How can I get fully accredited?

To give you a viewpoint from someone who has some involvement in this (but for INCOSE UK rather than The IET), you need to demonstrate that you hold the equivalent of an accredited bachelors and masters. This doesn't mean that you have to exactly have accredited bachelors and masters, and the Engineering Council would state that it is possible to achieve CEng without any qualifications at all.

The education needs are defined in a document called Accreditation of Higher Education Programmes (AHEP) produced by the Engineering Council. Chances are, your first degree will meet some of those needs and then its a case of identifying the gaps. Usually those gaps can be met by using aspect of your post-education work experience. Yes, publishing academic articles may well also support some aspects.

However, as Simon stated, CEng is much more that just academic qualification and there are a whole set of competencies that need to be demonstrated through your post-education work experience. That whole process demonstrating those competencies can take a few years at the minimum and often more. Its not a bad idea to think about this early career because its much easier to capture evidence as you go.

Everyone is individual, which is where PRAs can be handy people to talk to.

Mark Tickner said:

the Engineering Council would state that it is possible to achieve CEng without any qualifications at all.

And just to really emphasise the points made by all above...this is absolutely the case. I have certainly helped candidates with HNCs become Chartered. For any applicant, with any qualifications, "all" you need to show is that in your day to day work you are showing all the UKSPEC competences. The only difference your paper qualifications make is that, as they scale from none to accredited Masters, it becomes easier and easier to justify in your application how you gained sufficient technical knowledge to do what you're now doing.

To turn it around, I also occasionally have to remind applicants with accredited Masters that this is only one small step on the way to being Chartered. Take two  (say) 23 year olds, one of whom did an accredited Masters and the other of whom did a good apprenticeship and (thanks admittedly to a bit of luck) had some good work experience. They could actually be at pretty much the same stage on their path to CEng. The one with the apprenticeship would just have to make a bit surer that they got some complex engineering experience before they applied. Just as the one with the Masters may have to be a bit surer that they got good commercial and organisational experience.

Basically don't worry about qualifications when it comes to achieving CEng. If you end up in a "CEng level position" by whatever means you will be able to get CEng. What's important about qualifications is working out what is needed in your industry to get you to that position. Some industries are very qualification focused, some aren't.

And never, ever, ever take a further qualification solely to get CEng.  (Unless you're applying to the IMechE who take a different view on this to the IET.)

In my experience vanishingly few IET CEngs have Masters degrees, accredited or not. 

Good luck,

Andy

Just to follow on from Andy's comments, over 70% of CEng applicants to the IET do not hold an accredited Masters qualification. They are called individual applicants and the % is growing. 

Just to follow on from Andy's comments, over 70% of CEng applicants to the IET do not hold an accredited Masters qualification. They are called individual applicants and the % is growing.