Engineering Professional Practice: Overview

The Engineering accrediting body Engineers Australia, states that “exposure to professional engineering practice is a key element in differentiating a professional engineering degree from an applied science degree” and requires engineering graduates to have exposure to professional practice.

Who is required to complete Engineering Professional Practice?

All UQ Bachelor of Engineering, Bachelor of Engineering (Honours), Bachelor of Engineering (Honours)/Master of Engineering and Master of Engineering students.

What am I required to complete to graduate?

Complete 450 hours of professional practice approved by the Faculty, and
Satisfactorily complete five (5) reflections from your Engineering Professional Practice experiences, referring to the Engineers Australia competencies. See more information here: Reflection Assessment Writing guidelines;

The 450 hours of professional practice can be broken into two parts as outlined below:

450 Hours of Professional Practice

TYPE A HOURS	TYPE B HOURS
A minimum of 225 hours in an engineering environment under a degree qualified engineer to be claimed for Type A hours	Remaining hours can be made up of a range of allowable professional practice activities
*you can claim all 450 hours (type A hours) in an engineering environment under the supervision of a Degree Qualified Engineer. 225 hours is the minimum amount of Type A hours you must attain.	Examples of what you can claim Up to 75 hours of paid work outside of an engineering environment may be claimed– i.e. working at Kmart or McDonalds. (Category 3) Up to 40 hours of significant industry exposure through pre-approved UQ Courses (Category 5) Up to 75 hours of tutoring at UQ may be claimed, including tutoring in a non-engineering course (category 4) Up to 160 hours may be claimed through an approved study tour (category 9) And much more!! Refer to the allowable professional practice activities to see what else you can claim.

TYPE A HOURS

TYPE B HOURS

A minimum of 225 hours in an engineering environment under a degree qualified engineer to be claimed for Type A hours

Remaining hours can be made up of a range of allowable professional practice activities

*you can claim all 450 hours (type A hours) in an engineering environment under the supervision of a Degree Qualified Engineer. 225 hours is the minimum amount of Type A hours you must attain.

Examples of what you can claim

Up to 75 hours of paid work outside of an engineering environment may be claimed– i.e. working at Kmart or McDonalds. (Category 3)
Up to 40 hours of significant industry exposure through pre-approved UQ Courses (Category 5)
Up to 75 hours of tutoring at UQ may be claimed, including tutoring in a non-engineering course (category 4)
Up to 160 hours may be claimed through an approved study tour (category 9)

And much more!! Refer to the allowable professional practice activities to see what else you can claim.

*A professional engineer is someone who is degree qualified in engineering. Supervisors that do not hold an engineering qualification but hold an equivalent or related qualification may be approved on a case-by-case basis by the Faculty. Email your request for approval to employability@eait.uq.edu.au

When completing hours in an engineering environment, students can undertake any type of engineering practice – i.e. the engineering work does not need to be in the same engineering discipline that you are studying. Engineering practice may be undertaken in Australia or overseas.

You cannot be supervised by a near relative or close associate as this would be a conflict of interest. Examples of near relatives are parents, partners and siblings. Examples of close associates are friends and neighbours.

Students who have undertaken industry placements or work experience as part of previous engineering degree or diploma studies may be able to claim these hours.

2020 Submission Deadlines

Semester 1 Graduation: submit by Friday, 1 May 2020 (Week 9)

Semester 2 Graduation: submit by Friday, 25 September 2020 (Week 9)

All hours (Type A and B) must be approved and reflections must be submitted by week 10 of the semester in which you expect to graduate. Reflections submitted by the deadline will be marked in time for graduation checks.

Faculty of
Engineering, Architecture and Information Technology