1. science
2. engineering

ENGINEERING COUNCIL OF
SOUTH AFRICA
KIMBERLEY ROADSHOW
16 OCTOBER 2014
1
PROCEDURE TO REGISTER
WITH ECSA
Step 1:“Candidate” Registration in order to
have qualifications evaluated.
o All applicants with non-accredited and non South African qualifications
have to apply for “Qualification Evaluation” which is done by ECSA’s
Qualification Examinations Committee(QEC).
Candidate Engineer
BSc(Eng)/BEng
Candidate Eng Techno
BTech
Candidate Cert Eng
Cert of Competency
Candidate Eng Techni
NDip
2
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
MODEL
Practice
Observe Code of
Conduct and
Maintain Competence through CPD
Professional Registration
Training
And
Experience
Meet Standard
For Professional
Competency
Candidate Registration
Graduation
Accredited
Programme
Meet Standard
for Engineering
Education
3
PROFESSIONAL ENGINEER
(Pr Eng)
Experience standards characterised by:
• Activities that are essentially intellectual
• Analysing and solving complex problems
• Developing and applying new technologies creatively and
innovatively
• Exercising Professional judgement
• Managing resources
• (Dreamers)
4
PROFESSIONAL ENGINEERING
TECHNOLOGISTS (Pr Tech Eng)
Experience standards characterised by:
• Solving broadly defined problems through application of proven
techniques and procedures
• Developing, maintaining and managing today’s technologies
• Exercising Professional judgement
• Managing resources
• (Doers)
5
PROFESSIONAL ENGINEERING
TECHNICIAN (Pr Techni Eng)
Experience standards characterised by:
• Solving well defined problems using proven techniques and procedures
• Supervision and technical responsibility
• Contributing to implementation, operation and maintenance of
products, equipment, processes and services
• (Fixers)
6
HOW AND WHEN TO REGISTER
Step 2: Training and Professional
Development
while employed
(Current system in place for the engineer and technologist categories only)
 Commitment and Undertaking (CU)
•
Employer CEO/Chief Engineer registers CU
•
Undertakes to train “candidate” persons in accordance with ECSA’s
policy and discipline specific guidelines
•
Ensures internal training programme is in place and being implemented
•
So far 573 C&Us signed by employers of engineers countrywide and 3
773 mentors listed doing training.
7
REGISTRATION PROCESS
RE-ENGINEERING
New Registration System
8
Role Players Related to Registration
Experience
Appraiser
Applicant
Professional Reviewer
Referee
Assessing
Committee Member
Supervisor
Registration
Manager/Asst
Assessing
Committee Chair
Employers
Registration Officer
Registration
Committee Chair
Mentor
Central Registration
Committee Chair
Application
Qualifications
Evaluator
Qualifications
Validator
Staff
Education Officer
Call Centre Agent
External: Industry
Finance Staff
VA Staff
Advisor
Volunteers
(VA and ECSA)
9
What Policy Changes?
Aspect
Prior to the NRS
Under the NRS
• Embedded in Document
R2/1A: Acceptable Work for
Candidate Engineers;
• Single, integrated policy R-01P, defining
• registration and education
Registration
policy,
Policy
• Does not consider other
• links with standards (R-02PE)
classes of applicants explicitly.
• links with processes (R-03PE),
toto
allaccredited
applicants.or
• Accredited or recognized
• •Noapplies
change
qualification
recognized qualifications.
or
• Accelerated evaluation of
Education • prior evaluation of
listed qualifications.
Requirements qualification(s) as meeting
• .Evaluation criteria defined in
Policy
educational requirements.
document E-17-P for
qualifications and assessed
learning.
10
What Changes in Standards?
Aspect
Prior to the NRS
Standards of • Training requirements for
Competency
Candidate Engineers, in
for Registration R2/1A Section 5
• Further requirements in the
Discipline Specific Guidelines
(Professional Attributes in
section 5 for seven disciplines)
Under the NRS
Competency Standard for registration
as a Professional Engineer in
document R-02-PE.
• Eleven generic outcomes, with
definitions for the level of problem
solving and engineering activities.
(No DSG’s in Standard)
• Professional Attributes included in
standard
• Level descriptors differentiate
categories
• Criterion-based method of
Seeking
• Only the Engineer “alternate
meeting education requirements
Registration route” available
by evaluation and assessment
Without
• ND or equivalent plus 10
defined in E-17-P.
