wales, you must have:

  • three years relevant experience in both electoral registration and elections administration OR
  • have completed, or are due to complete, the Foundation Course

For candidates in Scotland, you must have:

  • three years relevant experience in either electoral registration or elections administration OR
  • enclose a letter with your application making a case to be exempted from the requirement above. This must be endorsed by your employer.

AEA Certificate in Electoral Administration

Certificate – Candidates’ Information Pack – 2024

Certificate Application Form – England and Wales – 2024

Certificate Application Form – Scotland – 2024


There are two Certificate modules:

England and Wales:

  1. Electoral Registration
  2. Elections Administration.

Scotland:

  1. Either
    1. Electoral Registration or
    2. Elections Administration
  2. Scottish Public and Electoral Administration

Read the full Certificate Syllabus

Certificate candidates are required to submit four work-based assignments throughout the year. You will also sit two exams at an assessment day, answering three questions from a choice of five at each exam.

Once you achieve pass marks for all four assignments and both exams, you will be entitled to use the designatory letters AEA (Cert) or AEA (Cert-Scotland), provided you remain an AEA member.

Certificate registrations close on 1 September each year. Applications are accepted on a first come first served basis, so we recommend early registration.

AEA Diploma in Electoral Administration

Candidates may only apply to register for the Diploma after they have been awarded the Certificate.

Diploma Candidates’ Information Pack – 2024

Diploma Application Form – 2024

There are three Diploma modules:

  1. Electoral Law
  2. Public Administration, Electoral Arrangements and Electoral Systems
  3. Management and Finance

Read the full Diploma syllabus

Diploma candidates are required to submit a dissertation on a subject approved by our Examining Board and attend a discussion about it.

If you pass your dissertation, you will then sit two exams at an assessment day. At the first exam we will ask you to answer four questions from a choice of six, and at the second exam, three questions from a choice of five.

Once you achieve pass marks for the dissertation and both exams, you will be entitled to use the designatory letters AEA (Dip), provided you remain an AEA member.

Diploma registrations close on 1 October each year.

Additional information

Read our qualification rules.

For both the Certificate and Diploma, we provide a free induction course and examination techniques course(s).

The costs of any additional training or research materials are not included in our qualification fees, although candidates may be offered discounts for AEA training courses and events.

If you would like any further information, please contact our qualifications team at AEAQualifications@sunderland.gov.uk.