Engineering Professional Practice
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, Master of Engineering (Professional) students.
Changes to Engineering Professional Practice from 2025
From Semester 1, 2025 there will be a change to how you register and claim your EPP and we will launch a new system called your EPP Hub utilising the UQ StudentHub platform.
What am I required to complete to graduate in 2024?
- 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 |
|---|---|
|
|
*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
And much more!! |
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 Supervision Requirements:
To claim Type A hours, you must be supervised by a professional engineer that 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.
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 performing professional engineering services in Queensland as part of an internship or work experience must be directly supervised by a Registered Professional Engineer of Queensland (RPEQ) who takes full professional responsibility for the services as required under the Professional Engineers Act 2002. More information is available via the Board of Professional Engineers of Queensland.
Students performing professional engineering services outside of Queensland should be aware of any similar Act or legislation.
7. Submit reflections assessment
Submit your assessment via UQ Blackboard
Write your five (5) reflections in line with the Engineers Australia Stage 1 Competencies as per the Reflection Assessment Writing guidelines; and,
Submit your reflections to Blackboard for marking. Refer to the Reflections Assessment Submission guide for instructions on downloading the EPP reflections template and submitting your reflections.
If you are having trouble downloading the template, we suggest trying to download the template on a Windows device as opposed to a Mac. Another option is to open the document in Google Docs or WordPad.
Please reach out to the EAIT Student Employability team if you have any issues downloading your reflections template.
Watch the video below on how to submit your assessment.
Students are reminded to familiarise themselves with the Student Integrity and Misconduct Policy and to ensure that all information submitted is accurate and all reflections are entirely the student’s own work, or sources are referenced appropriately.
EAIT Student Employability Team: Video 3: Submitting Reflections Assignment from UQ Communication & Arts on Vimeo.
Marking of reflections is managed by Schools; therefore, we are unable to advise when your assessment will be marked.
If you have submitted your assessment by the deadline, you can expect it to be marked with priority and in time for graduation checks. Time is allowed in the process to enable students to resubmit if needed to graduate on time.
If your assessment has been marked with a Pass, it will display on Blackboard. If your assessment has been marked with a Fail, you will need to re-write your reflections and re-submit until you receive a Pass. Our team will clear your attempt in Blackboard to enable you to resubmit.
The use of artificial intelligence (AI) or machine translation (MT) may constitute misconduct under the Student Code of Conduct. This reflection task evaluates a student's ability, skills, and knowledge without the aid of AI. Students are advised that the use of AI and/or MT technology to develop responses and reflections is strictly prohibited. The use of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine translation (MT) in reflections is monitored and investigations will be undertaken where it is suspected that AI or MT has been used. As part of the investigation process, students may be required to attend an interview with a member of academic staff where they will be asked questions regarding their reflections. The investigation process will take time and may put your graduation eligibility at risk.
Are you a professional engineer?
Shape the next generation of engineers and build your pipeline of future talent!
Find out more about how we can work together to provide our engineering students with invaluable hands-on experience through professional practice.