THE PROFESSIONAL ENGINEER
[Adapted from the Board of Engineering of Trinidad and Tobago (BOETT)]
A professional engineer is competent by virtue of his/her fundamental education and training to apply the scientific method and outlook to the analysis and solution of engineering problems. He/She is able to assume personal responsibility for the development and application of engineering science, technology and knowledge, notably in research, designing, construction, manufacturing, managing, teaching and education.
His/Her work is predominantly intellectual and varied, as opposed to routine mental or physical in character. It requires original thought and judgment and the ability to supervise the technical and administrative work of others.
His/Her education and training entails a broad and general appreciation of the engineering sciences and technologies as well as a thorough insight into the special features of his/her own branch. In time he/she will be able to give authoritative technical advice, and to assume responsibility for the direction of important tasks in his/her branch, always observing the highest standards of ethical behaviour.
His/Her education allows for him/her to closely and continuously follow progress in his/her branch of engineering by consulting newly published work on a worldwide basis, assimilating such information and applying it independently. He/She is thus placed in a position to make contributions to the development of engineering science or its applications.
Engineering professionals, as other professionals, are catered for by associations, for example the Association of Professional Engineers of Trinidad and Tobago .
The Association of Professional Engineers of Trinidad and Tobago (APETT) is a learned society of professional engineers dedicated to the development of engineers and the engineering profession. The association promotes the highest standards of professional practice and stimulates awareness of technology and the role of the engineer in society.
Its objectives are as follows:
 To safeguard the life, health and welfare of the public by restricting the practice
 of engineering to properly qualified persons.
To advance the status of the engineering profession by the establishment and
 observance of high ethical standards.
To promote the proficiency, knowledge and skill of Professional Engineers, and to increase their usefulness to the public.
 To protect and advance the interests of Professional Engineers.
Following are examples of different types of engineering organizations.

ENGINEERING ORGANIZATIONS
There are several types of engineering organizations such as professional (learned) associations (often also called societies, institutions or less frequently institutes).
Professional organizations stipulate two requirements – academic qualifications at the minimum level of an accredited Bachelor’s degree and relevant post graduation experience, usually of minimum four years.
Because of small size many countries have only one organization for all types of engineers or engineers and related professionals. Examples of national professional organizations are as follows:
SOME CARIBBEAN PROFESSIONAL ENGINEERING ORGANIZATIONS
CONSTITUENT MEMBERS OF THE
COUNCIL OF CARIBBEAN ENGINEERING ORGANIZATIONS (CCEO)
Antigua Association of Professional Association of Professional Engineers of Engineers Saint Lucia
Association of Professional Engineers of Bahamas Institution of Professional
Trinidad & Tobago Engineers
Barbados Association of Professional Belize Association of Technical
Engineers Professionals
Dominica Association of Technical Grenada Institution of Professional
Professionals Engineers
Guyana Association of Professional Jamaica Institution of Engineers
Engineers
St. Vincent Association of Professional St. Kitts-Nevis Association of
Engineers Professional Engineers
SOME AMERICAN ENGINEERING ORGANIZATIONS
American Association of Engineering Societies
American Society of Mechanical
Engineers International
American Consulting Engineers Council
American Institute of Chemical Engineers
American Society of Safety Engineers
National Action Council for Minorities in
Engineering
American Inststitute of Mining, Metallurgical
National Society of Black Engineers
& Petroleum Engineers
American Society for Engineering Education Society of Automotive Engineers
American Society for Healthcare Engineering Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers
American Society for Nondestructive Testing Society of Manufacturing Engineers
American Society of Agricultural Engineers Society of Petroleum Engineers
American Society of Civil Engineers Society of Women Engineers

