The IAPWO Accredited™ Designation is awarded to officiant and celebrant training and educational courses, seminars, workshops, and classes (collectively, “Programs”) which meet IAPWO’s CPWO education standards and have been evaluated and approved by IAPWO.
After a careful review of their content, IAPWO Accredited™ Education Programs are scored and awarded CPWO Educational Credential Points (ECPs) which professional officiants and celebrants may use toward earning and maintaining their CPWO – Certified Professional Wedding Officiant credential from IAPWO.
IAPWO Accredited™ Education Programs
Below is a list of all current IAPWO Accredited™ Education Programs. New programs are being accredited on an ongoing basis. If you operate an officiant or celebrant educational program, or have completed such a program as a student, and would like to recommend it for the IAPWO Accredited™ Designation, please contact us and we will reach out to the program provider with more details.
Provider Name
Approval Date
American Marriage Ministries
Approved: 3/30/2022
Ceremony Performance [15]
Customer Relations [10]
Legal Compliance [5]
Business Operations [5]
Professional Comm. [5]
Professional Conduct [5]
IAPWO Accredited™ Eligibility and Standards
In order to apply for accreditation through IAPWO’s program, operators of educational programs must meet specific eligibility requirements as well as the educational standards of the IAPWO Accredited™ Designation:
Program Eligibility
- IAPWO Accredited™ Designation applicants must be a legally established business entity with a valid tax ID issued by their national government. In the United States, this would include Sole Proprietorships, Corporations (both for profit and non-profit), and Limited Liability entities with a EIN number issued by the Internal Revenue Service. In certain circumstances in which meeting this requirement is difficult or impossible, a waiver of this requirement may be permitted with prior written authorization from IAPWO. If you are unsure about your program’s ability to meet this requirement, please contact us for guidance.
- For designation purposes, each “Program” is defined as a specific educational experience delivered to officiants and celebrants. Programs may consist of one or more sessions or events, can be delivered in person or online, and may be offered as a live event or self-paced “on demand” educational content.
- Educational program operators may submit applications for multiple Programs if they are offered separately, or apply for IAPWO Accredited™ Designation for multiple Programs on a single application if they are offered together as a course. If a course consisting of multiple Programs is approved, scored, and has CPWO Credential Points (CPs) assigned, the IAPWO Accredited™ Designation and CPs will only apply to the full course exactly as it was evaluated by IAPWO in its entirety, and will not apply to the individual constituent Programs if they are also offered separately from the full course.
- Each Program must be available in a stable, repeatable curriculum which can be accurately reviewed and evaluated by IAPWO – in-person Programs without a specific written script, slides, videos, and/or printable coursework are not eligible to apply for IAPWO Accredited™ Designation.
- Educational program operators must provide IAPWO full access to all Program content for evaluation purposes. If recorded audio or video content is part of the Program, a written transcript of the recorded content and slide images must also be provided. Transcripts may be generated automatically by using a voice transcription program, but should be checked for accuracy by the applicant prior to submission.
- Fully completed applications, including a signed IAPWO Accredited™ Designation Agreement, must be submitted in their entirety – partially completed applications or applications without proper documentation will be rejected.
Educational Standards
- Educational Programs must be made specifically for wedding officiants and celebrants, or special events industry professionals generally – Programs not designed specifically for officiants, celebrants, or event professionals are not eligible for the IAPWO Accredited™ Designation.
- Each Program must include a minimum of 20% of its overall content covering at least one of the CPWO Competency Domains in order to be approved and have CPs awarded. The CPWO Competency Domains are:
- Ceremony Preparation
- Ceremony Performance
- Customer Relations
- Legal Compliance
- Business Operations
- Professional Communication
- Professional Conduct
- Educational Programs must use inclusive language and examples which recognize and accommodate all couples regardless of race, gender, orientation, identity, or other characteristics in accordance with IAPWO’s Code of Ethics and Non-Discrimination Policy. Programs which implicitly endorse or explicitly encourage discrimination will be rejected outright.
IAPWO Accredited™ Application and Fees
The fees for IAPWO Accredited™ Designation are as follows:
- $99 Application Fee (Non-Refundable)
- $99-$499 Evaluation Fee (depending on course length and complexity)
If your organization is interested in applying for the IAPWO Accredited™ Designation on behalf of your officiant or celebrant educational program, please contact us and we will provide additional guidance along with the application and legal agreement.