Accredited or
years working at level of Pr
• When educational requirements
Recognised
Eng: (Experience Appraisal,
are complete, apply for
Qualification
then write prescribed final
registration in normal way.
year exams).
• No additional time limits.
• Identified methods of further
learning and assessment.
11
11
What Changes in Application: 3
Aspect
Prior to the NRS
Evidence of • For all disciplines:
Training/
• Training and Experience
Competency
Summary
• Training and Experience
Reports
• Varying requirements across
disciplines:
• Project Report
• Essay Test
• Claim to Competency
• Presentation
• Prof Development report
Under the NRS
• Uniform requirements across
disciplines:
• Training and Experience
Summary (TES)
• Training and Experience
Reports (TER)
• Training and Experience
Outlines (TEO)
• Engineering Report
• Presentation
• Pre-registration CPD-type
activity (IPD)
12
What Changes in Assessment: 4
Aspect
Prior to the NRS
• Embedded in part in other
documents (or not
documented)
Application • Manual
Processing
Process
Definition
Assessment • Different assessment
of
instruments used in
Competency
professional reviews.
• Civil (incl essay) and
• Electrical. Other disciplines.
Decision
Making
•
•
•
•
Delegation to the PAC of:
decision to register or
defer,
Reserve refusal to Central
Registration Committee
Under the NRS
• High level process definition
(R-03-P)
• Detailed IT system
• specification.
On-line
• Workflow-enabled
• Policy (R-01-P) defines main
stages and permitted decisions in
the assessment process.
• Common assessment instruments
addressing the outcomes and an
integrative judgement,
• provide consistent trails through
all stages
13
• No change to delegation or refusal
• Two-deferment practice
regularised
• Credit given for outcomes fulfilled
What Changes in Guidance: 5
Aspect
Training
And
Mentoring
Guidelines
Prior to the NRS
• Discipline Specific guidelines
having force of
standards/policy.
Variants:
• Chemical
• Civil
• Remaining seven
• Differing definitions of
Professional Attributes to be
demonstrated
Under the NRS
• Layered set of guidelines:
• Training and mentoring (all
categories) (R-04-P) with
defined responsibility levels.
• Guide to competency
standards for Professional
Engineers (R-08-PE)
• Discipline-specific Training
Guidelines (R-05-ddd-PE)
14
The NRS and its Phases at a Glance …
Category
Policy
Candidate and
Professional Engineer
R-01-P
Standard
s
Process
On-line
System
R-02-PE
R-03-PE
(EA & PR)
Application &
Assessment
Process 1
R-02-PT
R-03-PT
(EEA)
Candidate and
Professional Engineering
Technologist
Candidate and
Professional Engineering
Technician
Candidate and
Professional
Certificated Engineer
Specified Categories
Registration under
International
Agreements
Status:
Fully
Developed
R-01-P
R-02-PN
R-03-PN
(EEA)
No
Change
*
R-03-CE
(EEA)
To Follow
To Follow
To Follow
No
Change
No
Change
No
Change
R-01-P
Documents
at final dev
W-I-P
Assessment
Process 2
(variant of
Process 1)
Assessment
Process 2
Assessment
Process 3
(P1simplified)
* Assumes no change
to Cert Eng Model
15
Registration Process: Logging in
New User
Enter Essential Details
Assign User ID,
Generate Password
Log In
Existing User
Log In
Or
Forgot User ID/PW
Select:
 Continue my application
 Apply for Candidate Engineer
 Apply for Professional Engineer
 Apply for Educational Evaluation
 more …
Educational
Evaluation
CE/PE Application
16
TRANSITION TO NEW
REGISTRATION SYSTEM
The new system for the engineer category will be phased
in over a period of two years, commencing as from April
2013.
Candidate engineers who trained under the current
(legacy) registration system will be allowed to apply in
terms of the current requirements/ documentation.
However, the current requirements for civil candidates
of writing two essays at the professional review and
mechanical candidates to hand in a design report and for
electrical/electronic engineers to hand in forms AD7, AD8
and AD9, would then still apply.
17
TRANSITION PHASE continued…
•
The two systems would therefore be run concurrently for a
period of two years to phase out all “previous system”
applicants.
• All applicants submitting after 1 April 2015 would therefore
also have to provide New Registration System evidence of
competence and will be assessed against Competency
Standard R-02-PE.
