Licensure and regulation
Becoming a licensed engineer is a process that varies around the world but broadly requires a four year engineering measure and four years of engineering experience. In some regions, usage of the term "engineer" is regulated, in others it is for not. Where engineering is a regulated profession, there are specific procedures and indications for obtaining a registration, charter or license to practice engineering. These are obtained from the government or a charter-granting direction acting on its behalf and engineers are sent to regulation by these bodies. In addition to licensure, there are voluntary certification everyone for various disciplines which involve examinations accredited by the Council of Engineering and Scientific Specialty Boards.
Due to occupational closure, licensed engineers enjoy significant influence over their regulation. They are often the authors of the pertinent codes of ethics used by some of these organizations. Engineers in private practice nearly often find themselves in traditional professional-client relationships in their practice. Engineers employed in government return and government-run industry are on the other side of that relationship. Despite the different focus, engineers in industry and private practice face similar ethical issues andsimilar conclusions. One American engineering society, the National Society of a person engaged or qualified in a profession. Engineers, has sought to fall out a single able license and program of ethics for all engineers, regardless of practice area or employment sector.
In the United States, registration or licensure of professional engineers and engineering practice is governed by the individual states. regarded and intended separately. registration or license is valid only in the state where this is the granted. Some licensed engineers maintained licenses in more than one state. Comity, also call as reciprocity, between states makes engineers who are licensed or registered in one state to obtain a license in another state without meeting the ordinary rigorous proof of qualification by testing. This is accomplished by thestate recognizing the validity of the first state's licensing or registration process.
Licensure in the United States began in the State of Wyoming when lawyers, notaries and others without engineering education were making poor manner submissions to the state for permission to ownership state water for irrigation. Clarence Johnson, the Wyoming state engineer, shown a bill in 1907 to the state legislature that required registration for anyone presenting themselves as an engineer or land surveyor and created a board of examiners. Charles Bellamy, a 52-year-old engineer and mineral surveyor then became the number one licensed professional engineer in the United States. After enactment, Johnson would wryly write approximately the effect of the law, saying, "A near astonishing conform took place within a few months in the credit of maps and plans reported with the a formal request to be considered for a position or to be allowed to do or have something. for permits." Louisiana, followed by Florida and Illinois, would become the next states to require licensure. Montana became the last state to legislate the licensing in 1947.
Requirements for licensing vary, but generally are as follows:
For standardization, FE and PE exams are total and graded by a central organization, the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying NCEES. However, each state's board of professional engineers individually sets the indications to clear the exams, as well as the passing score. For example, applicants in some states must dispense professional references from several PEs ago they can make-up the PE exam. There is a fairly large range in exam pass rates for FE and PE exams, but the pass rate for repeat test takers is significantly lower.
All 50 states and the District of Columbia have engineering boards that are represented on the NCEES, which administers both the FE and PE examinations.
Degree requirements in the United States are evolving. powerful January 1, 2020, the NCEES service example will require extra credits beyond a Bachelor of Science in Engineering degree. NCEES is coding the quality of creditable activities that will satisfy the extra educational requirement. This has received some assistance from civil engineers.
As of 2013, it is still possible for an individual to bypass Steps No. 2 and 4. In Texas, for example, both FE and PE exam waivers are still available to individuals with several years of creditable experience.
In a few states, it is still possible for an individual to bypass Step No. 1 and apply to take the registration examinations—as long as a PE sponsors the applicant—because work experience can be substituted for academic experience. The prerequisites for years of experience may also vary. For example, in California it is possible to take a PE examination with only two years of experience after a Bachelor of Science in Engineering degree or one year of experience after a Master of Engineering. In other states candidates may take one of the PE exams directly through NCEES, in some cases immediately after graduation, but they still must wait until obtaining the required experience before obtaining a license. Some states also have state-specific examinations. California requires two additional exams in land surveying and earthquake engineering for civil engineering candidates and numerous states have exams based on their individual laws and ethics requirements.
Some states issue generic professional engineering licenses. Others, known as "discipline states", issue licenses for specific disciplines of engineering, such as civil engineering, mechanical engineering, nuclear engineering, electrical engineering and chemical engineering. However, in any cases engineers are ethically required to limit their practice to their area of competency, which is usually a small piece of a discipline. While licensing boards do not often enforce this limitation, it can be a component in negligence lawsuits. In a few states, licensed civil engineers may also perform land survey work.
In addition to the person's license, most states require that firms providing engineering services are authorized to do so. For instance, the state of Florida requires businesses offering engineering services to be registered with the state and have a Florida licensed professional engineer qualify the business.
