In Canada, certain professions (also known as occupations) are regulated. To work in a regulated profession, you must have a license and follow laws and standards that govern how you do your work. The regulation of professions ensures the safety of the public by preventing people without proper training from taking jobs where they could cause harm. Public safety is important in Canada as such professional regulation is taken very seriously. People who do not follow the regulations with regards to their profession are committing a serious offense.

Engineering and geoscience are regulated professions in Canada. Every province and territory has an association that regulates engineering and geoscience for that province or territory. The associations call their license holders "Professional Engineers" (P.Eng.) and "Professional Geoscientists" (P.Geo.). The associations:

• Review applications for Professional Engineer and Professional Geoscientist and issue licenses to people who meet the academic, experience and professional practice requirements;
• Make sure that only people who are licensed do professional engineering and professional geoscience work;
• Issue practice guidelines to help Professional Engineers and Professional Geoscientists work competently and ethically;
• Monitor the work of Professional Engineers and Professional Geoscientists to ensure that their work is done competently and ethically;
• Investigate complaints against Professional Engineers and Professional Geoscientists; and
• Discipline Professional Engineers and Professional Geoscientists who are found to have practiced incompetently or unethically.

In British Columbia, the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of British Columbia (APEGBC) is the association responsible for regulating engineering and geoscience. APEGBC is governed by the Engineers and Geoscientists Act . The Act contains the definitions of professional engineering and professional geoscience. Not all jobs that use your engineering and geoscience skills are considered to be professional engineering or professional geoscience - read the definitions included in the Act to find out what is considered engineering and geoscience work and what is not.

Professional Engineers and Professional Geoscientists are legally responsible for their work and the work of people they supervise.  If you are working as an engineer or geoscientist in Canada, you must either:

• be licensed as a Professional Engineer or Professional Geoscientist in the province or territory in which you are working; or
• work under the direct supervision of someone who is licensed as a Professional Engineer or Professional Geoscientist in the province or territory in which you are working.

Work Destinations is an excellent, easy-to-understand introduction to the regulation of professions. You should visit this website to get a good understanding of what it means to work in a regulated occupation.

The provincial and territorial associations are connected through two national organizations: Engineers Canada (formerly the Canadian Council of Professional Engineers), and Geoscientists Canada (formally the Canadian Council of Professional Geoscientists). Engineers Canada and Geoscientists Canada do not issue licenses. Instead, they support the provincial and territorial associations by completing research, providing advice, helping the provincial and territorial associations communicate and share ideas, and more.

Using the Title "Engineer" or "Geoscientist"

The public must be able to easily understand who is and who is not a Professional Engineer or Professional Geoscientist. The words "engineer" and "geoscientist" are restricted words. By law, only a person who is licensed as a Professional Engineer or Professional Geoscientist can call themself a professional engineer or geoscientist.  If you are not a Professional Engineer or Professional Geoscientists, be careful not to use any words to describe yourself professionally, including engineer or geoscientist, that might lead people to think you are licensed.

If you are not licensed as a Professional Engineer or Professional Geoscientist, there are other ways to communicate that you are trained as an engineer or geoscientist. For example, (borrowed from APEGNB):

• Project Engineer or Project Geoscientist may be replaced with Project Manager, Project Coordinator, Project Analyst, Project Leader or Project Specialist
• Software Engineer may be replaced with Software Developer or Software Analyst
• Technical Engineer may be replaced with Technical Officer
• Junior Engineer or Junior Geoscientist may be replaced with Engineering Trainee or Geoscience Trainee, Design Trainee or Field Trainee.

You may also list the department you work in to communicate your role. For example:

• Metallurgical Process Engineer may be replaced with Metallurgical Process Engineering
• Quality Assurance Engineer may be replaced with Quality Assurance Engineering
• Geologist may be replaced with Geological Services.

It is also acceptable to list your university degree (e.g." B.A.Sc.", "B.Sc.Eng.", or "B.Sc.") after your name or elsewhere on a resume or business card. Listing your academic qualifications puts your job title in context. For example, someone reading your resume may see the title "Project Manager" and that you have an engineering degree. That person will understand that you work in engineering project management but are not a Professional Engineer.

Because APEGBC and the other provincial and territorial associations do not have any authority over engineering or geoscience outside of Canada, you may use the terms "engineer" and "geoscientist" when referring to work done outside of Canada. It must be clear that the terms are being used to describe work done outside of Canada. For example, you may include "Chemical Engineer, London England" on your resume if you were a chemical engineer in London.

Employers will often check the business card or resume of someone they are interviewing to see whether that person used a restricted word. Using a restricted word when you are not registered as a Professional Engineer or Professional Geoscientist indicates to employers that you may not understand the local regulations or that you have chosen to disobey them.

Please contact APEGBC's Compliance Officer if you would like an opinion on whether your use of certain words is appropriate. Staff will be happy to assist you in making certain the words and titles used on your resume and business cards are appropriate.

Should I apply to become a Professional Engineer or Professional Geoscientist?

What is considered engineering or geoscience in one country may not be considered engineering or geoscience in another.  In Canada, an engineering or geoscience team works together to complete a project. The engineering and geoscience teams are made up of engineering and geoscience technicians and technologists, Professional Engineers, Professional Geoscientists and others. All have some level of engineering or geoscience training and use some engineering or geoscience skills in their work. There are also jobs in unrelated fields that require some of the skills that engineers and geoscientists have but, because they do not fall under the definition of engineering or geoscience, do not require Professional Engineers or Professional Geoscientists or supervision by Professional Engineers or Professional Geoscienctists. For example, some office furniture suppliers use AutoCAD technicians to make suggestions regarding office layout. Only those who are practicing what is described as engineering or geoscience (see the Act for the definitions) and who do not wish to practice under the supervision of a Professional Engineer or Professional Geoscientist must become licensed as a Professional Engineer or Professional Geoscientist.

