The following statement was issued by IPENZ:
The Institution of Professional Engineers New Zealand is revamping its membership structure to appeal to a broader range of engineering professionals, including engineering geologists.
From 1 October, the Professional Member category will be renamed Chartered Member, and will provide professional recognition and standing to the full spectrum of engineering professionals.
Categories of Chartered Member for engineering technologists, engineering technicians and engineering geologists will provide enhanced status and credibility for these important groups of engineering professionals.
While IPENZ currently operates registers of current competence for these groups (ETPract, CertEtn and PEngGeol), these have had very limited take up and will be discontinued. Anyone currently on one of these registers will be eligible for the equivalent category of Chartered Membership without any further assessment.
Similarly, current Technical Members (TIPENZ) and Associate Members (AIPENZ) will become Chartered Members in the equivalent category without any further assessment. And if you are a Professional Member (MIPENZ) now, you will automatically become a Chartered Member (CMIPENZ) on 1 October.
Another important change is that we are broadening our membership eligibility criteria to ensure that we provide a professional home for engineering geologists at all stages of their career. Currently, engineering geologists only have the option to join IPENZ as Affiliate members, but in the new pathway, they’ll be eligible for all classes of membership from Student through to Chartered Member.
If you’re not currently a member or on a register, becoming a Chartered Member will continue to involve an assessment of engineering competence to an internationally benchmarked standard. A more holistic approach will ensure that this assessment is accessible to engineering leaders, academics and other engineers in less design-focused roles.
As part of IPENZ’s commitment to raising standards of ethics and professionalism, from 1 October all IPENZ members will be required to commit every year to the Code of Ethical Conduct and continuing professional development. Alongside this annual commitment, Chartered Members will be required to submit to a periodic review of their CPD practice after a two year transition phase.
These changes do not have any impact on Chartered Professional Engineer (CPEng) registration, which is separate from IPENZ membership. If you are CPEng plus Professional Member (MIPENZ) now, then on 1 October you will be CPEng plus a Chartered Member.
The Membership Pathway changes coincide with a name change for IPENZ, to Engineering New Zealand. The name change signals a major shift in the organisation’s strategy, and makes it clearer to the public and other stakeholders who we are and what we do. We will continue to reflect our heritage by using the tagline “Institute of Engineering Professionals”. Retaining the word “Professionals” helps reinforce it’s at the core of everything they do – and removing the term “Professional Engineer” is key to being more inclusive, relevant and attractive to a broader range of engineering professionals.
Read more about the new membership pathway on the IPENZ website.
