New e-Petition for protecting the Title ( word ) " Engineer " for Professionals .

Yet another one?  None of the previous attempts have gone anywhere.  Nobody outside a small group of chartered engineers is interested.

That is true, but I think we should keep on trying! The institution are doing a lot of lobbying of government, and a petition like this cannot do any harm in my opinion.

I don’t think the idea will get anywhere as the word is in such common use now that so many businesses would be affected if forced to stop using it. You might as well try to copyright the word ‘Blue’.

 

David, what exactly are the IET lobbying for? I think an ill-conceived petition can do harm if it detracts from a more considered argument.

Sorry, what I meant to say is that the IET are seen by decision makers as a leading voice on Engineering in this country, and anything that raises the profile of engineering can only be good. Looking at the wording of the petition, I personally do not think it is ill-conceived - the "message" is good! However, I don't underestimate the effort required to elevate the perception of engineering, but we must keep on trying.



Surely we don't give up with something we believe in just because it has failed to get anywhere in the past. Engineers should be recognised for what they do, and my belief in this is one reason I'm a PRA.



Best Regards.

So far as I am concerned, it's not merely a lost cause, but it's a bad one as well.



Imagine I were to set up a Society of Artists.  The membership is only £100 per year.  The Society will offer Chartered Artist status to properly qualified artists, for only another £50 on top of the membership fee.



A few years down the line, I start complaining that lots of unqualified people are calling themselves artists.  This is a terrible thing, and dilutes the status of proper, qualified artists.  I start a petition to lobby the government to only allow charted members of my Society to call themselves artists.



How far do you think I would get?



The word "engineer" has been around for centuries; long before the current engineering institutes were founded.  It's widely used bt the public to mean all kinds of things.  Nobody is going to be interested if a small number of institutions try to hijack the word for their own exclusive use.

Only Chartered Engineers are considered for protecting  the word " Engineers "  ! And Incorporated ones are once again left out ?! Are not they considered Engineers worth of protection ?!

The last petition set up  for only Charetred Engineers  reached only about 35.000 " Yes " !

David Parr:

Sorry, what I meant to say is that the IET are seen by decision makers as a leading voice on Engineering in this country, and anything that raises the profile of engineering can only be good. Looking at the wording of the petition, I personally do not think it is ill-conceived - the "message" is good! However, I don't underestimate the effort required to elevate the perception of engineering, but we must keep on trying.



Surely we don't give up with something we believe in just because it has failed to get anywhere in the past. Engineers should be recognised for what they do, and my belief in this is one reason I'm a PRA.



Best Regards.

David,



Your last sentence is a direct contradiction of your first sentence. Surely you can't be serious in proposing the IET as being a leading voice in the UK and then admit their past failings at the same time. Other than the attainment of the royal charter from the privy council, the IET (and EC) has no tangable evidence of any success that could be considered beneficial to its registered members.



The IET is seen by many as an elite organisation with the process of getting chartered engineer status being comparable to taking part in an arranged marrriage and joining the secret service at the same time; with the PRAs acting as go-between the applicant and the other side; and the long wait followed by the intervew panel followed by another long wait being likened to waiting to hear if one's been enlisted in the forces or not. It has all the appearance of being very hush hush and behind closed doors. Something that's opposite to being open and transparent.



For the hard headed 10% this is seen as worth it; but for the rest of the engineering population (who are just as well qualified and experienced) it's not worth the hassle.



Unless the IET and EC simplyfy the process and open up its doors to the 90% of disinterested engineers, the task of seeking protection of the title 'engineer' or having an influencing voice amongsts government circles is quite frankly a futile one.

Hello again Mr Birdi,



You take a rather large leap of thought to say that my work as a PRA indicates that the IET are now failing in some way. PRAs are available to all who want their help (whether they are aiming for IEng, CEng, EngTech etc. by the way). We help individuals to achieve their best application - or at least that is our goal. The registration process does take a long time in some cases. Volunteers do the assessments and the interviews, and at times there are more than a thousand cases in the loop; a logistical nightmare for the IET staff. Despite this, everyone gets equal and fair attention.



When an individual receives his or her EngTech or whatever, they can be sure it says something about them.



The IET must, and do, continue to change and improve, as the profession develops. They DO have a voice within government. They can always do better. I can aways do better, but that doesn't make me a failure, it just makes me normal!



I don't believe the IET is elitist, but it must maintain standards. As far as professional registration is concerned, these standards are set down by the Engineering Council, and the institution is audited to ensure they are being followed. The IET also sets its own standards governing grades of membership. These are strictly adhered to, and it is the members themselves that ensure this happens.



I hope that helps. I'm sorry if you feel that the institution has let you down personally in some way. The best course of action in these cases is always to take a deep breath and get on with it. If you are a professional engineer with the necessary competences you will be recognised and accepted.



Best Regards,

Just a legitimate question :  in the  case this e-petition were  approved , who is the qualified person allowed to use the term

( titlle) " Engineer " ? The use of such a professional qualification will be restricted only to the ones registered with the

Engineering Council , that are , to CEngs and IEngs ?