UOG alumni who passed the SHRM-CP exam in 2020 and 2021.

The SHRM-CP exam is a four-hour, 160-question professional certification exam, and passing signifies that an HR professional has current, relevant, and globally applicable skills for managing a company’s or organization’s employees and establishing its HR policies.

“The general expectation for passing this comprehensive professional certification examination is about 30%–40% for full-time professionals who have been working in the HR field for at least four years,” said Richard S. Colfax, a now retired human resources professor and long-time faculty advisor for the UOG student chapter of the Society for Human Resource Management. "It is exciting and rewarding to know that so many former human resources and SHRM chapter students are excelling in the business community in HR roles."

Applying to take the SHRM-CP exam is more common among those already in the workforce, as there is a requirement of one to two years' experience in an HR role. But several UOG alumni have earned the credential earlier, following the alignment of UOG's human resources concentration with the SHRM association, spearheaded by Colfax in 2018, which made it possible for UOG students to qualify for the exam in their final semester and better position themselves for the workforce.

Seniors at UOG, as a SHRM-approved human resources degree program, are eligible to apply for the exam as long as they have at least 500 hours of practical HR experience that can be certified by the program’s faculty. The students can accumulate the required hours of experience through internships, special projects, research, or a full- or part-time job in an HR role.       

“This certification allowed me to level the playing field in the competitive area of human resource management,” said 2020 graduate Louise M. Garcia, who passed the exam in December and is now working as a human resources assistant for CPL Pacific LLC. “I felt that I was on the same level as hundreds of other fresh college graduates entering the workforce and lagging behind the thousands of seasoned professionals already in the talent pool. With my minimal experience, I knew I needed to diversify my portfolio, and this certification gives me that leverage and credibility.”

The growing list of UOG graduates with the SHRM-CP credential includes: 

• Resty Albeza
• Carly Champaco-Munoz
• Jeremy Copple
• Cameron Dudkiewicz
• Louise M. Garcia
• Iris Guinto
• Vanessa Laurora
• Jaedine Manglona
• Nicole Mesa
• Jonathan Pablo
• Austin Terlaje
• Victor E. Urbano
• Audre M. Xiong

Study human resources at UOG

Upcoming students wanting to pursue the field of human resources can do so through the Business Professional Pathway of the Bachelor of Business Administration program.