Am. Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air-
Conditioning Engineers
The Institute of Electrical and Electronics
Engineers
SOME BRITISH ENGINEERING ORGANIZATIONS
Royal Aeronautical Society Institution of Agricultural Engineers
Chartered Institution of Building Services Institution of Chemical Engineers
Engineers
Institution of Civil Engineers Institution of Engineering and
Technology
Society of Environmental Engineers Institution of Fire Engineers
Institute of Highway Incorporated Engineers Institute of Marine Engineering,
Science and Technology
Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining Institution of Mechanical Engineers
Royal Institution of Naval Architects Institution of Nuclear Engineers
Institution of Structural Engineers Welding Institute
In many countries engineering organizations responsible for the legal registration of engineers are separate from the learned society. Examples of these are:
Board of Engineering of Trinidad and Tobago
Professional Engineers Registration Board (of Jamaica)
Other national organizations cater for specific functions, for example:
Association of Consulting Engineers of Trinidad and Tobago
Some organizations cater for students, such as: Engineering Students’ Society (UWI)
There are international engineering organizations that are groupings of national bodies.
INTERNATIONAL/REGIONAL ENGINEERING ORGANIZATIONS
World Federation of Engineering Organizations (WFEO)
Commonwealth Engineers Council
Union Panamericana de Asociaciones de Ingenieros
Council of Caribbean Engineering Organizations (CCEO)
Some international organizations admit both organizations and individuals but are not professional societies, not requiring accredited degrees for membership, for example:
International Association for Continuing Engineering Education
W ORLD F EDERATION OF E NGINEERING O RGANISATIONS (WFEO)
World Federation of Engineering Organisations, founded in 1968 under the auspices of the UNESCO in Paris, is a non-governmental international organisation that brings together National Engineering Organisations from over 90 nations and represents some
8,000,000 engineers from around the world. WFEO is the world wide leader of the

engineering profession and co-operates with national and other international professional institutions in developing and applying engineering to the benefit of humanity.
WFEO Mission
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To provide information and leadership to the engineering profession on issues of concern to the public or the profession.
To serve society and to be recognized by national and international organisations and the public, as a respected and valuable source of advice and guidance on the policies, interesting concerns that relate engineering and technology to the human and natural environment.
To make information on engineering available to the countries of the world and to facilitate communication between its member nations.
To foster peace, socioeconomic security and sustainable development among all countries of the world, through the proper application of technology.
To facilitate relationships between governments, business and people by bringing an engineering dimension to discussion of policies and investment.
C OMMONWEALTH E NGINEERS ' C OUNCIL
In the Autumn of 1945 the
Institution of Civil Engineers
suggested to the
Institutions of Mechanical and Electrical Engineers that a conference of representatives of Commonwealth Engineering Institutions should be held in London in 1946 to increase collaboration and co-operation between them and to extend the links which had been built up during the 1939-45 war. They were joined at that conference by the national engineering institutions of Australia, Canada, India, South Africa and New Zealand to form the Commonwealth Engineers' Council, one of the first and largest in membership of the Commonwealth wealth-wide Professional Associations.
By 1980 the membership had grown from original six countries to fourteen. It now numbers forty-three, one of which - the Council of Caribbean Engineering Organisations
- is composed of twelve Commonwealth states. Twelve smaller countries are
Corresponding Members. All these members are organised into seven geographical regions, Africa being split further into three sub-regions. Each has its own Regional
Secretary, usually the secretary of one of the national engineering organisations. The
CEC Central Secretariat is based in London.
The Council of Caribbean Engineering Organizations (CCEO) is similar in structure, goals and operations to the Commonwealth Engineers' Council.
T
HE
I
NTERNATIONAL
A
SSOCIATION FOR
C
ONTINUING
E
NGINEERING
E
DUCATION
(IACEE)

The International Association for Continuing Engineering Education (IACEE) is an international, non-profit and non-governmental organization. The aim of IACEE is to support and enhance lifelong technical education and training and advanced engineering education world-wide, including the special needs of the developing countries.
Background
The founding process of IACEE was initiated in 1986, as a means to secure the continuation of the triennial World Conferences on Continuing Engineering Education. In addition to the triennial conference the IACEE is involved in several projects and regularly produces publications on various aspects of continuing engineering education.
The idea received strong support from
UNESCO
and its International Working Groups on Continuing Education of Engineers and Technicians, and on Engineering Education and Industry Cooperation.
From the very start, several international organizations within the field of engineering education actively promoted the new association. One of the founding organizations of the IACEE is he Council of Caribbean Engineering Organizations (CCEO). The charter was signed during the opening session of the 4th World Conference on Continuing
Engineering Education on May 17, 1989, in Beijing, China. The headquarters of the
IACEE was in Finland for several years and is currently administered in the offices of the
American Society for Engineering Education (
ASEE
).
Objectives
IACEE receives its principal support from various national, regional and international organizations engaged in continuing engineering education. The general objective of
IACEE is to support and enhance lifelong technical education and training, and advanced engineering education worldwide. The activities will include measures specifically directed to meet the special needs of the developing countries.
The Association´s objectives are pursued by:
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 promoting international technology transfer through a better understanding of the continuing education process improving the quality of education and training of engineers and technicians, and of technical information through international cooperation developing and strengthening cooperation between education and industry promoting the establishment of centers for continuing education supporting the equality of women in engineering promoting and conducting research and development initiating international and regional meetings/conferences, and providing technical assistance in conducting them
ACCREDITATION

