PROGRESS AND RENEWAL
New Experience Assessment Goes Live Experience gained outside Canada can be difficult to compare and explain, making it particularly complex and time-consuming. But for potential engineers seeking APEGA licensure, experience assessments just got simpler and fairer
APEGA has ushered in a new era—one that features a standardized way of measuring engineering experience for applicants seeking professional engineer or engineering licensee designations. Two- and-a-half years in the making, competency-based assessment (CBA) became a reality on May 2, helping make APEGA’s application process more efficient, consistent, and transparent. The process for professional registration can be complex, especially for applicants who gained their experience outside Canada. But CBA makes it easier for them to understand how their skills will be recognized and evaluated. Along with providing clear requirements for applicants, CBA also makes APEGA’s assessment of experience more defensible and far less subjective. The model has a sound track record, and many of Canada’s engineering regulators are either adopting or considering CBA. It has, in fact, been used successfully by Engineers and Geoscientists British Columbia for more than 10 years. It’s also recommended by two major documents offering APEGA guidance on foreign qualifications—the Pan-Canadian Framework for the Assessment and Recognition of Foreign Qualifications , and the Foreign Qualification Recognition Plan for Alberta . Note: CBA is not used by individuals applying for either of our Professional Licensee designations, abbreviated P.L. (Eng.) or P.L. (Geo.), or for our Professional Geoscientist designation, abbreviated P.Geo. APEGA began developing an Alberta CBA model in 2015, with support from an Innovation Fund grant from the Government of Alberta. It’s a major piece of our multi-year registration renewal project. Registration
renewal aims to improve tools and service, allowing us to process increasingly complex applications faster, more accurately, and more efficiently. HOW DOES CBA WORK? CBA asks applicants to explain how they meet 22 key competencies. These competencies are grouped in six categories: • technical competence • communication • project and financial management • team effectiveness • professionalism • social, economic, environmental and sustainability Applicants are given a list of indicators for each key competency. The indicators are examples of work situations an applicant can use to demonstrate competence. For each key competency, applicants must list at least one actual situation, plus several actions or other details, making it specific to their experience. Finally, applicants must summarize the outcome of each situation, highlighting how their actions contributed to its overall success. A CBA EXAMPLE Note: The following example is provided as general information only. The use of any version of this example in an application does not guarantee that the applicant will demonstrate competence in this category. The official authority to evaluate and determine competency lies with APEGA’s Board of Examiners.
24 | PEG SUMMER 2018
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