How To Become a Professional Genealogists

Reference Material

The Board for Certification of Genealogists has list of articles with tips on skill building and a supplemental study list that will be useful to anyone wishing to become a professional genealogist.

The following publications are essential to the library of every professional genealogist:

The BCG Genealogical Standards Manual. Provo: Ancestry, 2000.

Curran, Joan F., Madilyn Coen Crane, and John H. Wray. Numbering Your Genealogy: Basic Systems, Complex Families, and International Kin. NGS Special Publication no. 64. Arlington, Virginia: National Genealogical Society, 1999. (A new version of this is being planned as of early 2008.)

Greenwood, Val. D. The Researcher's Guide to American Genealogy. 3d edition. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 2000.

Mills, Elizabeth Shown, editor. Professional Genealogy: A Manual for Researchers, Writers, Editors, Lecturers, and Librarians . Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 2001.

Mills, Elizabeth Shown. Evidence Explained: Citing History Sources from Artifacts to Cyberspace. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 2007.

Rose, Christine. The Genealogical Proof Standard: Building a Solid Case. San Jose, California: CR Publications, 2005.

Szucs, Loretto D., and Sandra Hargreaves Luebking, editors. The Source: A Guidebook of American Genealogy. 3rd edition. Salt Lake City: Ancestry, 2006.

Training courses recommended by the Association of Professional Genealogists include:

National Genealogical Society American Genealogy: A Home Study Course and Online Courses

Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research (Samford University)

National Institute of Genealogical Research (National Archives)