dan0h

Hello Fediverse - its time for a potentially controversial poll; if you'll indulge me. Its based on a statement I heard in my place of work a few weeks ago.

The question is this... Should the title "Engineer" be protected (I know it is in some countries) worldwide, and reserved strictly for those with an Engineering degree of some form?

The poll will be open for one full week, and please do feel free to chime in with comments :)

#education #poll #degree #qualification #chartership

Yes - An academic background is essential
41.9%
No - What about those with natural aptitude?
58.1%
Poll ended at .
Jul 4, 2023 at 9:29pmWeb
Show threadMostlyBlindGamerJul 4, 2023

@dan0h I have a degree, but don’t use the title, because it’s protected in my jurisdiction. I don’t need it, because I’m not interested in doing “classical” engineering.

I think the schism here relates to the definition of the word, its modern usage and it’s status.

A civil engineer is very different from a software engineer, which may or may not end up being a software developer.

Ultimately, you’d want that protection of the title for protecting people: so only certified and experienced individuals are building bridges.

Show threaddan0hJul 4, 2023
@MostlyBlindGamer Great points, thank you! I think I'll take this forward as a wider discussion at the end of the poll, I'll clarify my stance and status - I'm really interested to see how people feel about it.
Show threadMostlyBlindGamerJul 4, 2023

@dan0h thanks, I’ve had conversations about this before, so I want to see where this goes.

I’ll also add that we have more modern words for things we used to call being an engineer, like “maker” or even “hacker.” The world has changed a lot since we were building trebuchets.

Show threaddan0hJul 4, 2023
@MostlyBlindGamer Absolutely, there are some really interesting boundaries here, like where a maker verges on an engineer (of some form or another), so indeed I'm really curious about the wider opinion.
Show threadCrystaleJul 4, 2023
@dan0h no, there is no such thing as "natural aptitude" but the academic background is shit and where it's protected, half of the students cheat to get the certification / diploma and nobody bats an eye
Show threaddan0hJul 4, 2023
@darckcrystale I'm a believer that some people are naturally more gifted than others in certain areas - art being a fine example for me, some people are just natural artists, some natural engineers - IMHO. Thanks for commenting!
Show threadRaccoon🇺🇸🏳️‍🌈Jul 4, 2023

@dan0h
You've fallen into the trap of equating an academic background with actual competency. Yes, someone should have some competency in understanding safety/tolerances of what they're doing and being able to keep within certain boundaries on that, in order to be called an engineer. That doesn't require an academic background, it just means they need to be able to pass some basic tests.

So I would say yes, it should be restricted, but not to academic backgrounds alone, same as any other title certifying a level of competence.

Show threaddan0hJul 4, 2023
@Raccoon I totally agree, education is absolutely no guarantee of competence, good stance you've taken though, nice mix - protection yes, but academic background, not necessary, I like it :) I'll show my hand when the poll closes, and state my background and education/lack of, I'm finding the comments really interesting so far! Thank you!
Show threadPythiaJul 8, 2023
@dan0h theres different types of engineers, so diverse that it would either remain too broad or eliminate legit practices of engineering.
Show threaddan0hJul 9, 2023
@Pythia Totally agree - that's my stance too, but I offer out the question to the 'fedi in the exact same poorly defined way in which I heard it - really curious what people make of it, thanks for your comment :)