The letters after a BIOR member's name

Members of The British Institute of Recruiters (BIOR) may use designatory letters after their name. This page explains each set of letters, who may use them, and how anyone can check them at ior.org/verify.

Membership letters

MBIOR. Member of The British Institute of Recruiters. Held by a recruiter with current Personal Membership at the Member grade. Membership includes the certification assessment, a listing in the public directory and a verification page.

FBIOR. Fellow of The British Institute of Recruiters. The senior grade of Personal Membership, for experienced recruiters. How to apply is at Become a Fellow.

STAR. Specialist in Talent Acquisition and Retention. The designation for in-house recruiters, who hire for their own employer, held through STAR membership.

The letters are written in capitals, MBIOR and FBIOR. Older material shows them as mBIoR and fBIoR. They are the same letters and the same organisation.

A recruitment business does not use letters. An Agency Member uses the BIOR Certified Agency mark and its own verification page instead. See Agency Membership.

Qualification letters

Cert RRec. Held by a learner who has achieved the Summit Qualifications UK Level 2 Certificate in Recruitment Resourcing.

Cert PRec. Held by a learner who has achieved the Summit Qualifications UK Level 3 Certificate in Principles of Recruitment.

Summit Qualifications UK is BIOR's Ofqual regulated awarding brand. The qualifications and the routes into them are described at Recruitment Qualifications.

Older letters. Cert PRP (Level 3 Professional Certificate in Recruitment), Cert HR (Level 3 or above Professional Certificate in Human Resources), Cert RR (Level 2 Professional Certificate in Recruitment Resourcing) and Dip BIoR (Level 3 or above Professional Diploma in Recruitment) were issued by BIOR to learners who completed those earlier courses. They relate to courses that ran before the current qualifications. Holders keep them.

The rules for using the letters

Membership letters go with the membership. MBIOR, FBIOR and STAR may be used while the membership is active. When a membership lapses, the letters stop with it, and the member's verification page shows Lapsed until it is renewed. Qualification letters are held for good once the qualification is achieved. Every member is bound by the BIOR Code of Professional and Ethical Conduct, and a claim to letters that are not held can be raised under the complaints procedure.

How to check

Enter the membership number or the name at ior.org/verify. The page shows Active or Lapsed, the credential and the dates. Certified entries show the certified mark and the date they were last certified. Nothing private is shown. The public directory of members is at ior.org/certified.

Questions people ask

What does MBIOR after a recruiter's name mean?

Member of The British Institute of Recruiters, a professional body for UK recruitment. The recruiter holds current Personal Membership at the Member grade, which includes the certification assessment. It can be checked at ior.org/verify. Older material writes it mBIoR.

What does FBIOR mean?

Fellow of The British Institute of Recruiters, the senior grade of Personal Membership, for experienced recruiters. Older material writes it fBIoR.

What is the difference between MBIOR and FBIOR?

Both are grades of BIOR Personal Membership and both include the certification assessment. Member (MBIOR) is the standard grade. Fellow (FBIOR) is the senior grade, applied for by experienced recruiters.

What do Cert PRec and Cert RRec mean?

Cert PRec is held by a learner who has achieved the Summit Qualifications UK Level 3 Certificate in Principles of Recruitment. Cert RRec is held by a learner who has achieved the Summit Qualifications UK Level 2 Certificate in Recruitment Resourcing. Summit Qualifications UK is BIOR's Ofqual regulated awarding brand.

How do I check that someone is entitled to use BIOR letters?

Enter their membership number or name at ior.org/verify. The page shows whether the membership is Active or Lapsed, the credential held and the dates.

Written by The BIOR Membership Team. Last reviewed 28 September 2026.