Join AHIP

This information will help you understand the 4 levels of membership in the Academy of Health Information Professionals (AHIP) and their requirements, how to prepare your application, and how to submit it.

Academy of Health Information Professionals (AHIP) membership has 4 levels: Provisional, Member, Senior, and Distinguished. Membership level is determined by the applicant’s:  

  • Academic preparation
  • Professional experience
  • Individual professional accomplishments (or AHIP points) See the AHIP Points Index for more information.

Please review your career history and your AHIP points to see which membership level you should apply for. After you determine your appropriate membership level, complete any needed coursework, and compile all needed documentation, you are welcome to submit your application.

If you have questions, please contact us for clarification.

 ProvisionalMemberSeniorDistinguished
Post-MLS career< 5 years5+ years5+ years10+ years
AHIP points: all types, past 5 years0 pts initially, then 8+ CE and 5+ individual accomplishments  annually50+ points80+ points120+ points
AHIP points: prof. association activities, past 5 years  (Optional)5+ points10+ points (with 5+ from MLA activities)

Determine your membership level

Step 1: Confirm your academic preparation

AHIP membership requires academic preparation through one of these 4 types:

  1. An ALA-accredited Master’s degree; or
  2. A master’s level degree in library and information studies accredited or recognized by the appropriate national body of another country (America Library Association site); or
  3. A 6th year certificate or a doctoral degree from a school that offers an ALA-accredited master’s degree (ALA site); or
  4. A master’s or doctoral degree in any field with 8 contact hours of coursework in all 6 MLA Competencies for Lifelong Learning and Professional Success

If you have a degree of type 1, 2, or 3, proceed to Step 2 below.

If you have a degree of type 4, please:

You must submit documentation of 8 hours of learning that addresses each MLA Competency with your application. (One course may cover up to 2 competencies.) Accepted documentation is:

Sponsored LearningRequired Documentation
Continuing Education course preapproved for MLA creditMLA CE certificate or MEDLIB-ED transcript
Continuing Education course not preapproved for MLA creditCertificate or completion notice plus course syllabus
Academic course workTranscript plus course syllabus

Step 2: Review your professional experience

For Provisional level

If you have less than 5 years of full-time experience as an information professional, you must apply at the Provisional level. Applications showing 5 or more years of professional experience will be rejected for Provisional level. No professional accomplishments (AHIP points) are required initially. However:

  • Provisional membership is for 1 year and is renewed annually, up to 4 times or until you have 5 years’ experience, whichever comes first.
  • There is no fee for annual Provisional renewal.
  • Provisional members can receive mentor support to help with annual professional development requirements.
  • Provisional members are full members of the academy. They receive a certificate confirming AHIP membership and may use “AHIP” with their name during their membership term.

For Member or Senior level

If you have worked full-time in the information profession for 5 years or more (post master’s degree), you should apply for Member or Senior membership, depending on your professional accomplishments (AHIP points).

For Distinguished level

If you have worked full-time in the information field for 10 years or more (post master’s degree), you can apply for Distinguished membership, depending on your professional accomplishments (AHIP points).

Measuring full-time and part-time employment

Full-time employment is considered 24 hours or more per week. Part-time employment counts calculated as FTE. For example:

  • 6 years of working 12 hours/week = 3 yrs FTE
  • 10 years working at 20 hours week = 8.3 FTE
  • 5 years of working 12 hours/week plus 3 years full time = 5.5 FTE

Also: if you recently lost your job or your hours were reduced, you are still eligible to join AHIP at the appropriate level if you meet the other requirements.


Step 3: Calculate AHIP points for your professional accomplishments

The Professional Accomplishments Points Index describes AHIP points given for activities related to professional accomplishments. Points are divided broadly into continuing education and individual accomplishments.

You must earn AHIP points from activities specifically related to health sciences/health information librarianship rather than librarianship, generally.

For Member, Senior, and Distinguished level applications, AHIP points must be earned within 5 years before the application submission date.

For Provisional level

No AHIP points are required for an initial application. For each annual renewal thereafter, you will need to show at least 8 points for continuing education and 5 points for professional accomplishments accomplished during that renewal year.

For Member level

You will need at least 50 AHIP points, earned within the 5 years prior to application date.

