Accreditation
What does it mean to be an Accredited member of AEA-Europe?
AEA-Europe’s professional accreditation scheme was first launched in 2007. The scheme provides members of the Association with the opportunity to have their assessment knowledge, skills and expertise recognised through the award of the status of Associate, Practitioner and Fellow of the Association.
Associate status is awarded to members who have started to work professionally in assessment in academic, professional or vocational contexts.
Fellowship is the highest recognition given by AEA-Europe and shows that a member has demonstrated a high level of professionalism in his or her personal practice and made important contributions to the assessment profession as a whole.


Newly Accredited Members 2025
Fellows

Michael Buhagiar
Associate Professor Faculty of Education University of Malta

Graham Hudson
Special Adviser to Assessment Professionals Internationally

Sebastiaan de Klerk
Educational Researcher at CitoLab

Marieke van Onna
Senior Research Scientist CITO

Helen Claydon
Head of Admissions Testing Renaissance Global
Practitioners

Lenka Fiřtová
Test Developer and Data Analyst Scio

Tilaye Yeshanew
Senior Statistician/Psychometrician GL Assessment

Tim Stratton
Associate Director – Research, Ofqual

Samantha Tummey
Head of Assessment CENTURY Tech

Gemma O’Brien
Alpha Plus National Assessment Programme Manager
Why go for accreditation?
AEA-Europe’s accreditation scheme provides recognition of experience, knowledge and expertise in assessment. Here, members who successfully applied for accreditation say how becoming accredited helped them in their professional development.
Assessment specialist and teacher-trainer, Dr. Ya-Ping (Amy) Hsiao, shares her experience and tells us why she chose to be accredited with AEA-Europe. Read the interview here.
How to apply
If you have not yet benefited from AEA-Europe accreditation as a Fellow, Practitioner or Associate then maybe this year you should think about applying. This possibility is open only to individual members of the Association and employees of corporate members. If you represent a corporate member then do encourage anyone in your organisation who might be interested in accreditation to apply. Application requires a little effort, but the effort will be worth making to achieve formal recognition as an assessment professional.
Applications for accreditation will be reviewed once a year and the deadline for applications is the 31st January of each year. Successful applicants are presented with their certificates during the Annual Conference in November.

Michael Buhagiar
Associate Professor Faculty of Education University of Malta
Michael A. Buhagiar is Associate Professor at the Department of Mathematics and Science Education, Faculty of Education, University of Malta. His main lecturing and research areas include assessment (especially in relation to the mathematics classroom), mathematics education (especially in relation to inquiry-based learning and reflective practice) and teacher education (especially in relation to mentoring and lesson study). Dr Buhagiar supervises and examines student research at bachelor, master and doctoral levels, and his publications include papers in peer-reviewed journals, authored and edited books, and book chapters.
Apart from being a regular presenter in international conferences, he has participated in a number of EU-funded research projects (including PRIMAS, CDFE, IncluSMe, MaSDiV, LS4VET and STEPS-LS). He is a Fellow of the ‘Association of Educational Assessment – Europe’ (AEA-Europe) and is a founding member of ‘Collaborative Lesson Study Malta’ (CLeStuM), which is a teacher professional development programme based within the Faculty. Before joining the Faculty in 2008, he was a class teacher in a primary school and later taught mathematics in a secondary school and at the Junior College of the University of Malta.

Graham Hudson
Special Adviser to Assessment Professionals Internationally
Graham Hudson has dedicated his career to advancing educational assessment, with experience spanning teaching, leadership roles in awarding organisations, and consultancy. His work focuses on improving assessment practices to support the needs of learners and educators, both in the UK and internationally.
As Chair of the e-Assessment Association, Graham has played a key role in fostering collaboration between industry, academia, and policy, helping to navigate the evolving landscape of digital and technological advancements in education. His contributions to e-marking and professional development have influenced practices widely and supported the growth of expertise across the sector.
Graham is committed to sharing his knowledge and supporting others, engaging actively in seminars, mentoring, and advocacy to promote effective assessment solutions. His pragmatic approach and dedication continue to benefit the field of education.

