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Member PD Requirements 
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Mandatory CPD - Frequently Asked Questions |
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Why is APEGBC considering a mandatory CPD Program? What benefits would following a mandatory professional development program generate? Who would need to comply with the proposed Mandatory Professional Development Program? What minimum annual standards are currently being proposed? What types of activities qualify as professional development under the proposed mandatory program? When would members need to be in full compliance with the mandatory CPD program? Would only APEGBC seminars and workshops be recognized for credit? Would unemployed members, those on parental leave, or members in ill-health need to comply? The cost and time required to comply with a mandatory program would be too onerous. What administrative costs will a mandatory CPD program add to the Association? What will happen if I do not comply with the mandatory CPD program? Why is APEGBC considering a mandatory CPD Program? As the regulatory body responsible for ensuring the high practice standards of our professions, APEGBC has an obligation to the users of engineering and geoscience services and the public to monitor a member's competence throughout his or her career. At present, APEGBC only assesses member competence at the initial time of registration and during a random practice review process. Our practice review and investigation processes have shown a direct correlation between those who do not participate in CPD and those with professional practice issues. The mandatory professional development program would work in conjunction with the other continuing competency programs already in place and would serve as a first flag to identify members who are at a higher risk of practice issues. What is APEGBC's role in monitoring the competence of professional engineers and professional geoscientists? APEGBC is the body appointed by the BC Government to administer the Engineers & Geoscientists Act . The primary responsibility of the Association is to protect the public by ensuring to the best of its ability that those who practice engineering and/or geoscience are competent. This includes monitoring the continuing competence of licensed practitioners through CPD programs, practice review, and investigation & discipline. It also includes enforcement against unlicensed practitioners. What benefits would following a mandatory professional development program generate? APEGBC acknowledges that many members are maintaining a high level of competence through regular practice and lifelong learning. It is believed that the many members are already meeting or exceeding the recommended program outlined in the Association's voluntary Continuing Professional Development Guide . However, if a few members are not meeting the standard, we are all affected by the loss of prestige suffered by our professions in the eyes of the consumers of our services, the government and the public. By mandating a minimum annual professional development effort, APEGBC and its members would be able to demonstrate to anyone who needs to know that we meet our ethical and statutory obligations. Those not currently meeting the adopted standards would be required to increase their professional development efforts to comply. Who would need to comply with the proposed Mandatory CPD Program? The following members will need to comply with the mandatory program: Members with practice rights The following situations may qualify for an exemption: • Retired (non-practicing); What minimum annual standards are currently being proposed? The proposed program requires members to do 90 hours over a three-year period (an average of 30 hours per year). Members would be required to report their activities annually. A variety of learning mechanisms will be recognized including formal, informal, participation, presentations and contributions to knowledge (for details see below). What types of activities qualify as professional development under the proposed mandatory program? The following categories and activities are recognized in the draft guideline currently under review. Formal Methods - Maximum number of hours reportable in this category per year = 20 PDH Formal activities are those provided as a structured course or program, which include an evaluation process. Delivery methods might include traditional classroom settings and remote techniques such as written correspondence, video, CD-ROM, or interactive electronic exchange. Formal activities include: • Courses provided through accredited universities, technical institutes and colleges; An evaluation (e.g. exam, assignment) must be independently graded and successfully completed for the activity to qualify as a formal activity. Informal Methods Maximum number of hours reportable in this category per year = 20 PDH These are activities that do not include a formal evaluation process, but that nevertheless expand your knowledge, skills or judgment. Informal activities include: • Industry or post secondary institution sponsored courses, seminars, facilitated technical field trips, conferences, and trade shows Participation Maximum number of hours reportable in this category per year = 10 PDH Activities that promote peer interaction and provide exposure to new ideas and technologies both enhance the profession and serve the public interest. These activities include: • Self-directed study (e.g. private reading including current technical, managerial and business publications); Presentations and Contributions to Knowledge Maximum number of hours reportable in this category per year = 10 PDH This category includes activities that expand or develop the technical knowledge base in the disciplines of engineering or geoscience. These activities include: • Instructing/lecturing for courses or seminars; When would members need to be in full compliance with the mandatory CPD program? Members will be required to file their first report by March 1, 2008 following a full calendar year of activity. Current members will be expected to be in full compliance with all program requirements (average of 90 hours over three years in eligible categories) by March 1, 2010. *Note: This timetable assumes that the program will be implemented in January 2007 following the required Act and bylaw amendments in 2006. I currently provide CPD documentation to another professional engineering or geoscience organization. Would I have to submit additional documentation to APEGBC? It is recognized that reporting to a number of organizations can be inconvenient for members. To minimize this inconvenience, APEGBC would accept reports from other jurisdictions or, if you report to another Canadian jurisdiction that meets the minimum requirements of the APEGBC program and your primary place of practice is outside of BC, a simple form indicating that you have reported elsewhere can be submitted instead of a full report. Would members who hold dual registration (P.Eng./P.Geo) need to accumulate more PD hours than members who hold a P.Eng. or P.Geo? No. Under the proposed program all members will have to accumulate