ISEB
ISEB stands for Information Systems Examinations Board. It was a qualifications body established back in 1957 by the British Computer Society (BCS) in the UK. It aimed to raise the standard of IT professionals working in the IT sector.
In 1999, it launched the ISEB Foundation Certificate in Business Analysis and the ISEB Business Analysis Diploma, which was widely accepted as the industry-standard qualification for those in the business analysis profession. ISEB Business Analysis was commonly referred to as the group of professional qualifications offered by ISEB for business analysts.
ISEB Business Analysis qualifications became especially popular in the business analysis (BA) community and amongst UK employers.
BCS
In 2012, BCS made some brand changes to help raise its international profile. This also involved changing the names of its qualifications to better reflect the topics covered within their modules. The results were:
- BCS, The British Computer Society became BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT
- ISEB became BCS Professional Certifications
- ISEB Foundation Certificate in Business Analysis became BCS Business Analysis Foundation Certificate
- ISEB Diploma in Business Analysis became BCS Business Analysis Diploma.
ISEB qualifications today
Because of its long history, many people still refer to the Foundation certificate in Business Analysis as “the BCS qualification that was formerly ISEB”. In fact, many people working as a business analyst still hold ISEB qualifications even though ISEB no longer exists.
Those already holding ISEB certifications do not need to re-sit any exams. ISEB qualifications are valid for life, and in some circles BCS certifications are still referred to as ISEB qualifications, the names are interchangeable. ISEB Business Analysis and BCS Business Analysis mean the same thing!
Conclusion
If you gained one of the ISEB Business Analysis qualifications before 2012, you don’t need to re-sit your exam. This is just as true for the ISEB Foundation Certificate in Business Analysis as it is for the ISEB Business Analysis Diploma.
However, business analysis moves on, and the body of knowledge and best practices that successful business analysts use today can be useful for any practicing or aspiring BAs. Therefore, to keep your ISEB certification up to date it’s a good idea to look at completing a modern BCS Business Analysis certification to give your career a boost.
