Most Professional Industries have a Certifiable Standard of Excellence. Shouldn’t the Image Industry?
By Cindy Ann Peterson, AICI CIP
Well, now there is. Cindy Ann Peterson globally launched the AICI CIC Accelerator(SM) program at the State University of New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) as part of the AICI New York Tri-State’s Association of Image Consultants International, Certified Image Consultant (AICI CIC) Education Day, September 29, 2018. Designed as an intensive one-day .6 continuing education units (AICI CEU) course, Peterson’s Accelerator(SM)prepared students for the rigors of the Portfolio and the AICI CIC exam, which test for subject matter expertise in Appearance, Behavior, and Communication; the core competencies of an AICI internationally certified image consultant. Peterson’s AICI CIC Accelerator(SM), the first program of this kind, demystifies the certification process and walks prospective international image consultants through the AICI CIC examination process.
Why have a certifiable standard of excellence? The key word here is “standard”.
An analogy might be aviation, where students can get their training from any flight school they want. However, you can’t actually get a pilot’s license until you take both a written and a practical Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) administered exam. The FAA exam is the standard that verifies your competence in both flying an airplane, your ability to follow the rules of the airspace, and knowledge of what to do in case of an emergency.
Likewise, regardless of where prospective image consultants get their training, AICI administers the exam through Castle Worldwide, an independent agency.
After passing the exam, AICI will then conduct a professional portfolio review to gauge the overall knowledge, experience, and professional aptitude of the prospective image consultant.
As the largest global image association, an AICI certification is in fact a requirement for working in many countries.
Cindy Ann Peterson noted that, “The AICI CIC Accelerator(SM) course creates the perfect synergy between FIT’s image consulting programs and AICI’s CIC certification process to become an internationally certified image consultant.”
When you hire an image expert for advice, ask if they are AICI certified.
About Cindy Ann Peterson
Peterson is an Author, Designer, Speaker, Trainer, Keynote and AICI Internationally Certified Image Consultant in the greater Washington, DC area who combines these skills to create a unique synthesis of fashion, image transformation, and education for her broad base of clients from government to industry, and academia.
Founder of Cindy Ann Peterson’s AICI CIC Accelerator(SM) course to help members expedite their journey towards certification and demystifying the AICI certification process, Posture: Foundation of Powerful Style and Image(SM), Co-Author of My Style, My Way, Posture is Paramount to Your Future and The Power of Civility, Effective and Active Listening.
Peterson received her Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Wisconsin-Stout in Apparel, Textiles and Design and Business. She is not only certified in Image Consulting from the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT), but is also Universal Style Certified by Alyce Parsons, recognized as the gold standard for the image industry. Peterson was part of the award winning Viking Husqvarna education team that wrote and created the VOH (Viking Owner Handbook) voted to the “best training handbook” in the global sewing industry.
Peterson was featured in the Dutch style magazine Kleur & Stijl as one of “The Big 7” image consultants in the Washington, DC area. Her works have been featured in national publications such as Country Living, McCall’s Needlework and Crafts, Vogue Bridal, Simplicity Bridal Sewing and Crafts, World News, Lioness Magazine, Star Tribune, Leader Telegram, Palm Beach Journal, AICI Global and promoted by The Wall Street Journal. She has also been nationally recognized for her custom works for competition skaters as well as the disabled. For her subject matter expertise, Peterson was requested by the American Embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia to be the tailor-on-call to President Clinton during the Asian Pacific Economic Conference in 1994.
Peterson was the author/presenter at the official international proclamation launch of International Image Consultant Day (IICD) at the 2013 AICI Global conference and served as the 2014 International Chair for IICD for November 23, 2014, the annual global celebration of the science and acumen of everyone serving in the image industry. Following the program first developed in Mexico City in 2012.
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