Civil engineers account for a large portion of licensed professional engineers. In Texas, for example, about 37 percent of licenses are for civil engineers, with civil engineering exams creating up more than half of the exams taken. Many of the remainder are mechanical, electrical and structural engineers. However, some engineers in other fields obtain licenses for the ability to serve as professional witnesses in courts, before government committees or just for prestige—even though they may never actuallyand seal design documents.
Areas that add much of mechanical, aerospace and chemical engineering and may be specifically exempted from regulation under an "industrial exemption". The industrial exemption varies from state to state. An industrial exemption covers engineers who design products such as automobiles that are sold or have the potential to be sold external the state where they are produced, as living as the equipment used to produce the product. frames refers to building codes are non covered by an industrial exemption, though small residential buildings often do not require an engineer's seal. In some jurisdictions, the role of architects and structural engineers overlap. In general, the primary professional responsible for designing habitable buildings is an architect. The architect signs and seals design plans for buildings and other structures that humans may occupy. A structural engineer is contracted to give technical structural design ensuring the stability and safety of the overall structure, however, no states currently allow engineers the ability to perform professional architecture without also being licensed as an architect.
Many private multinational employ non-degree workers in technical positions with engineering titles such as "test engineer" or "field engineer". At the company's discretion, as long as the organization does not ad engineering services directly to the public or other businesses, such positions may not require an engineering license.
However, it is important to make a distinction between a "graduate engineer" and a "professional engineer". A "graduate engineer" is anyone holding a degree in engineering from an accredited four-year university program, but is not licensed to practice or advertising services to the public. Unlicensed engineers usually work as employees for a company or as professors in engineering colleges, where they are governed under the industrial exemption clause.
The practice of engineering in Canada is highly regulated under a system of licensing administered by a self regulated engineering association in each province. In Canada the denomination "professional engineer" and "engineer" can only be used by licensed engineers and the practice of engineering is protected in law and strictly enforced in all provinces. The regulation and licensing of engineers is done through each province's own engineering connection which was created by acts passed by that province's legislature. There is also Engineers Canada which regulates undergraduate programs for engineering. The process for registration is generally as follows:
Professional engineers are not licensed in a specific discipline but are bound by their respective provincial engineering legislation e.g. in Ontario: Professional Engineers Act R.R.O. 1990, Regulation 941, Section 72 from practicing beyond their training and experience. Breaches of the code are often sufficient grounds for enforcement measures, which may include the suspension or harm of license and financial penalties. It could also statement in serving time jail, should negligence be shown to have played a part in any incident that causes damage of human life.
Engineers are not tested on technical knowledge during the licensing process if their education was accredited by the CEAB. Accreditation of schools and their accredited degree granting status are monitored and controlled. This accreditation process is governed by Engineers Canada through their active institution CEAB.
The accreditation process is continuous and enforced throughaccreditation reviews of each school. These reviews typically include the review of the school's curriculum including markedexams and assignments, interviews of current students, extracurricular activities and teaching staff as well additional areas the visiting board may feel need addressing. The specific areas considered are curriculum content, program environment and general criteria. The associations are granted both an exclusive right to designation and an exclusive correct to practice. A professional engineer is legally required to be licensed in most provinces. The level of enforcement varies depending on the specific industry but often a complaint needs to be filed for regulatory action to commence.
The professional engineer's license is only valid in the province of delivery. There are, however, agreements between the associations to ease mobility. In 2009, professional engineers Ontario led an initiative to introducing a national engineering licensing framework.
The term "engineer" is often used loosely in some Canadian industry sectors to describe people workings in the field of engineering technology—not professional engineering—as engineering technologists or engineering technicians and trades names such as stationary engineer. For example, the Canadian fly Guard and the Canadian Navy often calls its technicians "marine engineers," "power engineers" and "military engineers" internally, but not in the public domain. The term "locomotive engineer" has been an integral part of the Canadian railroad since its inception. "Stationary engineering" is a trade whose technicians operate heavy machinery and equipment that provide heat, light, climate control and power.
"In general there is no restriction on the right to practise as an engineer in the UK. However there are a small number of areas of work, generally safety related, which are reserved by statute, regulations or industry standards to licensed or otherwise approved persons." The title "engineer" is not regulated, butengineering titles are. There is no system for licensing, but registers are held of qualified persons. The Engineering Council is the UK regulatory body for its engineering profession. It holds the national registers of 235,000 engineers registered as EngTech engineering technicians, ICTTech information and communications technology technicians, IEng incorporated engineers and CEng chartered engineers. These titles are fully protected under law by means of the Engineering Council's Royal Charter and By-Laws. In order to protect these titles, action is taken through the courts against their unauthorized use.
