There is a strong case for EMB staff being seen to be professional by gaining graduate or postgraduate qualifications in electoral management and governance. More institutions of higher learning are offering courses on aspects of governance and electoral administration. Pioneers in this include the American University (USA), the University of Queensland (Australia), and the University of Paris (France).

International electoral assistance agencies have also developed relatively short professional development courses for electoral administrators, such as the BEAT (Basic Election Administration Training) course developed by IFES, which has been implemented in Nigeria and Sierra Leone.

The most comprehensive professional development course available for electoral administrators is the Building Resources in Democracy, Governance and Elections (BRIDGE) course, jointly developed by International IDEA, the UN Electoral Assistance Division, and the Australian Electoral Commission. BRIDGE courses are presented by accredited BRIDGE facilitators. BRIDGE is made up of stand-alone modules, so any course can be tailored to an EMB’s specific professional development needs. All BRIDGE modules are available in English, with some or most of the modules also available in Arabic, French, Portuguese, and Russian.

In the UK, the Association of Election Administrators (AEA) conducts regular training and education for election administrators. EMBs (local authorities) in the UK usually require that candidates for election-related positions have the relevant AEA qualifications. The South African EMB has been developing a formal training and education curriculum for election practitioners and an accreditation mechanism for qualified election managers. The Bangladeshi EMB has set up the National Training Institute in Dhaka, which conducts intensive training for electoral staff at all levels, both face-to-face and electronically. There are strict entrance, accreditation, and continuing professional development requirements to be a member of the Professional Electoral Service of the EMB in Mexico.