Certified Consulting Meteorologist (CCM)

Certified Consulting Meteorologist (CCM). Since 1957, the American Meteorological Society has been recognizing the world’s premier scientific minds in the field of meteorology by certifying consulting meteorologists as having high standards of technical competence, professional character and field-related experience. Those who’ve earned the Certified Consulting Meteorologist certification are recognized worldwide as experts and as possessing the wherewithal to be competitive in their weather forecasting niches. CCMs also may deliver testimony in weather-related court cases, such as those involving slip-and-fall accidents.

Applicants for the CCM program must have already earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Meteorology or Atmospheric Science. The requirements include adequate understandings of the key aspects of meteorology, i.e. atmospheric dynamics and thermodynamics, and physical, practical and synoptic meteorology. All applicants must have already worked professionally in the field for at least five years. A $300-$600 fee is required simply to apply.

To earn the CCM certification, applicants must pass three tests. The first is written and encompasses general knowledge of the field. It also further probes applicants’ areas of expertise. Submitted with this is the second test: a qualifying, published technical paper reviewed by a panel of lifelong, expert meteorologists. If the previous two tests are passed, a final, oral test is administered by the panel. During this face-to-face meeting, all of the prior is reviewed and other, surprise questions about the field are asked.

Certification renewals are handled annually with AMS membership dues. Failure to renew within six months of the expiration date voids one’s certification. Failure to develop or maintain an acceptable level of professional development in the five-year period after certification, or subsequent five-year periods, also voids it.

After fifty-eight years, there still aren’t many certified consulting meteorologists. Only around two hundred presently exist in the AMS’ directory. In total, it has certified less than seven hundred. Many jobs in the field are exclusively available to them. We have Dr. Mike Witiw on our team as a CCM.

Article written by Meteorologist Geoff Linsley