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Yup, in the UK it bugs me when I keep meeting people who introduce themselves as an 'engineer'. When I ask them if they do mechanical or civil engineering, then
by FearNotDaniel 8y ago
Yup, in the UK it bugs me when I keep meeting people who introduce themselves as an 'engineer'. When I ask them if they do mechanical or civil engineering, then I usually get to say "ah, so you're a programmer, just like me".
One thing I did sometimes like about being in Austria is the obsession with academic titles they have there... if somebody is a qualified engineer, they invariably use "Ing" as a title in place of "Mr" or "Ms"; people with two doctorates (not uncommon) really do call themselves Dr Dr So-and-so.
- madengr 8y agoWhat is qualified in Austria? In the USA, in most states, you must be licensed to have engineering in your business name. Your name is usually suffixed with PE.
- dharmab 8y agoBut in the USA you can refer to yourself generically as a Software Engineer without any formal education.
- madengr 8y agoYes. I don’t think there is even a PE licensing path for software, so even with a CS degree you could never become a licensed engineer. You have to work under a PE for 5 years, then take the PE exam, then CE credits. I have an MSEE, but can’t put engineer in my title. Though Ing. sounds kind of cool.
- russnewcomer 8y agoThere actually was a PE for Software Engineering, but it is being discontinued, because almost no one took it. https://ncees.org/ncees-discontinuing-pe-software-engineering-exam/ https://ncees.org/ncees-discontinuing-pe-software-engineerin...
- madengr 8y agoWow, didn’t know they had one. I wonder how they handle the licensing as there would be no one to complete the 5 year understudy; chicken and the egg.
- superwayne 8y agoTo use the "Ing" title you have to have a certain education and a few years of practice. To be honest, it doesn't mean much.
- Aeolun 8y agoStill doesn’t really mean anything. Due to a loophole in major assignment I can legally call myself Ing., but what I’ve really studied is more or less computer science.
- superwayne 8y agoAustrian here. "Ing" (Ingenieur, so basically Engineer) is a protected title (not an academic one, though) but to be honest, it does not signal status or qualification to me. The actual academic titles are worth more.
- r_smart 8y agoHow dare you leave out electrical engineering!
- joenot443 8y agoIt bothers me to no end when I hear programmers here in Ontario call themselves engineers when they neither graduated from an engineering program nor completed their PEO exam. It's very much illegal, and the PEO _will_ go after companies that allow their employees to title themselves as engineers.