Conversion and transition courses: how to prepare

Both kinds of course assume you can already audit. They are short, so the time goes on what is new to you.

1 Conversion: a new standard

A conversion course (about 24 hours under CQI and IRCA, usually three days, with a written exam) takes a lead auditor from one discipline to another.

Re-read the Harmonized Structure — the shared clauses are your foundation
Read the new standard’s clause 6 and clause 8 closely: that is where it differs from the one you know
Learn the discipline’s vocabulary — for example environmental aspects and compliance obligations (ISO 14001), hazards and the hierarchy of controls (ISO 45001), risk treatment and the Statement of Applicability (ISO/IEC 27001)
Find out what legal requirements typically apply in that field in the UK, at a general level
Take the new standard’s practice quiz

Transition courses compare the old and new editions. For 2026:

ISO 9001:2026 — leadership and quality culture, separate actions for risks and for opportunities, new awareness requirements, a new Annex A. UKAS rates changes to 4.2, 5.1.1, 6.1.2, 6.1.3, 6.3, 7.3 and 9.3.2 as significant. See what changed in ISO 9001:2026.
ISO 14001:2026 — broader context including climate change and biodiversity, life-cycle thinking, risks and opportunities, managing change, control of outsourced activities.
ISO/IEC 27701:2025 — now a standalone management-system standard.
ISO 37001:2025 — anti-bribery culture, conflicts of interest, planning of changes.

Get the new edition and, if available, the publisher’s comparison or a certification body’s gap analysis
List each changed clause and write the question you would ask an auditee about it
Check that your course covers the published standard, not the draft (some early courses were based on the DIS text)

S Sources

CQI and IRCA course levels table — https://www.quality.org/approved-training-partners

UKAS Technical Bulletin, High-Level Gap Analysis ISO 9001:2015 and ISO 9001:2026 (September 2026)

NQA, ISO 14001:2026 published — https://www.nqa.com/en-ca/resources/news/iso-14001-2026-published

DNV UK, ISO 9001 Transition Essentials based on ISO/DIS 9001 — https://www.dnv.co.uk/training/iso-90012026-transition-essentials-training/