the same minimum number of hours. The exception to this is members who hold the Struct. Eng. designation. These members must follow the more stringent requirements of the Struct. Eng. Mandatory CPD program. Would only APEGBC seminars and workshops be recognized for credit? No. APEGBC's Council and CPD Committee recognize that there are many other excellent ways to participate in professional development. As such, any activity that is recognized as professional development would be accepted, regardless of who provides it. APEGBC does not intend to accredit specific providers or programs in order to prevent the limiting of opportunities for members. I work in a specialized field where professional development opportunities are limited. How would I be able to meet the criteria? Professional development takes many forms and does not consist solely of formal courses taken at post secondary institutions. Technical journals, on-line courses, and networking meetings exist for most specialized fields. APEGBC is also committed to assisting members to access relevant professional development. Association staff will work with members, technical associations and other providers to ensure the professional development APEGBC members' need is available. I wish to retain my membership but am not presently practicing professional engineering or geoscience in a technical sense. Would I still have to comply with a compulsory program? All members who have an influence on the practice of engineering or geoscience would be expected to comply. This would include members who are involved in the technical aspect of the professions as well as members who are involved in engineering or geoscience at the managerial or executive level. Members who do not have influence on the professions (e.g. divorce lawyers, real estate agents) would be required to file an exemption form if they choose not to comply. Retired members who do not practice any engineering or geoscience would also be eligible for exemption. Would unemployed members, those on parental leave, or members in ill-health need to comply? Canadian provinces that have mandatory education programs use a three-year rolling average where members must undergo a set number of hours of qualifying professional development within the three-year period. If members are on parental leave or in ill health for the entire period, it is likely that a waiver would be granted. A lot changes in one's technical field over three years so it is prudent to remain current if you intend to return to practice. Unemployed members are more likely to get work if they can show an employer they are remaining current in their field of practice. The cost and time required to comply with a mandatory program would be too onerous. Under the Code of Ethics, professional engineers and geoscientists are expected to follow a professional development program. A mandatory program would provide a mechanism to permit the Association to demonstrate to the public that members are complying with tenet 6 of the Code. As the program is very flexible with regard to the ways in which a member achieves their professional development, the cost would be controllable by the member. There are numerous professional development opportunities that are offered at little or no cost. Some examples of these are in-house seminars, employer-sponsored sessions, brown bag lunch sessions that various technical groups hold, the reading of technical journals and standards, APEGBC Branch meetings, and on-line courses. Some examples of courses that can be taken at the time of your choosing and that have a minimal cost associated with them are: Electrical & Electronic Engineering Members outside the Lower Mainland would be unable to comply due to lack of professional development opportunities in their regions. What are you doing about this? Over the past several years APEGBC has been actively working to ensure that programs are available outside of the Lower Mainland. Understandably for live sessions, a critical mass (usually 8 - 10 people) is needed to allow a program to be offered. APEGBC has also increased the number of sessions that we offer over the Internet (web casts). These sessions allow members to access live programming without having to leave their home base. We also have a limited number of offerings on CD-ROM. We are committed to working with the educational providers in the regions to ensure programs are available though it is not always possible for live specialized programs to be offered in every region of the province due to the limited number of people practicing in that technical area. Technical journals and standards can be accessed regardless of location as can on-line or distance courses. Members in regions throughout the province are encouraged to create networking meetings with their colleagues and work with their local branch of APEGBC to increase access to professional development in regions throughout the province. What administrative costs will a mandatory CPD program add to the Association? We are currently working on a business plan, which will be presented to Council on September 9, 2005. In developing the Mandatory CPD Guideline, the CPD Committee was very conscious of the need to implement a plan that did not require significant staff resources. For example, the on-line reporting system will allow for an automated review of member reports so that it is easy to identify which reports fall within identified parameters. In addition, instead of implementing a separate auditing procedure, the audits will be done as part of the practice review process (though a separate auditing procedure may be utilized if needed). Finally, the compliance mechanism that has been suggested by the CPD Committee has been shown to be the most effective in getting the largest number of members to report and to be the most cost effective mechanism used by other professional associations. What will happen if I do not comply with the mandatory CPD program? The draft guideline proposes successive fines followed by a complaint to the Investigation Committee if there still has not been compliance. Consideration was given to what is done by other professional regulators and it was felt that this was the fairest and most cost-effective option still having a high likelihood of compliance. For instance, failure to comply with APEGGA's reporting requirements leads directly to loss of membership the same as failure to pay your annual dues. This is cost-effective and likely produces compliance but it is a very stiff penalty for those who do not comply. Other regulators send the person directly to their Investigation Committee, which is more costly adminstratively and may not produce an acceptable level of compliance. It is believed that fines will provide a high likelihood of compliance at a reasonable cost to the Association. However, for those who are still not in compliance after being fined, it is felt that the usual disciplinary process should be followed. Other Questions? Please send Janet Sinclair, Associate Director, Professional Development an email at jsinclair@apeg.bc.ca . We will be updating this page regularly with the questions we receive.
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