Many people use to call someone a ‘Professional’ if a person is an expert in a field. The Cambridge dictionary defines ‘Professional’ as a person who has a job that needs a high level of education and training.
We’re trained to be a professional at the universities. We’ve learnt the word ‘Professional’ does not only refer to anyone who earns their living from performing an activity that requires a certain level of education, skill, or training. A professional requires the standard of competency, knowledge, or education adhering to codes of conduct and ethical standards.
A Professional is a member of a Profession. Professionals are governed by codes of ethics and profess commitment to competence, integrity and morality, altruism and the promotion of the public good within their expert domain. Professionals are accountable to those they serve and to society.
Freidson, E., ‘Professionalism: The Third Logic’, Polity Press, London, 2001 and Evetts, J., ‘Sociological Analysis of Professionalism: Past, Present and Future’, Comparative Sociology 10, 2011
One cannot be a ‘Professional’ unless one has and maintains ethical principles in concordance with the societal and legal framework. Without ethics, one cannot call oneself a ‘Professional’. (Notes from Project Management and the Professional: Lecture 3 – G.Mooney)
According to The Australian Council of Professions, a ‘Professional’ is generally seen as an indicator of integrity, ethics, trust and expertise.
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