While there are many jobs that do not require you to be a Professional Engineer or Professional Geoscientist, there are many benefits of being a Professional Member (Professional Engineer or Professional Geoscientists) of APEGBC.

Membership with APEGBC tells employers in Canada and around the world that they can depend on your proven skills and professionalism. Once registered, you can practice your profession anywhere your career takes you in BC.   You can even start your own business and be your own boss. Your membership can also simplify your registration process in other Canadian provinces and territories.   Through Engineers Canada and Geoscientists Canada, APEGBC also works with other countries to facilitate your ability to work internationally.   In short, your APEGBC membership will open the door to a world of opportunity.  

APEGBC strives to set and maintain high academic, experience and professional practice standards. These standards help protect public health, safety and welfare.  Only individuals who meet these standards and are able to demonstrate that through the membership application process will be licensed (also known as registered) as a Professional Engineer or Professional Geoscientist.

Remember, registration as a Professional Engineer or Professional Geoscientist is not for everyone.  You may find that, for the work you will be doing in BC, you do not need to apply for registration at all.  You do not need to be a Professional Engineer or Professional Geoscientist to use your engineering and geoscience skills.  There are many well-paying jobs involving engineering or geoscience work under the supervision of a Professional Engineer of Professional Geoscientist or engineering or geoscience skills in other fields.  

You will have a better idea of whether you should apply for registration as a Professional Engineer or Professional Geoscientist after completing these webpages.

Take a moment now to thoroughly review two important websites: APEGBC and Applied Science Technologists and Technicians of BC (ASTTBC). The websites will provide you with information on the kind of work that Professional Engineers and Professional Geoscientists and engineering and geoscience technicians and technologists do, the rights and responsibilities of each, the membership requirements for each and the benefits of membership with each. When you read the membership requirements, pay close attention to the academic and experience requirements for membership.

There are other websites that provide profiles of Professional Engineers, Professional Geoscientists and engineering and geoscience technicians and technologists:

Potential to Prosperity ( follow the links to "personal stories")

Techprofile

On these websites, people explain their academic backgrounds, previous work experiences, what they do in their current jobs and why they are members of APEGBC or ASTTBC.

As you read through the websites and documents, you can consider which organization and which of the profiles you relate to most. Do you feel like the ASTTBC or APEGBC website and profiles sound like the work you did or do in your country and the work you want to do in Canada? Do you think you are closer to meeting the membership requirements for ASTTBC or APEGBC?

How do I apply to APEGBC?

If you decide that you would like to become a member of APEGBC, you will have to submit an application, many supporting documents and an application fee to APEGBC. APEGBC will review your application and supporting documents to determine whether you meet the requirements for membership. To learn more, please go the Registration and Licensing section of the APEGBC website.

ITEGs should complete the self-assessment tool on the homepage of the Registration and Licensing section. The Registration and Licensing section will also explain that ITEGs who do not yet meet the work experience requirement can apply for Member-in-Training; those who do not have Canadian citizenship or permanent residency can apply for Non-Resident License.

ITEGs can speak with a Registration and Licensing staff member by phone (1-888-430-8035 or 604-412-4856) or in person (Monday to Friday from 8:30 to 4:30 at the Burnaby office) for advice on the application process.

If you are still in your home country, make sure you arrange to have the proper documents sent directly to APEGBC that are required as part of your application (e.g. school records, special reference forms). You can also apply to become a member of APEGBC from your home country before you immigrate to Canada.

Volunteering Engineering or Geoscience Services

Many Internationally Trained Engineers want to volunteer their engineering or geoscience services in BC. They see this as a way to gain local experience and feel that employers have little to lose and a lot to gain from their free labour. However, volunteering engineering or geoscience services is not encouraged and few employers will allow it.

APEGBC's Code of Ethics states that professional engineers must:

(5) Uphold the principle of appropriate and adequate compensation for the performance of engineering and geoscience work. 

APEGBC does not actively discourage members from providing services free of charge to some non-profit volunteer organizations.  However, APEGBC sees the protection of appropriate compensation for engineering and geoscience services as a fundemental respect for professionals.

Likewise, a Professional Engineer or Professional Geoscientist will not normally undervalue a fellow engineer or geoscientist by allowing them to volunteer their engineering or geoscience services. Furthermore, a volunteer does not necessarily save an employer money. New employees require training, supervision and orientation to the workplace. This start-up time is a cost that an employer will normally only invest in those who will give a good return on their investment and stay with the company for a long time.

If ITEGs are offered volunteer engineering or geoscience work, they should ensure that they are not affecting the value of engineering or geoscience services and that employers seeking free services are not taking advantage of them.

Only APEGBC members are legally required to follow APEGBC's Code of Ethics and the work experience of an applicant for Professional Engineer or Professional Geoscientist would not necessarily be discounted because it was voluntary.  However, applicants should be aware that one of the questions on the application reference form does ask whether the candidate adheres to APEGBC's Code of Ethics. This is considered in the evaluation of their application. 

First-Hand Advice

From Internationally Trained Engineers:

• Think of the financial costs of becoming a professional engineer as an investment in your future.  
• Become a member of APEGBC to establish your network of colleagues. Make contacts and be sociable. If you do not have the work experience to become a P.Eng. then apply to become an Engineer-in-Training (EIT).