While not necessarily identical across Canada, the requirements for entry to the engineering profession largely adhere to the Engineers Canada publication on engineering admission procedures. 16 To become a licensed professional engineer, the following requirements must be met:
Education
The applicant must possess the necessary academic credentials.
A university degree (or the equivalent) from a recognized university engineering program is necessary.
Experience
The candidate must meet the experience prerequisites.
The majority of jurisdictions now call for four years of relevant experience (Quebec requires three years of experience). Experience must have been gained in a Canadian environment for at least a year.
•Expertise in ethical standards and professional conduct
The professional practice exam on Canadian law and ethics is often required of all applicants, who must also pass it.
Language
The candidate must be proficient in the province’s or territory’s working language in order to successfully communicate verbally and in writing.
Character
The applicant’s moral character must be proven, primarily through references. Admission may be affected by evidence of fraud, dishonest representations on applications, or criminal convictions.
Citizenship Status
All provinces (with the exception of Quebec) give temporary, foreign, or nonresident licenses, but they also demand Canadian citizenship or landed immigrant status.
Residency Status
The majority of provinces are doing away with residency rules. Such requirements limit mobility and do not reflect character, skill, or competency. Provinces that have this criteria grant temporary licenses to engineers who are not residents.
Age
The candidate must be of legal age to apply, which in most of Canada is 18 years old.
Technical Exams
Candidates with non-accredited engineering degrees, engineering-related degrees (like the B.Tech. or B.Sc.), or three-year technology certificates may take technical tests based on the Engineers Canada syllabus to become members of the engineering profession. 19
There are between 14 and 18 three-hour technical exams for each discipline of engineering. The Association allocates a subset of technical exams to applicants who need to make up academic weaknesses after carefully examining their academic transcripts. If the subset has more than nine exams, associations often do not admit applicants to the exam program. Some associations allow applicants to substitute university courses that are comparable to the required tests.
The amount of exams given may be lowered by having a postgraduate degree, however postgraduate degrees from other disciplines are rarely applicable.
A license requires mastery of the important engineering topics, which recognized engineering institutions teach in their undergraduate courses.
Across Canada, different conditions must be met in order to enter the examination system.
According to Engineers Canada, a candidate should have completed at least 15 years of education, including a bachelor’s degree. For instance, in Ontario, the examination system is accessible to persons who possess at least one of the following qualifications: a three-year diploma in engineering technology
a technologist-level certificate from the Ontario Association of Certified Engineering Technicians and Technologists (OACETI); or any qualification that the Association deems to be equal and appropriate.
The examination system offers a different entry point into the field, but it is not a simple one since candidates must study for and successfully pass the tests. The Associations don’t provide correspondence courses, labs, or classes.
Professional Practice Examination
No matter their academic background, almost all applicants are required to pass a Professional Practice Examination (PPE) in professional practice, law, contracts, liability, and ethics. Additionally, British Columbia mandates that candidates attend a law and ethics lecture before to taking the test. For the convenience of those unable to attend, the BC law and ethics course is also available on CD.
Because of mobility agreements agreed between Canadian Associations, based on comparable admission standards, applicants transferring their licenses from elsewhere in Canada do not need to write the PPE.
The usual admissions procedure for engineering program graduates from universities with CEAB accreditation is depicted in Figure 2.1. The licensing procedure should, however, be started as soon as possible. Numerous associations offer support, internships, mentoring, and guidance to applicants