Take 2; Getting Myself Geared Up
As you can see from the dates of the posts so far, having set up this platform for comment I have been incredibly negligent and not utilised it at all properly. So here I go again in what I hope will be the start of a regular stream of comment relating to the construction industry.
I see it as apt that my first post after such a hiatus (I'm not sure I can even describe it as such since I never really got started) describes the "Hardship of Chartership". I'd rather not describe it as bone idleness but it is very easy to see how engineers end up drifting under the flood called the day job and never quite get round to writing that quarterly report they've been promising themselves.
So my journey to my journey to Chartership so far has seen me have a very successful first year after graduating, finding the time to tick off several objectives and take advantage of plenty of Personal Development opportunities. Being on a tender and working "normal" hours certainly helped here. Then at roughly the same time as getting into a long term relationship I found myself moving to a "proper" job and suddenly being days late on submitting my quarterly report turned into weeks turned into months. Recently I have been trying to get my act together so I can push on and get myself accredited as an Incorporated Engineer (IEng).
Today I went to a session run by the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) regarding the Review Process and how I actually get myself there. It was an excellent session hosted by Laing O'Rourke and ran by one of the Assistant Regional Directors of the ICE and I now feel far more confident about going forward.
Prior to the Review day as an Engineer I must attain several Development Objectives (DO's). The Review panel want to see is that I display the attributes of a Professional Engineer.
Development Objective Categories
- Use your engineering knowledge and understanding to make the most of existing and emerging technology
- Apply appropriate theoretical and practical methods to the analysis and solution of engineering problems
- Provide technical and commercial management
- Demonstrate effective interpersonal skills
- Demonstrate a personal commitment to professional standards, recognising obligations to society, the profession and the environment
Professional attributes
- Knowledge and application of engineering principles
- Management, Leadership and Responsibility
- Commercial Ability
- Health, Safety and Welfare
- Sustainable Development
- Communications
- Professional commitment
So we can see that the attributes broadly reflect the work demonstrated by the DO's. What is important is that where objectives are knocked off one by one, a Professional Engineer presents themselves with a blend of all of the attributes.
The process of the Professional Review to gain Chartership is divided into several parts (once completing the various training objectives to get you to the day);
- 15 minute presentation,
- Q&A Session,
- Two hour written exercise.
What was interesting to listen to is that what they really want to hear is personal opinion. The whole aim of the Professional Review is to acertain that you really are ready to go out into the world as a Professional Engineer. So as part of the Review (as well as the Project and Experience Report that you must submit) the Assessors want to hear what you really think. Well hopefully by going back to the original aims of this blog I can practice that and focus on forming my views on a variety of topics.
Are you part of the ICE? Are you working towards or have you completed a Professional Review? What were your experiences?
