Continuing Professional Development (CPD)
SOE supports all members to maintain their Continuing Professional Development (CPD).
What is CPD?
Continuing Professional Development (CPD) is ongoing learning that contributes to improving and maintaining skills and knowledge. For engineers, CPD is a vital tool as it is essential to stay up-to-date with new technologies, standards and methodologies. CPD helps engineers stay competitive in an innovative field, enhances their employability and earning prospects, and is a demonstration of professional commitment. CPD is also mandated by the Engineering Council and Society for the Environment for those with Professional Registration.
SOE CPD Hub
SOE supports all members to maintain their CPD, providing resources including our dedicated CPD Hub, articles and technical guides, industry events, and educational webinars. The SOE CPD Hub is designed to make the process of completing, recording and reflecting on CPD simpler. As well as access to all our publication articles, it enables our members to easily record any CPD they have undertaken, recording their reflections and learning outcomes.
CPD Approval Scheme
SOE also supports organisations to produce high-quality engineering CPD, through our CPD Approval Scheme. The scheme can be applied to in-house employee training & events, or that which is sold commercially. We also partner with leading trade events to quality mark their CPD. The scheme ensures your CPD remains reputable and competitive, as it carries the full weight of a Professional Engineering Institution, and indicates it meets the same standards we apply to the membership.
CPD Resources
Upcoming Events & Webinars
Hear from our members
Technological advancements are progressing at an astounding rate and as engineers we must keep ourselves abreast of these new technologies. But as well as these advancements, CPD keeps us up to date with changes in health and safety, environmental policies and managerial tools and practices.
Whether as a member or a corporate partner, there’s a place for you to connect, grow, and make an impact.
CPD FAQs
Have questions about CPD? Find answers here about what it is and the different types of CPD services we offer.
- What is CPD?
CPD is the systematic acquisition of knowledge, skills and personal qualities, in order to maintain and/or enhance professional competence.
- Why should I undertake CPD?
There are numerous reasons to undertake CPD and these depend primarily on your own circumstances; the need for career progression, continuing competence in your current job or indeed to support any additional roles which you undertake away from your primary job such as voluntary work, mentoring, etc. Additionally, you may be considering long term goals towards a future specific role or level of professional registration, which will require different knowledge and skills to your current position.
It is important to recognise that as a professional Operations Engineer you have an obligation to yourself, society and the environment to stay informed of the technological and environmental challenges we encounter daily.
- What counts as CPD?
CPD comes in a variety of different forms from informal learning through the challenges of normal working life and the interaction with colleagues, customers, suppliers, etc, to structured learning in the form of courses, distance learning programmes, private study, mentoring, involvement in professional body activities, or voluntary work.
The list is not exhaustive and you will be best placed to identify your needs, the method that suits your learning style and importantly, your available time. Take a moment to reflect on all the above. You are already involved with CPD whilst reading this. It is expanding your knowledge of an obligation placed on you by society as a professional. In your work both colleagues and employers will expect you to stay current, be it as an engineer, a manager or as a team player. - How does SOE support CPD progress?
Most engineering professionals already undertake CPD, but this is often on a casual basis with no deliberate planning. By developing a plan (where am I now, where do I want to be and when?) you can set milestones and learning goals to be achieved. Recording the activities you undertake against the plan will allow you to consciously reflect on your progress as a cyclical process so that when necessary, you can adjust your plan to suit life’s changing needs both professionally and personally.