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Value in IEng Registration

Afternoon all, just sitting behind a laptop screen pondering and found myself plotting course for my career progression and seemingly unlikely professional registration for CEng.

My current employer has encouraged that I achieve CEng registration (easier said than done) and any promotion to the next grade would be subject to attaining CEng. I'm wary of submitting my application for CEng due to not having an adequate level of education (I have a Bachelors degree only) and at my age there's little chance of me returning to university for further study. I'm employed as a senior engineer and acting principal engineer within a project I'm currently commissioned. I appreciate that working at a principal engineer level does not necessarily provide the evidence required to prove that my understanding and knowledge is at a MEng level.

Rewind a few years, I was reasonably proud of successful registration and to achieve IEng, however, to date I'm of the opinion that it has done little else other than measurement / benchmark of my competence and identify area's in which I need to strengthen. My employer (at the time of registration) did not professionally recognise IEng registration and from my own observations nor do other employers (that I've noticed). A cursory glance of job listings on LinkedIn, shall normally state a requirement for applicants to hold CEng registration or working towards CEng with no mention of IEng. There's an immense pressure to achieve Chartership and with failure to do so could be possibly observed as I'm either inadequate or not quite cutting the grade by a prospective or current employer.

Is there any value to the IEng registration other than a personal achievement and worth maintaining? I imagine the nervousness and apprehension about navigating the CEng route and the fear of failure that I'm not unique in this respect and other's may have a similar story? Not sure what I would wish to hear, but knowing of others that succeeded with a similar background and level of education would provide some encouragement.

Regards,

Allan.

Parents

0 Roy Bowdler over 4 years ago

Jim, Alasdair & Andy are all better Engineers than I am. I was a reasonably good IEng 25+ years ago. I never sought or deserved CEng, because other potential pathways opened up, which I was able to pursue to masters level, chartered recognition and reasonably senior management in an “engineering” business.

Jim is unfortunate is occupying a generation that missed out on CEng for similar achievement to their immediate predecessors, and didn’t have the access to higher education of their successors. However, I have to sympathise even more with the current generation forced into debt for degrees, that often don’t secure a good career.

Jim also had little reason to pursue CEng until relatively recently, a respected Fellow of his professional institution “different but equally valuable” to a CEng according to Engineering Council. However, the “rug was pulled” when Engineering Council (with IIE no longer on the scene) decided to “downgrade” IEng.

Many would argue that they just “clarified” and removed a “false” equality. I don’t think that they should have automatically transferred every IEng to CEng, but the whole issue was very badly handled. A proper user-friendly process should have been put in place and should always be in place for transfers. Many have transferred from IEng to CEng under UK-SPEC, but the pathway is not clearly marked and I have seen plenty of trips and falls, often undeserved.

The last I knew a senior IET representative was trying to unpick some of the more pernicious consequences, but the politics is “difficult” and in some quarters fairly hostile.

I honestly don’t think that IEng, is ever going to break out of the pockets where it has survived (mostly MOD sphere of influence). Some degree apprenticeships linked to IEng, may provide a short-term boost, but without a clear pathway to CEng frustration and anger will grow amongst younger up and coming engineers, who can easily compare themselves with age group peers getting CEng.

I have long accepted that CEng is “the main show in town”. However, I’m happy to encourage anyone to be IEng or Eng Tech with their eyes open, because it will offer some benefits.

A reformed system could be developed that was “value neutral” i.e. disentangled status from competence, but the current infrastructure can’t do that. In any case human nature is what it is, competition will occur whenever we divide and any parent that favours a dominant sibling, will lose the respect of the others.
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0 Roy Bowdler over 4 years ago

Jim, Alasdair & Andy are all better Engineers than I am. I was a reasonably good IEng 25+ years ago. I never sought or deserved CEng, because other potential pathways opened up, which I was able to pursue to masters level, chartered recognition and reasonably senior management in an “engineering” business.

Jim is unfortunate is occupying a generation that missed out on CEng for similar achievement to their immediate predecessors, and didn’t have the access to higher education of their successors. However, I have to sympathise even more with the current generation forced into debt for degrees, that often don’t secure a good career.

Jim also had little reason to pursue CEng until relatively recently, a respected Fellow of his professional institution “different but equally valuable” to a CEng according to Engineering Council. However, the “rug was pulled” when Engineering Council (with IIE no longer on the scene) decided to “downgrade” IEng.

Many would argue that they just “clarified” and removed a “false” equality. I don’t think that they should have automatically transferred every IEng to CEng, but the whole issue was very badly handled. A proper user-friendly process should have been put in place and should always be in place for transfers. Many have transferred from IEng to CEng under UK-SPEC, but the pathway is not clearly marked and I have seen plenty of trips and falls, often undeserved.

The last I knew a senior IET representative was trying to unpick some of the more pernicious consequences, but the politics is “difficult” and in some quarters fairly hostile.

I honestly don’t think that IEng, is ever going to break out of the pockets where it has survived (mostly MOD sphere of influence). Some degree apprenticeships linked to IEng, may provide a short-term boost, but without a clear pathway to CEng frustration and anger will grow amongst younger up and coming engineers, who can easily compare themselves with age group peers getting CEng.

I have long accepted that CEng is “the main show in town”. However, I’m happy to encourage anyone to be IEng or Eng Tech with their eyes open, because it will offer some benefits.

A reformed system could be developed that was “value neutral” i.e. disentangled status from competence, but the current infrastructure can’t do that. In any case human nature is what it is, competition will occur whenever we divide and any parent that favours a dominant sibling, will lose the respect of the others.
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