Sebastiaan de Klerk
Educational Researcher at CitoLab
Sebastiaan de Klerk PhD is a senior educational researcher at CitoLab, Cito’s Research and Innovation Division. His work focuses mainly on the digitalization of educational assessments. He also works for Impuls Open Leermateriaal (Impulse to Open Educational Resources) as a coordinator for research projects on the topic of open education.

Marieke van Onna
Senior Research Scientist CITO
Marieke has been working for Cito since 2007. After studying mathematical psychology, and a Ph.D. on Bayesian estimation of latent class models and nonparametric IRT, she started working at a university as an assistant professor. After a few years a job opening appeared at dream institute Cito. She applied, was hired and never left.
As senior research scientist, she is responsible for methodological, statistical and psychometric aspects of the development of educational assessments. She has a wide experience with assessment situations ranging from paper-and-pencil tests to adaptive computer-based tests; from general subjects like math to practical skills like driving competency. She enjoys applying psychometric knowledge to solving practical problems creatively.
Her present main focus is the coordination of the psychometric efforts to equate the Dutch end-of-school examinations in secondary education. She contributes to smaller (international) projects, as well. And she likes to share her experience and knowledge with colleagues!

Helen Claydon
Head of Admissions Testing Renaissance Global
Helen Claydon has led on assessment development for various national assessment programmes in the UK, including the Scottish National Standardised Assessments and the KS1 and KS2 Maths National Curriculum Tests (SATs). She has also been involved in the review and (re)design of various national and international qualifications; including advising the Association for Project Management on redesigning their main qualification. She has a particular interest in e-assessment and inclusive assessment.
Helen is a former board member of the e-Assessment Association and a former Steering Committee Member for AEA-Europe’s eAssessment SIG. In 2008, her accreditation as a Practitioner of AEA-Europe was instrumental in her being offered a post at the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants. She is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Educational Assessors. She is also proud to celebrate her recent accreditation as a Fellow of AEA-Europe.

Lenka Fiřtová
Test Developer and Data Analyst Scio
Lenka Fiřtová has over 15 years of experience in psychometrics and educational assessment. She began her career in 2008 at Scio, a leading Czech educational company, as an item writer. Scio, founded in 1995, has delivered over 1 million high-stakes university entrance tests, known as the National Comparative Exams (NCE), with around 70,000 exams delivered each year, mostly in Czechia and Slovakia.
In 2014, Lenka earned a Master’s degree in Statistics, with a thesis focused on IRT-based test equating. She gained further expertise through research internships at the University of York (2014) and the Psychometrics Centre in Cambridge (2016).
Since 2016, Lenka has been a full-time Scio employee, overseeing test content and data analysis for high-stakes exams. She has also contributed to innovative projects, including computer-adaptive testing and learning analytics. An active member of the international assessment community, Lenka has presented her work at numerous conferences, and has attended the AEA-Europe conference seven times.

Tilaye Yeshanew
Senior Statistician/Psychometrician GL Assessment
I’m a Chartered Statistician with over 20 years of experience working in educational assessment, psychometrics, and applied statistics. Throughout my career, I’ve contributed to major national testing programmes, including the UK 11+, CAT4, and Progress Test Series, applying Classical Test Theory, Item Response Theory, and a wide range of statistical modelling techniques. I’ve held senior roles at Renaissance Learning, GL Education, and the National Foundation for Educational Research, and I’m also an assessment consultant and subject specialist, where I advise on assessment and teach Mathematics from Year 9 to A-Level.
My work bridges rigorous statistical analysis with real-world impact in education, helping to ensure assessments are fair, valid, and meaningful. I’m passionate about demystifying data and empowering others through training, mentoring, and collaboration. It’s an honour to receive this recent accreditation, and I hope it encourages others to explore the opportunities available through the scheme.

