Founding members
The founding community shapes the framework before it goes wider. Founding status is earned by joining before public launch, and the founding window closes then.
For people doing the work
Practitioners join as individuals. No employer approval is needed.
Students and academics: free. Community and framework access.
Founding Member (practitioner)
Free for the first 500 practitioners who join during the founding window.
Who: working FDEs, FDE leads and people in closely related embedded-engineering roles. We verify by work email or LinkedIn profile.
What you get:
- Early access to framework drafts, with comment rights
- Invitations to the monthly practitioner roundtable
- Early access to State of FDE results
- Recognition as a founding member, with an optional listing on the founding roll (opt-in only)
- A “Founding Member 2026” digital badge (planned)
Founding organizations
For companies, lenders, educators and community groups that want to contribute to an open, neutral reference.
Founding Employer
For companies that hire or run FDE teams. Contribute job-analysis input on what FDEs actually do; receive a seat on an Employer Council (advisory input), roundtable seats and early anonymized survey insights. Limited to the first 25 organizations.
Founding Mortgage & Fintech Partner
For lenders, lending-technology vendors and fintechs. Everything in Founding Employer, plus a seat on the Mortgage & Fintech track working group. Limited to the first 10 firms.
Training Partner (listing)
For educators and course providers who map material to the open framework. Listings use the wording “aligned to the FDE Council open framework v0.x”. No exam access, and no “official”, “approved” or “certified” claims. Limited to the first 10.
Academic Partner
Free. Curriculum mapping and research collaboration.
Community Partner
Free. For meetups, conferences, newsletters and podcasts: cross-promotion and co-hosted roundtables.
Organization dues are being finalized. Tell us you’re interested and we’ll share the founding member brief.
What membership never buys
No tier, at any price, buys a say in framework content or any future assessment, early access to assessment material, or any implied endorsement of a member’s products or training.
Frequently asked questions
Is this a certification?
No. Founding membership recognizes early contributors. FDE Council doesn’t offer certification today.
When does the founding window close?
At public launch, or earlier if the caps are reached.
Do I need my employer’s approval?
No. Practitioners join as individuals.
Do you take payments on this site?
No.