For Senior level

You will need 80 AHIP points, earned within 5 years prior to application date. Of these points, 5 must be earned from committee or other leadership service in professional associations related to healthcare librarianship.

For Distinguished level

You will need 120 AHIP points, earned within the 5 years prior to application date. Of these points, 10 must be earned from committee or other leadership service in associations related to healthcare librarianship. And of these 10 points, 5 must be earned from committee or leadership service in MLA or an MLA chapter, or for certain other activities noted in the AHIP points index.

Some examples

If you have:

  • 3 years of experience and 55 AHIP points, you would qualify for Provisional level
  • 7 years of experience and 65 AHIP points, you would qualify for Member level.
  • 7 years of experience and 90 AHIP points, including 10 from association participation, you would qualify for Senior level
  • 11 years of experience and 125 AHIP points, including 20 points of association participation but none from MLA participation, you would qualify for Senior level.
  • 11 years of experience and 125 points of individual accomplishment, including 20 points of professional organization activity and 5 of these points from MLA activity, you would qualify for Distinguished level.

Application Instructions

Now that you have assessed your eligibility, you are ready to submit your application.

Step 1: Collect the materials for your application

For Provisional level

You will need these materials, in PDF, for a new Provisional member application portfolio:

  • CV or resume
  • Institutional job description
  • Master’s degree diploma or transcript
  • MLA Self-Review (this form is embedded in the Provisional Application you will complete)
  • MLA Competencies Self-Assessment

For Member, Senior, or Distinguished level

You will need these materials, in PDF, for a Member, Senior, Distinguished member application portfolio:

  • CV or resume
  • Institutional job description
  • Master’s degree diploma or transcript
  • Points documentation per the Points Index, compiled into a single PDF or as few as possible

If your master’s degree is not from an ALA-accredited program, please also include:

  • Completed MLA Competencies Self-Assessment
  • Course certificates and syllabi that document at least 8 hours of coursework that address each MLA competency. You may use one course for up to 2 competencies.

Step 2: Pay the application fee

The AHIP application fees, which includes a 5-year membership term, are:

  • Provisional level – $150 for MLA members and $200 for non-MLA members
  • Member, Senior, or Distinguished level – $275 for MLA members; $550 for non-MLA members

Logged into your MLANET profile, generate an invoice at the level for which you’re applying:

Afterward, submit payment according to the options given on the invoice.

Step 3: Complete your application

After your payment is processed, you will receive an email with instructions and a link to the application.

Please complete the application, providing all required details.

Please consolidate and upload your supporting documentation as PDF files, identified with your name:

  1. PDF 1 – Background documents: CV, transcript or diploma, and job description
  2. PDF 3 – AHIP points documentation, per the Points Index

Once the online form is completed and all documentation uploaded, your application will then be screened then forwarded to the MLA Credentialing Committee for review.

New! You will also have the option to ‘Save and Continue’ before finally submitting your application for review. The “Save and Continue” link will work for 30 days only so please be sure to submit your final application within 30 days to avoid losing what you’ve already entered or uploaded.

Tips for successful application

Organize points documentation to follow the sequence of points as listed in the Points Tally.

Ensure all points claimed on the tally have corresponding documentation, and vice versa.

Document more points than necessary as cushion in case reviewers discount any of the points you’ve claimed. A 10 – 25% cushion should suffice.

However, don’t claim and document an inordinate quantity of points to avoid burdening the reviewers.

What Happens Next

Headquarters staff will screen your application to make sure all required documents are submitted and in the correct format.  They will also verify that quantity and type of AHIP points match the application level.

After the initial screening, members of the Credentialing Committee will review your application. You should be notified of their decision within 8-10 weeks after submission.

Headquarters staff will contact you if there are issues that need resolution before approval and will help you comply with membership requirements.

After your application is approved

Your MLANET profile will be updated with your AHIP dates and in the coming months, an AHIP badge (coming soon!). You will also be placed on the AHIP member roster.

You will receive a notification letter and certificate by email, in PDF. You will later receive hardcopy versions of your notification letter, certificate, and employer letter(s) by postal mail. If you named an employer contact in your application, they will receive an employer notification letter by email.

You may apply for a higher level of membership anytime during your 5-year membership term. To do so, submit a new portfolio according to this same process, including the application fee. If your new application is approved, your membership term will restart for another 5 years.