Tim Stratton
Associate Director – Research, Ofqual
Dr. Tim Stratton current leads the research team at Ofqual, the qualification and exams regulator for England. Since joining Ofqual in 2017, he has conducted research and analysis which have directly impacted assessment policy and practice in England. Tim holds a PhD in Animal Behaviour and Conservation, following completion of which he briefly lectured in wildlife conservation. More recently he completed an MSc in Educational Assessment from the University of Oxford in 2020.
Tim is primarily a quantitative researcher, utilising multilevel modelling and other statistical techniques to address complex assessment and standards related issues. His research has spanned topics such as identifying sources of difficulty in foreign language assessments, evaluating the use of teacher grades during the COVID-19 pandemic, and how to fairly maintain standards in times of change.
When not thinking about tricky assessment problems, Tim likes to play board games, hiking, and attempting to paint impressionist landscapes.

Samantha Tummey
Head of Assessment CENTURY Tech
With over 20 years’ experience in educational assessment and learning, Samantha has led the design and development of formative and summative assessments used in over 100 countries. She began her career in higher education and developed a passion for helping every student reach their full potential by using assessment data and systems to inform teaching and learning.
During her tenure at the Centre for Evaluation and Monitoring (now part of Cambridge University Press & Assessment), she oversaw the technical development of globally used formative assessments. Former Head of Assessment Product Delivery and Content for GL Assessment and Renaissance Learning, Samantha continues to support organisations in designing, trialling, and delivering high-quality, psychometrically sound assessments.
Professional interests include assessment integrity and the impact of test experience and anxiety on construct-irrelevant variance, and gamified learning. She is proud to be AEA Europe-accredited and is committed to promoting inclusive, ethical, and evidence-led assessment practices.

