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Reward your expertise in the world of governance
As a Fellow, your exemplary level of governance expertise is recognised both inside and outside of the AICD—and provides stewardship for the broader Australian director community.
Instantly recognised for its distinction, the FAICD post-nominal demonstrates your commitment to the highest standards of leadership, ethical conduct and meaningful contribution in the field.
Join a national community of experienced directors at exclusive Fellow-only events, including roundtables and dinners, where you can network, learn and influence.
Give back to the director community by advocating for the advancement of governance practices in Australia, and help build a lasting legacy for future leaders.
Hear from one of our Fellows
How to apply for your FAICD
The selection criteria takes into account an applicant’s directorship experience and contribution to the area of governance, as well as their professionalism and reputation.
Below is an outline of the information you need to include in your application form, as well as process milestones and deadlines.
- Overview
- Eligibility
- Documentation
- Application
Overview of process
Read through the mandatory, experience and contribution criteria to determine your eligibility to apply for the Fellow membership grade.
Provide the required information on your relevant experience as well as written recommendations from two referees.
Start your online Fellowship application and submit it by the quarterly cut-off dates supplied.
Check your eligibility
To apply for fellowship you must meet all of the below criteria.
- You must have the requisite knowledge, experience, good standing, and professionalism befitting a member holding the status of Fellow.
- You must have held AICD membership for at least the past three consecutive years.
- You have met the mandatory professional development requirement.
- You must be either:
a. a GAICD with a minimum of 6 years’ experience as a director or senior government official within the past 12 years; or
b. an MAICD with a minimum of 10 years’ experience as a director or senior government official within the past 12 years.
Once you’ve satisfied all the Mandatory criteria, you can move on to the Experience criteria.
Below is an outline of the organisational profile criteria considered when assessing your director experience.
| Organisation type | Criteria |
| Private or public corporation |
|
Not-for-profit organisation |
|
Government entity |
|
You have fully met the Experience criteria if:
- you’ve had the requisite amount of director experience in the past 12 years (i.e. at least 6 years for GAICDs and at least 10 for MAICDs); and
- ALL the organisations at which you served during that time meet ALL the organisational profile criteria listed in the table above.
If you fully meet the criteria, your application is complete and you can submit it for approval.
You have partially met the experience criteria if:
- you’ve had the requisite amount of director experience in the past 12 years (i.e. at least 6 years for GAICDs and at least 10 for MAICDs); and
- ALL the organisations at which you served during that time meet at least one (but not all) its organisational profile criteria listed in the table above.
If you only partially meet the Experience criteria, you will need to supplement your experience with Contribution information to proceed with your application.
If you don’t at least partially meet the experience criteria, but would like to discuss your experience, please contact our Membership team on 1300 739 119 or email us at membership@aicd.com.au.
You only need to consider the Contribution criteria if you don’t fully meet the Experience criteria above. You will need a minimum of 20 points of Contribution criteria, which can be chosen from the following categories:
| Category | Activities |
| AICD participation (20 points for one or more) |
|
Board contribution (20 points for one or more) |
|
Other relevant career experience (10 points for one or more) |
|
Awards and milestones (10 points for one or more) |
|
| Extra-curricular (5 points) |
|
Faculty member (5 points for one or both) |
|
Once you’ve identified your 20 points of Contribution criteria, you can provide a written response (up to 300 words) supporting this criteria. You can now prepare and submit your application.
Check your eligibility
- You will need to provide details of your relevant experience as outlined in the criteria section. Details include the name, size (number of employees), gross revenue and gross asset information of each relevant organisation, as well as your directorship start and end dates.
- You will also need to provide the name and contact details of 2 referees as well as a written reference (saved as a PDF) from each referee.
Referees must:
- have known you for at least 3 years
- not be a family members),
Referees must be either:
- current, retired or former AICD Fellows
- members of the Division Council Committee
- AICD executive management
- Chairs of boards you have served on
- Fellows of other professional associations.
Each written reference must contain the following information:
- The referee’s full name, address, phone number, email address, title and company name.
- Some context on how and for how long the referee has known you.
- Confirmation that your referee vouches for you in terms of your professional career, ethical standing and good character.
- The referee’s original or electronic signature.
To save time, feel free to download our reference template and pass it on to your referees.
Apply online
Fellowship applications are reviewed once a quarter at Divisional Council meetings.
The cut-off dates for 2026 applications are:
- Apply by Friday 20 February 2026 to be notified of the outcome by beginning of May.
- Apply by Friday 22 May 2026 to be notified of the outcome by end of July.
- Apply by Friday 28 August 2026 to be notified of the outcome by end of October.
- Apply by Friday 30 October 2026 to be notified of the outcome by beginning of January.
Once your application is approved and you’ve been notified, you can start using the FAICD post-nominal.
CPD requirements
Fellows are required to accrue the mandatory number of Director Continuing Professional Development (CPD) points to maintain their membership.
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