• Alternatively, candidates who trained under the current
system would have to apply in terms of the new system
requirements/documentation, but they would have to supply
the New Registration System evidence of competence to be
assessed against competency standard R-02-PE.
18
ECSA Professional Competencies –
where training must lead
D
9:
Exercise
Judgement
7: Meet
regulatory
requirements
8:
Act Ethically
CEPLevel
2: Analyse
Engineering
Problems
10: Be
Responsible
DoR
11: Life-long
Learning
E
3: Synthesize
Solutions
1: Use
Engineering and
Contextual
Knowledge
A
C
6: Address
Impacts on
People and
Environment
4: Manage
Engineering
Activities
5: Communicate
Effectively
B
CEALevel
A Outcome Group
CEP = Complex Engineering Problem
CEA = Complex Engineering Activity
DoR = Degree of Responsibility
19

1.
PLANNING PRINCIPLES :
TRAINING PROGRAMMES
Two principles must be followed by supervisors and mentors
when planning training programmes for candidates :
A variety of work activities is necessary for the proper
development of a candidate.
Variety may be obtained at the various stages in the lifecycle
of an engineering activity : conception, planning, design,
construction, implementation, operation and closure.
Associated with this lifecycle are specific functions, including
commissioning, testing, improving, trouble-shooting.
Candidate should experience several stages in the lifecycle of a
project or projects.
20
PLANNING PRINCIPLES :
TRAINING PROGRAMMES (cont…)
2.
Increasing responsibility and accountability
within the organization must be imposed on
and accepted by the candidate until he/she
is capable of accepting professional
responsibility in making and executing
engineering decisions at the full professional
level.
21
Progression throughout the candidacy period
Level
Nature of work: the
candidate
Responsibility of Candidate
Level of Supervisor/Mentor
Support
1. Exposure
…undergoes induction,
observes processes, work
of competent practitioners
No responsibility
Mentor explains challenges and
forms of solution
2. Assist
…performs specific
processes under close
supervision
Limited responsibility for work
output
Supervisor/Mentor coaches,
offers feed back
3. Participate
…performs specific
processes as directed with
limited supervision
Full responsibility for
supervised work
Supervisor progressively
reduces support, but monitors
outputs
4. Contribute
…performs specific work
with detailed approval of
work outputs
Full responsibility to
supervisor for immediate
quality of work
Candidate articulates own
reasoning and compares it with
those of supervisor
5. Perform
… works in team without
supervision, recommends
work outputs
Level of responsibility to
supervisor is appropriate to a
registered person
Candidate takes on problem
solving without support, at
most limited guidance
22
PROGRESSION OF TRAINING
• At each of the 5 levels of responsibility, the table
shows the nature of the candidate’s work,
ranging from being oriented at level A to
working at the degree of responsibility required
for registration, namely level E or Performing
• By the end of the training period, the candidate
must have performed individually and as a team
member at the level of problem solving and
engineering activity required for registration and
performed at responsibility level E for at least
twelve months.
23
REGISTRATION PROCESS
•
Registration process for all categories of
registration basically the same and will
become even more uniform when the
new system is implemented.
•
Exception: Pr Eng category which has a
compulsory professional review.
•
Other categories have the discretion to
call applicants in for an interview.
24
APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS
(EXISTING SYSTEM)
• Personal details (Forms A1.1 & 1.2 engineers and B.1& B.2 technologists
and C.1 & C.2 technicians)
• Summary of Training Periods (A2.2, B2.2 & C2.2 respectively)
• Training/Experience Reports(approx 2000 words)(A 2.1, B2.1, C2.1)
• Confidential Referee Reports
• Project Report/Design Report
• Certified copies of qualification documents (and transcripts of subjects
take for technologist category)
• Proof of membership of Voluntary Association (if applicable)
• Application fee
25
TIPS ON EXPERIENTIAL
REPORTS
•
•
•
•
•
•
SELL YOURSELF
WRITE in the FIRST PERSON
DETAIL what YOU have DONE
DETAIL YOUR level of RESPONSIBILITY
DO NOT GENERALISE
ALL PERIODS must be COVERED
26
THANK YOU!
www.ecsa.co.za
Email : [email protected]
Tel No : (011) 607 9500
Offices : Waterview Corner,
Building 2 Ernest
Oppenheimer Avenue,
Bruma
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