060404 andrew ramsay epc conference

8/7/2019 060404 Andrew Ramsay EPC Conference

1/21

regulating the engineering profession

The Engineering Council's Examinations -

opening up markets for UK HEIs

Andrew Ramsay

[email protected]


2/21


History

Started as the Council of Engineering Institutions Exam

An example of the ways the UK engineering profession

seeks ways to enable aspiring professional engineers to

achieve their ambitions

Based on the examinations of the major engineeringprofessional bodies

Became a mainstream route to professional membership

in the 1960s. The only alternative for most engineers

was to take an HNC with endorsements at their localtechnical college


3/21


By the early 1970s

Local Authority Maintenance Grants made degree

level education accessible to many more

CEI Part 3 became the means to top-up HNC to gain

Chartered Status New qualifications Technician Engineer (later

IEng) and Engineering Technician


4/21


CEI Examination took on a new life

Increasing reach and reputation of UK engineering

qualifications

Aspirations of developing economies in Hong Kong,Malaysia, Zimbabwe, Cyprus

Drawn to paucity of higher education opportunities


5/21


Creation of Engineering Council

In 1983

First attempt to codify standards and routes for the

profession : SARTOR 1984

CEI Examination (now Engineering Council Examination)

used for matching sections

Regular entry by 1990

over 4,000 candidates

11,000 individual papers


6/21


Challenges of the late 1990s

Changing markets

Need for MEng equivalence

IEng UK and overseas

Engineering and IT

Strains between Engineering Council and the Institutions


7/21


Millennial Solutions

Examination administration : City and Guilds

International Marketing

Development of new packages

Closer links with Computing

Additional Learning


8/21


Current Organisation

World-wide Examination

2,000 candidates each year

Academic standard for Chartered

Engineer


9/21


Current Organisation

Jointly owned by ECUKand C&G

Steering Committee, Board of Examiners

Administration by ex ECUK

staff at C&G Little responsibility for teaching quality

Seeking external validation

Seeking listing in the National Qualifications Framework


10/21


Typical users

Overseas students who wish to obtain a respected

British engineering qualification

Holders of non-accredited qualifications needing a

further qualification to meet the required standard

Holders of accredited BEng level degrees who needevidence of further learning to meet the academic

standard for CEng (Postgraduate Diploma only)

Those whose circumstances prevent them from pursuing

an accredited degree programme


11/21


The Examination

Three progressive parts:

The Engineering Council Certificate

The Engineering Council Graduate Diploma

The Engineering Council Postgraduate Diploma


12/21



Equates to 18 months of an Honours BEng

Required entry standard: 2 'A' levels in science subjects, orequivalent

Four compulsory papers and two others


13/21




14/21



BEng Hons standard

Engineering Council Certificate, or equivalent, for entry

Five papers from available papers and the project report


15/21




16/21



Assesses further learning to MEng standard

Entry requires the Engineering Council Graduate Diplomaor may be by Licensed Member exemption (usuallythrough ICP)

Papers: Advanced Engineering Analysis (compulsory)

Another paper (five or six available)

2 papers from Graduate Diploma

Project report demonstrating group work and managementprinciples.


17/21




18/21


Current deployment


19/21


Planned deployment


20/21


Domestic use

Opportunities for diversification

Top up qualification (additional learning)

Rebadged Examination

Acceptance by QCA onto the National Qualifications

Framework


21/21


Thank you for your attention

More information on City and Guilds Website

www.engc.org.uk/Registration/ECUK_Exam.aspx

060404 andrew ramsay epc conference

Documents