The JSA recognizes two categories of shogi professionals: , and . Sometimes "kishi" are addressed as , a term from Go used to distinguish "kishi" from other classes of players. JSA professional ranks and female professional ranks are not equivalent and each has their own promotion criteria and ranking system. In 2006, the JSA officially granted women "professional status". This is not equivalent, however, to the more traditional way of "gaining professional status", i.e., being promoted from the : leagues of strong amateur players aspiring to become a professional. Rather, it is a separate system especially designed for female professionals. Qualified amateurs, regardless of gender, may apply for the "Shoreikai System" and all those who successfully "graduate" are granted "kishi" status; however, no woman has yet to accomplish this feat (the highest women have reached is "Shoreikai 3 "dan" league" by Kana Satomi and Tomoka Nishiyama), so "kishi" is de facto only used to refer to male shogi professionals.