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PROFESSIONAL ENGINEER (PE) VS PROFESSIONAL ENGINEER WITH PRACTISING CERTIFICATE (PEPC)

Back then in 2015, there were some, well sort of uproars in regard to restriction of “Engr.” abbreviation before the graduate engineers’ name. The privilege of “Engr.” originated under the Institution of Engineers Malaysia (IEM) and definitely became as the beacon for engineering graduates to submit their membership registration. The restriction was due to the Board of Engineers Malaysia (BEM) argument that such abbreviation will be misconstrued by the publics as “Professional Engineer”.

Professional Engineer is the highest testament for any engineers in Malaysia in pursuing their career or establishing their own consultancy practice. Since its inception, the primary goal of having the Professional Engineer “licensure” is to provide engineering services in full-scale and in accordance to Engineer’s Act 1967.

In 2015, the Engineer’s Act 1967 was amended to enhance the quality of engineers and in quest for the liberalisation of engineering services. The action has resulted to the two-tier registration of Professional Engineer. I won’t divulge the details of application procedures but instead focusing on the discrepancy of the two camps.


The first tier (Professional Engineer) comprises of conventional assessment towards the candidates’ working experience while the second tier (Professional Engineer with Practising Certificate) requires for the candidates to sit for the Professional Competency Examination or PCE. PCE was designed for the Professional Engineer of tier 1 to meet a higher standard of engineering practices. You can’t do much with only succeeding the first tier due to the inherit restriction to becoming as the Submitting Person.

Pretty lucky for those who have sat the conventional assessment before the enactment of amended Engineer’s Act. I only manage literally to sit for the first tier this year. If I succeed, then I will proceed to prepare for the second tier or PCE. The vastness of the topics covered in PCE, the examination duration, the acts and regulations to be studied are the major challenges. By the way, the fee is slightly higher at RM1,100. All in all, attaining the Professional Engineer with Practising Certificate (PEPC) is my ultimate goal, not just for the sake of the profession but also hoping that I can become a good mentor to young engineers as well.

Muhammad Azmir Bin Haji Abdul Mutalib
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Comments

  1. I want to check. If you are already a PE in 2003 but not PEPC, do we require also to sit for the examination to become a PEPC in 2020?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm really sorry for the late reply. There was a grace period before the new amended act take place for the PEs to convert automatically to PEPC. But if you didn't respond to BEM within the said timeframe, then you will be required to take the Professional Competency Examination.

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  2. Thanks for breaking down the PE vs. SE journey! Your clear comparison is super helpful for aspiring engineers. A great resource for PE Civil Exam Prep. Thanks for making it easy to understand!

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