New grades, new name for Institute
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• A new name for the Institute of Transport related to the Royal Charter: changes in membership grades: stiffer entry requirements and a re-shaping of the examinations: and a big drive for new members, are among the changes which the Institute hopes to introduce during its golden jubilee year which starts on October 1.
The new proposals stem from a special committee which has been examining past performance and future potential. On Monday the Council accepted three recommendations in principle, though they will require approval from the Privy Council and corporate members. The recommendations are: 1) That the name should be changed to "The Chartered Institute of Transport".
2) That the membership grades should be altered as follows:—
Present Future Student Student Graduate Associate Member (AM InstT) Member (MC IT) Member (M InstT) Fellow (FCIT) Hon. Member (Hon M Inst) Hon. Fellow (Hon. FCIT) Associate (Assoc I nstT) Associate (Assoc CIT) 3) That a new grade of Licentiate. with qualifying examinations of its own, should be created for those in all sectors of the transport industry who do not wish, or do not have the necessary entry qualifications, to progress to professional Membership and Fellowship.
The Council also plans to introduce changes for which it has already the necessary powers, the dates of these changes to be announced later. These will include raising the entry requirements for student membership from four "0" levels including English Language to five "0" levels including English Language: re-naming the two parts of its examination -intermediate" and "final" (abandoning the old terms "graduateship" and "associate membershipin anticipation of the disappearance of these two grades of membership); amending some of the examination subjects and syllabuses, on the one hand to meet the need for specialization and, an the other, to match modern concepts of through transport and physical distribution (a significant change in the Final will be a new subject -Coordination and control of transport and distribution").
The Institute said this week that it hoped the changes would induce more employers to encourage younger employees to become student members and sit the examinations. To help in this, the Council intends during jubilee year to invite applications for corporate membership from candidates who are at least 35.and hold high positions of transport respon
sibility men who may not have passed the Institute's examinations but whose other qualifications make them eligible for consideration.
By this means it is hoped to recruit men in middle and senior management who will be active in the work of the Institute and in recruiting their juniors as students.
The special committee which proposed the changes was suggested by Mr. R. H. Farmer, chairman of Atlas Express Ltd, following questions which he raised in his presidential address in 1966.
The Institute explains that the new grade of Licentiate will be seen to have particular relevance for those in road goods transport who will in the future be required to pass a certificate examination for a statutory transport manager's licence, and who will be seeking qualifications leading to higher grades of licence. But the loT emphasizes that the Licentiate will cater for all sectors of transport and not road freight alone.