Are engineering certifications useful

I have been working on new blog called

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which is focused on assessing engineering certifications and their validity. Unfortunately I don't have many electrical engineering certs, but the few they do provide information about do raise interesting questions. I'd be anxious to hear how other people feel about the certs i have referenced under the electrical section and even more interested in learning about other engineering certifications.

Reply to
sharkoil
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What is an engineering certificate? Who or what issues them? What is the legal or contractual basis if any? AFAIK the only certificate of significance is an engineering license issued by a state (in the USA) agency.

Bill

Reply to
Salmon Egg

How's about the ONC, OND, HNC and HND, accredited by the former IEE (now IET)? These, and their successors (BTECs) are often specified as entry qualifications for engineering jobs in the UK. (HNC and HND return no response on the above website.)

Martin.

Reply to
Martin Crossley

The vast majority of engineers are "certified" by their reputations. A few civil engineers "need" the PE but otherwise engineers are judged by what they have worked on and their responsibilities in that work.

Things like patents and publicatons are much more impressive than "certifications."

Reply to
John Gilmer

A PE is needed in *many* circumstances, even by EEs. Some states require it to call yourself an "engineer". You're right though, most engineers, electrical anyhow, don't need a PE because they either work under a PE or have a exemption by working for a corporation. No, I haven't got a PE and have seen no need for one.

To you perhaps. Anyone with a little time, money, and inclination can get a patent. "Publications" have lost a lot of their luster too.

Reply to
krw

This response is of no help. Now if ROT, PUS, BAH. or LIE offered these certificates, then I would know what you are talking about.

Bill

Reply to
Salmon Egg

The PP did mention, "in the UK". The OP did say, "..even more interested in learning about other engineering certifications." This is an *international* newsgroup.

Having written that, I rather suspect that the OP had US citizens in mind and hits on his website in intent. And that, as you suggest, your PP's comments weren't what the OP had in mind.

BTW - *who* offers particular certificates is, I would suggest, of secondary importance to who *recognises* these certificates. They are recognised as certificates within the US - typically by academic institutions as either as entry qualifications for courses or to grant exemption from some elements of a course.

-- Sue

Reply to
Palindrome

And a novel idea!

Reply to
Ben Miller

Any engineer who offers engineering services to te public, such as a consultant, needs a PE license. It is a legal document, not merely a certification.

Reply to
Ben Miller

Indeed. And the OP should be able to find details of ("learn about") these qualifications or "certifications", as well as requirements for becoming a chartered engineer, on the IET's website. (The IET is internationally recognised and represents the UK at CENELEC and publishes the UK Wiring Regs. etc.)

Maybe: I can only read words and diagrams. If I could read minds, I'd probably be rich and not working in this field:)

Now that would be useful. As would a table of rough equivalents. e.g. P.E.(US) is unknown in UK and is therefore not required of anyone who offers engineering services. Looking it up on Wikipedia, it seems to correspond to CEng or IEng.

Reply to
Martin Crossley

I suspect that the equivalence would be too rough to be useful. :)

Of course, in the UK, the people that advertise their own pre and post nominals tend to be people that most would not want to associate with, let alone employ. It just isn't done.

-- Sue

Reply to
Palindrome

That depends entirely what you mean by "engineering services" and the jurisdiction.

Reply to
krw

Not so much.

Reply to
krw

Most independent electronics or programming or computer types (who greatly outnumber the "juicer" type EEs) don't need any government license (aside from business type stuff) to seek work from "the public."

When they are first starting out some Micro$oft "tickets" might open a few doors but they work by reputaton after that.

One poster said that anyone can get a patent or some publicatons. That's true. But anyone can also get the various certifications and the PE. It just takes time and trouble.

The advantage of the patents and publications is that they are "forever." Your government issued "certification" has to be maintained. I gave up my PE when I was told I needed some bogus "Continuing Education" credits. You can get these often by just certifying you have studied something on your own but even that wasn't worth the trouble. I kept it for 15 years just as a means of keeping track of some people I worked with back in NC. But my PE never did anything for me. It had the potention of letting me "rent" my seal but I didn't want to pretend to be something I wasn't.

Reply to
John Gilmer

In California, and I presume a goodly number of other states, merely calling yourself an engineer without a PE license is an infraction. True, there is a corporate exemption. Even that, however, cannot allow a corporation to carry out engineering activity where Public Safety is involved without PE review.

Bill

Reply to
Salmon Egg

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Well anyone cant. First you must complete a ABET accredited four year EE education, then you must pass the fundamentals of engineering test which has a 57% pass rate to become an Engineer in Training (EIT), then you must have five endorsements from PE's verifying that you have two years of experience working as and EIT under a professional engineer, then after all that trouble you must pass an eight hour exam which has a 69% pass rate. If anyone could do it then everyone would have. And yes, to keep it you have to stay abreast of what is going on in engineering with professional development hours.

The PE is a license to practice engineering and legally call yourself an engineer. Without it you are like a law school student who did not pass the bar, or a med student who did not complete their internship and get a license to practice medicine, or an accountant who is not a CPA. With it you can PROVE yourself worthy of the title.

peace dawg

Reply to
Wecan do it

Again, that depends on what you mean by "the public" and the jurisdiction.

EEs, of any stripe, have no use for anything M$ has to offer.

Right, none has any particular meaning, on its own. Some people think they do, so perhaps that's enough. ;-)

Which is why I never bothered getting a PE. It would have done nothing but aggravate me. At the time there wasn't even anything on the test even remotely relevant to my work.

Reply to
krw

Which is stupid, every way from Sunday.

That's not so stupid, if the PE license actually meant anything.

Reply to
krw

Again, that depends on the jurisdiction.

No, ot only says you can PROVE you've gone through the bullshit the state says you must. BTW, not all lawyers have to pass the bar; that jurisdiction thing again.

Reply to
krw

An engineering certification is typically a document issued by an association which is recognized as a leading authority in a specialty or subset of an engineering discipline, such as HVAC in the case of mechanical engineering. The goals of the certificates are to acknowledge the expertise of a design professional in that specific field and also to provide an indication to the public about that person's abilities in a particular field. For examples of what I am referring to, I encourage to visit

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so you can see what I am talking about.

Many engineers in the US don't seek PE licensure for a various number of reasons, certifications offer another means for the professionals to be recognized and to validate their expertise.

Reply to
sharkoil

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