Gemma O’Brien
Alpha Plus National Assessment Programme Manager
Gemma O’Brien is AlphaPlus’ National Assessment Programme Manager. With more than ten years of experience in educational assessment, she has worked extensively in qualifications and assessment design and delivery in both a UK and international context. In her current role, she leads a multidisciplinary programme team to deliver a national adaptive personalised assessment programme in Wales. Her research interests include fairness in assessment and the impact of educational assessments upon teaching, learning and policy. She holds an MA in Education (Assessment) from University College London.
Accredited Members
Accreditations 2024
Fellow: Lesley Wiseman (University of Glasgow, UK), Per-Erik Lyren (Umea University, Sweden)
Accreditations 2023
Practitioner: David McVeigh (Pearson), Ana Ulicheva (Pearson), Dario Pirotta (MATSEC), Ellen Barrow (Pearson), Irene Custodio (Pearson), Sarah Turner (Pearson)
Fellow: Lena Gray (Assessment and Qualifications Alliance), Fabienne van der Kleij (ACER, Australia)
Accreditations 2022
Associate: Blake Ashworth (Pearson)
Practitioner: Ebba Gullberg (Umeå University), Carl-Magnus Haggstrom (Umeå University), Jakob Jakobsson (Umeå University), Linnea Talltjarn (Umeå University), Morgan Thorsell (Umeå University)
Fellow: Dr Ya-Ping (Amy) Hsiao (Tilburg University), Grace Grima (Pearson), Therese Hopfenbeck (University of Melbourne)
Accreditations 2021
Fellow: Deborah Chetcuti (Malta)
Practitioner: Ragnaar Haake (Sweden), Lauren Miller (UK), Dr. Doreen Said Pace (UK)
Accreditations 2020
Practitioner: Tom Gallacher (UK)
Associate: Gary Cole (UK)
Accreditations 2019
Fellows: Damian Murchan (Ireland), Nico Dieteren (The Netherlands), Rolf. V Olsen (Norway)
Practitioners: Agnes Bergbom, Christina Orädd, Gunnar Wästle, Ingela Eriksson, Peder Öberg, Tobias Lundberg, Mikael Hägglund, Michael Nordvall, Maria Johansson, Håkan Montén, (all from Umeå University, Sweden), Jennifer Morrison (Scotland), Sarah Bacon (UK)
Associate: Helena Karlsson (Umeå University, Sweden)
Accreditations 2018
Fellows: Elena Papanastasiou (Cyprus) & Saskia Wools (the Netherlands)
Practitioners: Pia Almarlind, Erika Bergvall, Patric Astrom and Mattias Abrahamsson (all from Sweden), Kevin Mason, Vasu Krishnaswamy and Sarah Hughes (UK) & Ya Ping Hsiao (the Netherlands)
Associates: Jenny Crewe & Andrew Lewis (both UK)
Accreditations 2017
Practitioners: Roel Visseren
Associates: Hannah Montgomery
Accreditations 2016
Fellows: Stephen Dobson
Practitioners: Shakeh Manassian, Man Fung Lo (Kelvin), Sharon Frazer, Lesley Wiseman
Associates: Ya Ping (Amy) Hsiao
Accreditations 2015
Fellows: Bas Hemker
Practitioners: Dr Mahmoud Emira
Accreditations 2014
Fellows: Cor Sluijter, Gordon Stobart
Practitioners: Nico Dieteren, Sarah Hughes
Associates: Gareth Hopkins, Zak Horrocks, Hayo Vink
Accreditations 2013
Fellows: Rose Clesham, Jean-Pierre Jeantheau, Wil Knappers
Practitioners: Milja Curcin, Zeesham Rahman
Accreditations 2012
Fellows: Ayesha Ahmed, Roger Murphy
Practitioners: Wil J Knappers
Associates: Sarah Austin, Angela Bapuji, Mike Dearing, Thomas Harding, Giiuseppina Poliseno, Bradley Smith, James Wise
Accreditations 2011
Fellows: Andrew Boyle, Frans Kleintjes
Practitioners: Helen Harth, Vicky Foley, Andrew Stone
Associates: Louise Cooper
Accreditations 2010
Fellows: Julie Sewell, Angela Verschoor
Practitioners: Ingrid Radtke, Ursula Underhill
Associates: Fatima Lampreia-Carvalho
Accreditations 2009
Fellows: Steven Bakker, Jenny Bradshaw, Newman Burdett, Sarah Maughan, Marina Mrouga, Paul Newton, Alastair Pollitt, Rob van Krieken, Simon Wolming
Practitioners: Rosalind Duhs, Gill Grimshaw, Steve Murray, Rebecca Wheater
Associates: Bernadetta Brzyska, Naomi Rowe, Kathryn Wilkinson, Christine Williams
Accreditations 2008
Fellows: Gabriella Agrusti, Jo-Anne Baird, Kiril Bankov, Irena Bulakh, Theo Eggen, Sandra Johnson, Henk Moelands, Marian Sainsbury, Stuart Shaw, Bernard Veldkamp, Andrew Watts, Christina Wikström
Practitioners: Helen Claydon, Stig Ericsson, Mikalai Fiaskou, Hazel Griffin, Emily Jones, Anders Lexelius, Jenny Lindberg, Gunilla Ogren, Catherine Parkes, Linda Sturman
Associates: Olav Severijnen, Katie Pyle
Accreditations 2007
Fellows: Anton Béguin, Johanna Crighton, Tandi Clausen-May, Mark Dowling, Jannette Elwood, Harvey Goldstein, Wynn Harlen, Galina Kovaleva, Benedetto Vertecchi, Ingemar Wedman
Practitioners: Helen Betts, Frances Brill, Bethan Burge, Hilary Cox, Padraic de Bhaldraithe, Claire Hodgson, Catherine Kirkup, Hugh McManus, Julie Sewell, Juliet Sizmur, Sarah Stockwell
Associates: Alexandra Petridou