BY MARCIA FORTIER, P.GEO., A.Sc.T.
Struggling with your Continuing
Professional Development Program?
Let’s face it: at some point in our careers, we have all struggled with our APEGS Continuing Professional Development (CPD) programs.
You could be:
– a recent member who doesn’t know where to start;
– an experienced member out of CPD ideas; or
– a license waiver holder.
While at first glance the program can appear daunting, the truth is that obtaining CPD credits is not as challenging as it appears.
The best place to start is to review the APEGS CPD Members’ Guideline. This document highlights members’ responsibilities, outlines how to set up a CPD program, and describes each CPD credit category. Due to the diverse nature of the engineering and geoscience professions, the APEGS CPD program provides members with a program framework only, allowing members to tailor their program to suit their individual needs.
Still stuck?
The easiest place to start is with the Professional Practice category. If you have been working full-time in engineering or geoscience since January 1, you have already earned 50 credits in Professional Practice by June. Remember, for every 15 hours of professional work, you earn one CPD credit. Additional credits earned in the year can be carried forward for two years.
The next are Informal Activity and Formal Activity categories. Ask yourself these questions:
What professional weaknesses have you recently struggled with? (i.e. technical writing, project management, etc.)?
Have your colleagues or a mentor suggested beneficial courses they have completed?
Do you need to update some of your safety or regulatory/standards certifications?
Is there a new direction you would like to take your career?
Have you attended any conferences or workshops?
Beneficial courses should build on your current work and assist you on your future career path. Evaluate each course or workshop to ensure it’s applicable to your CPD plan. A good rule of thumb for determining which courses qualify for which CPD credits are that courses that award a grade or certificate at the end are considered Formal CPD while those that do not are considered Informal CPD.
While some think only technical training qualifies for Formal CPD, many soft-skill courses also qualify. Courses on communication, presentations, technical writing, mentoring, time management, ethics, safety and leadership all qualify.
Are you struggling to find course offerings?
Here are some ideas on where to look:
– the calendar section in the Professional Edge;
– the events section on the APEGS website homepage; and
– the webpages of local constituent societies such as CIM, Saskatchewan Geological Society, SEIMA, ACEC-SK or the local engineering/geoscience societies.
Informal activities are another way to expand your knowledge and learn new skills.
Conferences, workshops, lunch and learns or local constituent society events are all opportunities to earn informal credits, but self-directed study also qualifies, including:
– professional journal articles;
– textbooks; and
– technical manuals.
As an APEGS member, you are eligible for a free University of Regina or University of Saskatchewan library card to help expand your self-directed study.
Volunteering is another great way to get involved and earn Participation CPD credits. Not only does volunteering give back to the community, it allows members the opportunity to network and may even lead to future presentation opportunities. You can earn 10 participation credits a year just by volunteering in your community. With the summer weather upon us, many communities are hosting summer festivals that need many volunteers.
Overall, CPD is an individual’s commitment to continually improve their professional knowledge base. Each activity assists members in fulfilling their obligation to remain competent in their profession. A CPD program is a starting point that allows a member to grow and to continuously evaluate their work experience and peer interactions. A CPD program should be flexible and tailored to the member.