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Transfering from EngTech to IEng (With a BEng)

BHosking
In need of some advice...


Following my placement year a university I successfully attained EngTech. I am now in full time engineering role following my graduation with a first class BEng degree.

It's my aspiration to move onto IEng "Naturally" as quoted from https://www.theiet.org/career/professional-registration/transferring-to-ceng-or-ieng/.


Is IEng something that I can apply for in the short term (Next 6 months), or is this something that I should be aiming for within the next couple of years.


P.s. Placement was a Quality Engineering role, I currently work in a graduate scheme so my current role changes every 4 months covering everything from Design, project management, commercial, etc...
  • 0
    Have a read of the latest version of UKSPEC https://www.theiet.org/career/professional-registration/incorporated-engineer/am-i-eligible/


    In addition to having an appropriate qualification, you also need to have enough work experience to put down on the application form.  In essence, you need to be able to show that you have covered all the areas listed in UKSPEC.  You can't get IEng until you can show that you have done all the things that Incorporated Engineers do.
  • 0
    I would expect you to get quite mixed messages, depending on who you ask, so I suppose the obvious first port of call is your employer.  I have recently seen a number of early career engineers with CEng accredited degrees, seeking IEng as a  “career milestone” or “stepping stone” with CEng as a more medium term target, the main influence on them making that decision is their employer, or workplace mentor.


    Some institutions focus mainly on degree accreditation as their primary gateway, so for them whether your degree is “IEng accredited” or “partly CEng accredited” but with “further learning required” is important, although both would be accepted for IEng.  The IET emphasises professional competence, as demonstrated through performance in the workplace. As you gain work-based learning this usually becomes more important to your professional performance, than the nature of your degree syllabus and some people even change specialism in response to emerging opportunities.  It depends on the type of work, but many employers would opine that they can’t tell the difference in performance between engineers with different types of degree.    


    Simon’s advice is good and I would add, my own interpretation which is that; the IEng standard describes a “fully responsible” engineer not someone “under training”.  So to demonstrate competent practice someone should have a  significant period of time during which they have demonstrated consistently, achievements as an engineer aligned to UK-SPEC. The second column of UK-SPEC “examples” gives some context to the competences, although the examples are not prescriptive.  There is no rule about length of time, but as a rule of thumb, I would suggest at least 1 year with appropriate responsibility. So on the basis of your question, I mean after the rotational “training” placements. Because IEng is intentionally positioned to be less demanding than CEng, it can normally be achieved sooner, but on the basis that some graduates are gaining CEng within four years of graduation, timing isn’t much of a guide.


    If you have recently begun training, I would be concerned if you were being led to expect IEng soon. However, you should seek understanding of how the IEng and CEng standards relate to your type of work and the value of potentially seeking IEng , versus targeting CEng if that is your aspiration. It is difficult advise because in some sectors becoming IEng could add some additional value to you, but I’m sorry to say that in others snobbery is quite prevalent and it wouldn’t.  Good luck whatever your choice!    


  • 0
    In addition to the good advice above, find yourself a PRA https://www.theiet.org/career/professional-registration/getting-help-with-your-application/find-a-professional-registration-advisor/


    We're here to help, we've seen large quantities of successful application from all sorts of people with all sorts of career paths, and we can discuss your case with you individually and confidentially. Doesn't cost you anything either! (Ok, if you meet your PRA in a cafe it may cost you a cup of tea!)


    Please, please use us - there are so many myths and misunderstandings around (including many held by employers) that we're able to break.


    Thanks,


    Andy
  • 0
    Andy beat me to it with that reply. In addition to a PRA there are a couple of other things I would suggest.

    First, even if you feel you might need to postpone applying for IEng for six months or a year while you tick a few more of the UK Spec competence boxes, it is worth starting to put together an application early as it always takes longer to write than expected, normally due to work getting in the way with deadlines needing to be met.

    Second, check with your employer whether they can adapt the training you are receiving to ensure you fill any gaps in the UK Spec competences. This will help to get you across the finish line quicker and also give a higher chance of success. To put this in perspective, most employers have their graduate schemes geared towards registration and are more than happy for the graduates to take control of their destiny rather than having to try to work out for themselves what gaps there are.

    Very best wishes for success,

    Alasdair

  • 0
    Brilliant advice - starting your application early will actually highlight the parts of UK spec where you need to gain more experience and will guide your conversation on training and other opportunities. Just don't panic where it shows up gaps: management doesn't mean you need to have 20 people (or even one person) reporting to you, sustainability doesn't mean you have to have written the company's recycling policy, technical knowledge doesn't mean you have to be spending all day doing calculations.


    Pulling all this together, a good strategy for anyone seeking registration at any level is:
    1. Read UK Spec and any guidelines you can find (including these forums!)

    • Stop panicking, remember that any competent engineer can get registered

    • Speak to an IET Mentor (or PRA) about where you are now and get outline advice of where you probably already meet the criteria, and where there might be a need for more work

    • Start your application, concentrating on your current role first

    • If in any doubt at all, speak to your Mentor / PRA again to firm up advice of where you have gaps and what the IET would be looking for to close them

    • Speak to your employer about a development plan to close those gaps. IMPORTANT: You are NOT closing those gaps to achieve registration, you ARE closing those gaps to become a better (more rounded) engineer who will add more value to the business. Perhaps a secondment to another project or team? Getting out on site more? Getting into the office more? Going out with the sales team to visit customers? Helping prepare for an ISO9001 audit, or helping solve problems after an audit?

    • After that it's just review and repeat until you think you've met all the UKSpec competences. Redraft your application.

    • PUT YOUR APPLICATION THROUGH A PRA BEFORE YOU PUT IT IN. Saves time and grief for everyone! Yourself very much included.


    I think you can see through this why the much underused IET Mentor service can be of value, they are there to keep giving you advice right the way through this process.  https://www.theiet.org/career/professional-development/mentoring/apply-for-a-mentor/ PRAs are generally expecting to be used when you're nearly ready to submit, But I think most of us PRAs would be happy to give advice at any point.


    I hate to say this, but do be wary of taking advice on registration from people you work with, including your managers and registered engineers. I've seen some very misleading advice being given - generally making registration seem much harder than it actually is. Most common I've seen is engineers being forced into management roles because "you need to be a manager to be registered".  


    Good luck!


    Andy
  • 0
    Some great advice here - we also have some webinars you can attend that go through the basics of the competence development process, and you can ask any questions.  Recommend the Friday webinar at this stage, as you're earlier in your career, and you can register for these here: https://www.theiet.org/career/professional-registration/getting-help-with-your-application/professional-registration-webinars/


    Also, if you do want a mentor then I fully recommend it and we'll try to find one either locally or in your sector to support you - as Andy said - they're a not often used service and they are here to help :)  It's entirely free to members so a great option if you don't have the support of someone in your company.
  • 0
    You've reminded me why the IET is so good!


    I've now got myself a PRA and have created a spreadsheet to ensure I'm on track to hit the UK-Spec competencies. I have a meeting with my scheme manager to ensure that the placements that undertake are suitable to hit these competencies without forcing myself into a managers role/waste management role unnecessarily ;)


    Equally, I've decided to enrol onto a Monitored Professional Development Scheme that my company offers as accredited by the IMechE (Company pays membership of all Engineering Institutions). I will then use this additional support scheme (Quarterly reports) to build up my skill set and apply to the IET once I'm confident I've met each metric.


    Thanks everyone for the brilliant advice!

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