What do you mean by levels of professions?

The word “profession” means different things to different people. But at its core, it’s meant to be an indicator of trust and expertise.

Traditionally, a “professional” was someone who derived their income from their expertise or specific talents, as opposed to a hobbyist or amateur. This still carries through to fields today, such as sport.

But given today’s fast-changing environment of knowledge and expertise, it’s now generally understood that simply deriving an income from a particular task might make you an “expert” or “good at your job” – but if you’re a “professional”, this has a broader meaning.

There’s a long history of attempts to clarify this meaning, and to define the functions of professions. These attempts typically centralise around some sort of moral or ethical foundation within the practice of a specific and usually established expertise.

This section is designed to give you an insight into some of the historic and academic ways of defining professions, as well as some regulatory perspectives as to how a group can ultimately become a profession.