Students, graduates and apprentices

Professional registration: Students, graduate and apprentices

Whether you are an engineering apprentice, studying engineering at college or university, or recently graduated, professional registration will be an important future step on your career ladder.

The first stage in becoming registered is to join a Licensed Professional Engineering Institution (PEI). There are many advantages to joining while still studying, and student membership is often free or offered at a very low rate. These Licensed PEIs offer resources that might help you in your studies, such as libraries, monthly journals, specialist interest groups, networking opportunities and careers advice.

Once you have achieved the necessary qualifications and workplace experience you should apply to your Licensed PEI to become professionally registered. They will guide you through the registration process and help you to decide when you’re ready to apply.

This might be as the following:

Achieving professional registration means that you can use the relevant letters after your name.

This proves to colleagues, employers and customers that you’ve achieved a high standard of engineering professionalism. It demonstrates that you have the necessary competence to fulfil your role as an engineer or technician, your commitment to being a professional and that you have the work ethic that employers value. This means that professional registration could offer you improved career prospects, higher earning potential and greater influence within your field.

The professional title you apply for will depend on your qualifications, experience and role at the time of application. You can learn more about the options available on our professional registration webpage, which explain how to apply and the typical roles and competence criteria for each title.

You can also read through our case studies from a wide range of engineering industries.