The Engineering and Geoscience Professions Act and The Engineering and Geoscience Professions Regulatory Bylaws require that members remain competent. APEGS’s Continuing Professional Development Program provides members with a framework to plan and report on their continuing professional development activities. Check out the profile below to see how meeting the reporting requirements is easy to do as part of every engineer’s or geoscientist’s daily work to protect the public and the environment.
With the risk of losing self-regulation of some professions in BC and Quebec, APEGS took the opportunity to connect with Fred Antunes, P.Eng., deputy minister of Highways and Infrastructure, to explore his perspective on why reporting professional development activities is important for members of a self-regulated profession.
“With the privilege of self-regulation comes an obligation to protect the public by ensuring that the men and women who practise engineering and geoscience are competent,” said Antunes. “We know they are competent when they graduate from an accredited university. However, with the rapid changes in technology and new developments in engineering and geoscience, APEGS needs to be transparent and demonstrate that there are processes in place to ensure that members’ knowledge and skills remain current.”
APEGS will be voting on required reporting at its annual meeting in May 2018. “I believe it is critical that APEGS has a requirement for members to report,” said Antunes. “If reporting becomes a requirement, I will ensure the engineers and geoscientists working in my organization and the consultants we engage comply.”
As a Professional Engineer with permission to consult, Antunes makes it a habit to report his professional development activities.
“I was registered in the four Western provinces at one time and I took the obligation seriously, reporting my professional development annually,” said Antunes. “It was a very simple process that took very little time, even reporting in four provinces, so there is absolutely no reason to avoid reporting.”
APEGS is making presentations around the province to raise awareness about the Continuing Professional Development Program, share the benefits of reporting and show how quick and easy it is to report. Check out the above infographic to find out more.