Accreditation is a peer review process that ensures educational quality. Educational institutions or programs volunteer to periodically undergo this review in order to determine if certain criteria are being met.
There are two types of accreditation: institutional and specialized.
 Institutional accreditation evaluates overall institutional quality. One form of institutional accreditation is regional accreditation of colleges and universities.
 Specialized accreditation examines specific programs of study, rather than an institution as a whole. This type of accreditation is granted to specific programs at specific levels. Architecture, nursing, law, medicine, and engineering programs are often evaluated through specialized accreditation.
SOME ACCREDITATION INSTITUTIONS
S
OME
S
PECIALIZED
A
CCREDITATION
B
ODIES
Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (USA)
Canadian Engineering Accreditation Board
Engineering Council UK
The Washington Accord is an international grouping of national accreditation bodies.
S OME I NSTITUTIONAL ACCREDITATION BODIES
Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools (Commission on Higher Education)
New England Association of Schools and Colleges
Commission on Institutions of Higher Education
North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (The Higher Learning Commission)
Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (Commission on Colleges)
Western Association of Schools and Colleges
Accrediting Commission for Senior Colleges and Universities
Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges
Caribbean accreditation bodies such as Accreditation Council of Trinidad and Tobago and University Council of Jamaica are empowered to conduct both institutional and specialized (program) accreditation.

A
CCREDITATION
B
OARD FOR
E
NGINEERING AND
T
ECHNOLOGY
(ABET)
In the United States ABET, Inc., the recognized accreditor for college and university programs in applied science, computing, engineering, and technology, is a federation of
28 professional and technical societies representing these fields. ABET accredits programs only, not departments, colleges, or institutions.
Among the most respected accreditation organizations in the U.S., ABET has provided leadership and quality assurance in higher education for over 70 years. ABET currently accredits some 2,700 programs at over 550 colleges and universities in the USA and conducts quality audits in other countries. Over 1,500 dedicated volunteers participate annually in ABET activities.
Quality Standards
The quality standards programs must meet to be accredited are set by the professions themselves. This is done by the collaborative efforts of many different professional and technical societies. These societies and their members work together through to develop the standards, and they provide the professionals who evaluate the programs to make sure they meet those standards.
The Accreditation Process
Accreditation is a voluntary process on the part of an institution. An institution requests an evaluation of its program(s) as the first step. (Only programs that have produced at least one graduate are eligible for accreditation.) Each program then conducts an internal evaluation and completes a self-study questionnaire. The self-study documents whether students, curriculum, faculty, administration, facilities, and institutional support meet the established criteria.
While the program conducts its self-examination, an evaluation team is selected to visit the campus. A team chair and one or more program evaluators make up the evaluation team. Team members are volunteers from academe, government, and industry, as well as private practice.
During the on-campus visit, the evaluation team reviews course materials, student projects, and sample assignments and interviews students, faculty, and administrators.
The team investigates whether the criteria are met and tackles any questions raised by the self-study.
Following its campus visit, the team provides the school with a written report of the evaluation. This allows the program to correct any misrepresentations or errors of fact, as well as address any shortcomings in a timely manner.

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Students can learn more about different types of engineering bodies through Websites such as:
Association of Professional Engineers of Trinidad and Tobago – apett.org
Board of Engineering of Trinidad and Tobago - boett.org
American Society of Mechanical Engineers – asme.org
World Federation of Engineering Organizations – wfeo.org
Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology – abet.org
International Association for Continuing Engineering Education – iacee.org