To receive designation as a CEng, it is required to have approved education typically to Master's level and alsosignificant technical and commercial leadership and management competencies.
A chartered engineer is entitled to register through the European Federation of National Engineering Associations FEANI as a European Engineer and use the pre-nominal designation: Eur Ing.
In India, engineers with a bachelor's or master's degree in engineering or technology from a university are allowed to practice as consulting engineers—They must be licensed or registered with municipalities in order to submit public plans, designs or drawings for approval and record. The Institution of Engineers India was granted British Royal Charter in 1935 and admits engineers holding the above degrees as a corporate member AMIE or chartered engineer [India]: CEng [India].
IEIndia also offers registration as a professional engineer PE [India] and international professional engineer PE [Int'l] to member-engineers having seven years of active practical engineering experience after achieving their degrees. IEIndia is a member of IPEA International Professional Engineers Agreement with bilateral agreements with many national, foreign and international engineering institutions. Many municipalities exempt chartered engineers PE[India] or PE [Int'l] from their licenser or registration, by reciprocity comity. All such consulting engineers must be licensed, registered or chartered regardless of their discipline or area of practice.
In Iran, registration or licensure of professional engineers and engineering practice is governed by Ministry of Science, Research and Technology Iran.
For standardization, FE and PE exams are written and graded by a central organization, the National Organization for Examination and Training NOET which is known as Sanjesh in Persian.
Requirements for licensing are as follows:
Graduate from accredited four-year college or university program with a degree in engineering e.g., Bachelor of Engineering, Bachelor of Science in Engineering.
Complete a standard Fundamentals of Engineering FE written examination, which tests applicants on breadth of understanding of basic engineering principles and, optionally, some elements of an engineering speciality.
Accumulate aamount of engineering experience requirement is at least four years.
Complete a written Principles and Practice in Engineering PE examination, which tests the applicant's knowledge and skills in their chosen engineering discipline civil, electrical, industrial, mechanical, computer, etc., as well as engineering ethics.
In Pakistan, engineering education and profession is regulated by the Pakistan Engineering Council PEC via PEC Act 1976. PEC is a federal government organization. Any grownup with an engineering degree BE/BS/BSc Engineering from PEC accredited universities/institutes is legally allowed to register with the Pakistan Engineering Council PEC as a Registered engineer RE. Previously, every engineering graduate registered with the PEC and at least five years of applicable work experience was eligible for the title of professional engineer PE without any exam. To modernization the quality of engineering profession, this two-tier system has been enhanced via PEC CPD Bye-Laws 2008. This system was realistically implemented starting 10 July 2010. Graduate engineers now enroll and practice as registered engineer RE in their general discipline of work. After at least five years of applicable work experience and accumulation of at least 17 CPD Continued Professional coding points, they may effort the Engineering Practice Examination EPE conducted by the PEC. EPE is held by PEC biennially in major cities across the country. Those who pass the EPE are precondition the prestigious title of professional engineer PE in their specialized discipline of work.
To reclassification the quality of engineering services, engineers with professional engineer PE status are also required to engage in CPD activities in order to be able to retain their PE license. CPD points are awarded for various developmental activities such as formal education e.g. Postgraduate diploma, master or PhD, on-job experience, participating in conferences/workshops as audience, speaker or organizer, publications in technical journals, part-time teaching activities, serving as client lecturer other than full-time teaching and serving as external examiner for master/PhD thesis.
For CPD points system, upper limit of points has also been implemented to prevent abuse of the system and encourage balanced participation in various CPD activities. In case of on-job work experience which is the primary engagement of engineering profession, one CPD point is awarded for 400 hours of work. Upper limit of 2 mention points per year has been established for on-job work experience. Rewarding only 800 hours ~4 months full-time of work per year has many benefits including inherent tolerance for bouts of unemployment, in-built allowance for sickness/disease/injury, discouraging workaholism, enabling full-time engineering teachers to gain relevant field experience with reduced time commitment e.g. part-time consulting engagement and encouraging participation in other CPD activities which further the engineering profession e.g. guest lectures, publishing research, authoring a book and social work for engineers under recognized engineers' associations.
To avoid confusion, PEC CPD Bye-Laws 2008 introduced the legal term "registered person". Registered person is a term distinct from registered engineer RE. It is a blanket term used for all persons enrolled with PEC inany capacity – whether as registered engineers RE or professional engineers PE.