Management Entry Route (MER)

Once you are a member you can begin your Management Entry Route (MER) application by submitting the following information in our online application form below:

1. Details of your career history that clearly demonstrates the depth and breadth of your procurement and supply chain management experiences, especially over the last 10 years.
2. A full job description of your current role.
3. A testimonial letter from your line manager confirming that you work in the role described in your job description. This letter needs to be signed and on corporate headed paper. If this is not available, please complete a self-certification letter.
4. Confirmation that your Ethical Procurement and Supply E-Learning and Test is up to date. Ethics is at the heart of all procurement and supply activities. A mandatory requirement for all candidates is that they undertake the E-learning and pass the Ethics test, confirmation of which must be submitted prior to payment with your application. The E-learning and test is free for all members and can be found by simply logging in to My CIPS and accessing it from the "My Learning & Development" tab.
5. An Organisation Chart on which your role is clearly visible. Up and down reporting lines should also be included.

Once your application has been received we will carry out a desk top assessment to determine if the MER is the most appropriate route for you to achieve MCIPS.

If the MER is a suitable route for you to follow to MCIPS we will then contact you confirm acceptance onto the route, and to invite you to make payment of the assessment fee.

Select your country to view the assessment fee:

In the event that we advise MER is not the right route for you, we will help you with alternative options for your learning and development journey towards achieving MCIPS.

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Terms and Conditions
Please note the terms relating to the Management Entry Route and the CIPS policies and conditions of application.

• Application Submission Guidance

The first mandatory stage of the assessment process is to undertake the CIPS Competency assessment.

This is an online competency questionnaire assessment and it must be completed within 30 calendar days of us sending you the link. 

Assessment content
The CIPS Competency Assessment tests your level of knowledge against the themes in the CIPS Global Standard for Procurement and Supply at the Professional Level.

Timings
The assessment will take approximately 90 minutes.   

You will need to set aside at least this amount of uninterrupted time with reliable internet access to complete the assessment. You will need to undertake the whole assessment in one sitting.

Results
Your results from the assessment will give us a clear insight into your knowledge at the Professional Level of the CIPS Global Standard and this will help the assessor in the next stage of your MER assessment .

Getting started with the Assessment
The CIPS Competency Assessment access details will be sent to you by email.

Please note:

• All questions require an answer.
• The questionnaire must be completed in full and in one sitting.
• You cannot save answers and go back to them later.
• If you lose connection or have to stop part way through, you will need to start from the beginning.
• If you are having issues accessing your assessment you should contact CIPS by email: mer@cips.org or phone: +44 (0)1780 756777 and ask for the MER team.

What happens after the CIPS Competency Assessment?
Upon completion of this part of the assessment, we will contact you to invite you to arrange a time for your interview assessment. You will receive the results from the CIPS competency assessment as part of your final outcome report sent at stage 3. 

The interview is an approximately 90-120 minute competency interview.  You will be offered interview dates by CIPS following your completion of the online CIPS competency assessment and this will take place via video conferencing. Your interview may be recorded for quality and training purposes.  You are not permitted to record the interview in any way.

The interviewer will ask you a range of questions based around themes of the CIPS Global Standard for Procurement and Supply at the Professional Level.

Full details of the assessment structure, content and guidance for this are available in the ‘CIPS MER Candidate Guide’ and Management Entry Route Assessment Areas documents.  

For both your online test and your assessment interview, there is no formal preparation other than to measure your professional experience against our Global Standard. However, by logging into the My Dashboard area of your My CIPS page, you can use the self-assessment competencies to check any areas you would like to improve beforehand. Go to My Learning & Development – Scroll down to My Career – Click on Register. You should be able see the Self- Assessment Competences area to have a look through.

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Follow this link to some YouTube videos regarding the MER process that may also be of interest

Your results and final report will be sent to you within 30 calendar days of you completing the MER interview assessment.    

Pass: If you successfully pass all stages of the MER assessment process, we will upgrade you to MCIPS grade of membership. We will send you an email with your outcome report, and then you will receive your MCIPS welcome pack and certificate in the post within 60 calendar days of your outcome email. (Note – this timescale may depend on your country of residence).

Fail: If you are unsuccessful we will provide a detailed report outlining areas for development and advice on suggested next steps for you.

Development Plan
One outcome from the MER assessment is the offer of undertaking a development plan. This offer is made if there is a small shortfall in up to three of the ten themes of the Global Standard at Professional Level, please note a fee will be payable for development plans.

Full instructions, guidance and assessment criteria will be provided,

If you fail to meet the requirements of the development plan or the set deadline for submission, you will fail the MER assessment and be withdrawn from the MER route.

If you are subject to extenuating personal circumstances, then a formal application for an extension must be submitted to mer@cips.org. We will review any requests and provide a response at our own discretion (see term 16 which also applies to all MER assessment related deadlines).