With national and international, general, construction, fire and environmental options, the NEBOSH certificate is a sound choice for health and safety professionals worldwide.

If you are considering a NEBOSH certificate you may be wondering which course is most suited to your needs. Read on for some help in matching your requirements with the correct NEBOSH certificate.

Firstly identify where it is you want to work. If you are looking to work outside the UK, then a international NEBOSH certificate might be a sound choice. These are based on the tried and tested formular of the UK certificates but omit the UK legislation that is irrelevant to those working abroad. However if you are looking to take on a health and safety role within the UK, then one of the national certificates is the best choice.

Once you have established whether to complete a national or international certificate, it is then necessary to make a decision between one of the general NEBOSH certificates or one of the more specialised options.

The general certificates, are exactly that! Based on the general principles of health and safety, but not specific to any one industry. The general certificates covers two theoretical modules (NGC1 and NGC2) which provide a grounding in control of hazards and management, planning, organising and auditing health and safety systems. The general certificate also includes a practical module (NGC3), which tests the knowledge delegates have gained in the theoretical modules. The practical modules usually take the form of a risk assessment, completed by the delegate in a real work situation.

There are two options available for construction related NEBOSH certificates. The first is the full certificate which is offered as a national or international option. These are comprised of three modules and national course shares the first module with the NEBOSH national general certificate (NGC1), which is a general overview to health and safety practice. The second module covers avoidance and management of risks specific to the construction industry. The third module is the practical element. As the national construction certificate and the national general certificate both cover the NGC1 module, candidates that have already completed the NGC1 can complete a conversion option instead of redoing that module. This is also the case in the fire certificate. However, please note this only counts for the national course and not the international course.

The Fire NEBOSH certificate also runs over 3 modules. As stated it includes the NGC1 and also the fire specific modules: FC1 and FC2. FC1 covers managing the risk of fire including explosions, cause and prevention, fire protection, and protecting peoples' safety. Again the third module,  FC2 is a practical assignment, where candidates use the knowledge gained in the previous modules to complete a risk assessment in a real world situation.

Another NEBOSH certificate that is available but does not follow the traditional 3 module structure is the NEBOSH Environmental. This has only two modules, one theory and one practical. The NCEM1 module is concerned with the theory of environmental management and control. It covers management systems, assessing the impact on the environment, controlling air emissions, controlling water contamination, controlling waste, energy efficiency, control of noise and action planning for environmental emergencies. NCEM2 is the practical application of this knowledge and is assessed by a written report based on a working environment situation.