Chartered Engineer with a BSc

I know that the route to become a chartered engineer is to get a BEng degree and then an MSc (Or just an MEng) and then around 5 years training/work experience..

So what happens if you do a BSc and want to become a chartered engineer?? Is it still possible? Would you have to an extra year of work or something of that sort?

How does it work??

I've tried to research it online but couldnt find anything...

Reply 1

Lucas Dee

I can only speak for Chemical Engineers, it may be different for other disciplines. In Chemical Engineering if you have a BEng when you are at work you would have to do what are called "matching sections". Essentially it is work done over the period of a couple of years to make up for you not having a Master's and then you will also have to do the usual work to work towards chartership. If you have the choice then I would recommend going straight into the MEng and getting it out of the way.

When I done my degree it was cheaper to do the MEng because our tuition fees were ~£1000 so all in would cost about £4800 (you pay 50% fees on placement), whereas an MSc was something like £3500. Now though, with the new fee system it may not be the cheapest way but you may have to check that your MSc is accredited by the relevant organisation (IChemE etc...).

Reply 2

arbissah

Alright thanks for that Lucas :smile:

But it didn't really answer my question:

If I do a BSc (NOT a BEng) in Civil Engineering.. a BSc.. what's the difference in terms of getting Chartered Engineer status... is it still possible to become a chartered engineer with a BSc... will it just take longer or is there no difference???

To become a chartered engineer you usually do a BEng and then an MSc... or a straight MEng..... and then training/work experience... what happens if you do a BSc instead of a BEng?

Thanks in advance everyone.

Reply 3

F.maximus

Hi,

If u want to be a chartered engineer u have to do a BEng followed by an MEng because u need to get ur degree As a bachelor of engineering not bachelor of science, there isn't I'm afraid an easy way of becoming a charted engineer it takes time through experience. I had a talk with my professor today and he said to become a charted it's best to do an MEng then work n get experience if ujust want to be charted with BEng it will be harder n take longer.

Hope it helps. Btw what is ur engineering field n were are u studying?

Reply 4

pheonix254

Nope, you do NOT have to have a BEng or MEng to become chartered. The most important thing is the accreditation of the degree. If a professional institution accredits the BSc, then, upon further work experience and more academic study (though not necessarily at university), you can rise to chartered standard.

You generally need to have a masters level equivalent (note an MEng is not considered an MSc equivalent, but thats another argument for another day) and at least 2 years work experience in areas which your institution requires for you to submit your chartership application. So with a BSc, you'd need to get further accredited academic qualification, be that an accredited MSc or other diploma, etc, and also relevant work experience which ticks all the boxes for your institution. On the Eng side of things, an MEng, provided it is accredited, is usually sufficient to tick the academic part of chartership off. A BEng is not. But you'd still need industrial experience on top, usually 2 years with a Masters.

I think your best bet is to contact the institution directly- examples of istitutions are IET, IMechE, IMarEST, RAeS or the IChemE, but that is by no means an exhaustive list.

In Summary- chartership requires two sections: 1)ACCREDITED academic study. usually MSc or MEng equivalent 2)industrial work experience. typically 2 years, but can be longer.

Stu Haynes MEng MIET

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 5

tin-top fan

Be very careful with this, a civil engineering degree is commonly a Bsc rather than a BEng if it hasn't been accredited.

I've just completed an MEng in Civil Engineering and this requires no more academic learning, just the relevant experience and passing of the necessary hurdles in a few years time. Our degrees were accredited by ICE and IStructE, with the course now having IHT accreditation as well.

Reply 6

arbissah

Original post by tin-top fan

Ahh great I hope you can help..

My course is accredited 'as fully satisfying the educational base for an Incorporated Engineer (IEng).'

It's accredited from the JBM; Joint Board of Moderators... which is ICE + IStructE + IHE + IHT.

So what does this mean, does it mean that I can only become an Incorporated Engineer and not a Chartered Engineer?

Reply 7

rY4uGD1fMzBj4xe2

Many of the people posting here are half right, but not really. Accredited degree's don't help really in any way. The prerecusite for chartered engineering status is 'to be of masters level education'. Obviously the easiest way to get this is to have a masters degree (regardless of undergrad or postgrad masters). However, you can still get charter ship by proving you have knowledge of up to masters level. This is much harder to prove without a masters but still doable with a bachelors in an engineering subject (again, regardless of BSc or BEng status).

