Largely a curiosity/nosiness post… If you have post nominals (e.g. relating to degrees, chartered status, honours etc) do you use them within your RAFAC duties e.g. on email signatures? I’ve seen some people do, others don’t. I thought it was personal preference but a quick look at JSP101 suggests however that this is not the done thing although this may be simply in relation to signatures on letters, I am unsure. I guess some of it will also depend on perceived relevance to the role. Although for some, will be proud of their achievements so may want to show it off.
So, if you have post nominals, do you use them within RAFAC and does anyone really care that Sgt Bloggs has a MA or Flt Lt Smith has a BSc etc?
Edited title to include slight change in direction to include JSP101 and email etiquette. I feel these are still relevant and important areas to consider.
I use them on certificates which I sign off (annual awards or appointment as head of section) simply because any certificate issued from HQ has the signatory’s postnoms. Otherwise no.
I think I see it a lot in emails from other CCF contingents as quite a few of the older, posher, schools require their staff to use them in signature blocks.
Personally, I do. I don’t see why not - I earned my degree after all. It isn’t a case of thinking I’m anything special.
I really don’t think Sgt Bloggs ABcDE thinks he’s better than Sgt Smith because they don’t have post nominals. It would be silly to think that because some people have more letters after their name than a Greek football team, but just don’t show them on emails, like @MRAR has said.
Never really understood the need unless it’s relevant to your job role, for example, as a uniformed youth volunteer, I don’t really care whether the person I’m speaking to has a bronze swimming certificate.
JSP says don’t, OIC tells you not to, so it’s just willy waving to do it isn’t it?
Ninja edit RE the actual thread, no, I would not use post nominals except for RAFAC in an email, if ever. But I don’t really have any issue with those who do. Your life, live it!
Signatures, you say? Someone needs to view this on desktop…
As for post-nominals, it is something that I would consider to add extra weight within a relevant discussion. Never as a matter of course, and not to try and get some kind of “rank seniority”. The opportunity for them to be particularly relevant within our world is mostly slim though.
I get the JSP101 angle, because in the real world of the actual blue suits it doesn’t matter - rank and role tells what you need to know. 99.9% of our world it doesn’t matter either.
Relevant post nominals support what you say, not who you are. Irrelevant post nominals show who you are.
…Unnecessary titles and descriptors deserve ridicule.
I had a CI once who had an MBE. I didn’t discover this until I accidentally saw a certificate he was using for some proof of qualification for SMS (I forget which).
That told me everything I needed to know about him and what a thoroughly brilliant CI he was.
Yes I am unfortunately aware of some CFAVs who use it to, shall we say show off about their own qualifications/experience and that really does annoy me. These are, in my experience, the ones who like to name drop or get something about themselves in every communication.
I guess the relevance is very personal to the individual and the type of activities they do within the organisation so for things like Fieldcraft, if I had it, I perhaps would do it like my work which does things like “I am a Mental Health First Aider” after the role. I’m not sure, I haven’t put much thought into it!
Thanks for sharing the link to the other forum post. Definitely interesting how there is discrepancy in views. I definitely don’t think my post nominals aren’t that exciting but I’m proud of my chartered status because it took a lot of blood, sweat and tears. I don’t use it though within cadet forums but I was wondering whether to or would that make me look a bit of an idiot.
Just a quick one - although I believe JSP says not to use them in the email/letter signature, I am sure I have read somewhere that they are appropriate in a personalised letter head for formal letter writing. Happy to be corrected. I use mine in my letter heads, but generally where they would be appropriate, for example when I am writing to a school about recruitment I will generally include “PGCE” as it adds a bit.