Reply 8

united.spammers

Original post by arbissah

You will still be able to become a Chartered Engineer but you will have to demonstrate knowledge up to Masters level. This could be by creating an academic portfolio while in your career or taking time out to do an MSc.

Reply 9

Naji 123

What is the difference between MSC,MEng and MIET

Reply 10

Doones

Original post by Naji 123

What is the difference between MSC,MEng and MIET

MSc = Master of Science. A postgrad degree taken after a BSc or BEng. Usually a one year course.
BEng = Bachelor of Engineering - usually a 3 year course.
MEng = Master of Engineering - requires an extra year of undergraduate study on a BEng course.
MIET = Member of Institute of Engineering and Technology.

To be a chartered engineer you need an MEng, or BSc + MSc, to meet the educational requirements.

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(edited 6 years ago)

Thank you very much.

Original post by Doonesbury

MSc = Master of Science. A postgrad degree taken after a BSc or BEng. Usually a one year course.
BEng = Bachelor of Engineering - usually a 3 year course.
MEng = Master of Engineering - requires an extra year of study on a BEng course.
MIET = Member of Institute of Engineering and Technology.

To be a chartered engineer you need an MEng, or BSc + MSc, to meet the educational requirements.

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What grade is generally required to get into MSc from BSc Civil Engineering?

Could I still get into MEng from MSc or is there not much of a difference between them. How long would an MEng and MSc take?

Thanks, I'm going to university this year and I'm not sure whether to go with BSc or BEng for civil engineering

Reply 13

Doones

Original post by Amir Hussein

What grade is generally required to get into MSc from BSc Civil Engineering?

A 2:1.

Could I still get into MEng from MSc or is there not much of a difference between them. How long would an MEng and MSc take?

An MSc is 1 year.

If you do a BSc + MSc you wouldn't also do an MEng. An MEng is a 4 year course and is equivalent to a BEng (or BSc) plus MSc.

Thanks, I'm going to university this year and I'm not sure whether to go with BSc or BEng for civil engineering

A BSc is less likely to be accredited by the Institute of Civil Engineering.

Your best option is to apply to a university that offers both BEng and MEng routes. You can usually move up from the BEng to the MEng if your grades in the first 2 years are good enough.

Reply 14

ninmurai

Note that almost all institutions have some sort of path to allow you to become Chartered without having a Masters degree. It will almost certainly have more hoops to jump through, but it does exist. This would be a first step to your path to Chartership.

Depending on your specialism, most institutions offer a free or very low cost student membership which allows you to participate in most of their events and conferences. I know that ICE and IStructE do.

Original post by Doonesbury

A BSc is less likely to be accredited by the Institute of Civil Engineering.

The correct name is "Institution of Civil Engineers" and if you keep referring to them by the wrong name they will get pretty annoyed during your entrance interview. They are precious like that.

Reply 15

Doones

Original post by ninmurai

The correct name is "Institution of Civil Engineers" and if you keep referring to them by the wrong name they will get pretty annoyed during your entrance interview. They are precious like that.

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Reply 16

silverfox2

[Although the route to becoming chartered or incorporated is via one of the institutes such as the IET you need to remember your chartership is with the engineering council.

Look at the various 5 areas of competency you are required to demonstrate proficiency in.

an expectation in younger students is that they probably go the masters route but as you get more mature to have survived you must have picked something up.

My CEng was with a BSc via the OU. Not a course specifically recognized by the IET but all science and technology. Looking to the proficiencies you need to provide strong evidence of leadership rather than management. Leading in the optimization of emerging and existing technology. A BEng or BSc doesn't give you this - experience does.

Reply 17

RogerOxon

Original post by ninmurai

The correct name is "Institution of Civil Engineers" and if you keep referring to them by the wrong name they will get pretty annoyed during your entrance interview. They are precious like that.

I'm sure that they could be, civil, about it.

Reply 18

silverfox2

IET were far more reasonable and understanding. Do stand corrected though and it is the institution of engineering and technology. I'm struggling to think of anyone who actually calls it that other than your good self. I must have bobbed under the bar when I picked my CEng up. In the good old days before decimilsation when it was the IEE and in fairness still the institution!