ENGR 482 Lecture 8

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What is a professional?

One claiming to be "duly qualified" in some field by virtue of

• Special Knowledeg
• Experience, and
• With some state sanction or license

Models of Professionalism

• Business model
  • earning a living
  • privileged to apply for certain positions
  • Peer review
• Social Contract Model
  • guardians of the public trust
  • adapting to society
  • tacit agreement with public, instilling trust
  • subsidy of funding (by public)
  • more autonomy than business model

Professional Ethics vs. Social Ethics

Identify ethics that belong to three fields:

• Professional only (loyalty to employer)
• Intersection, and (trust
• Personal only (religious obligations)

In order of increasingly severe consequences:

1. Courtesy/Etiquette
2. Morals/Ethics
3. Professional Codes
4. Laws

Codes of Ethics

Why are Codes Important?

• "set in stone"
• learn from mistakes (codes are often tied to disasters)
• easy out for declining offers that are unethical

NSPE Code

1. 6 Canons / Principle Rules:
   1. Hold paramount the safety, health, and welfare of the public
   2. Perform services only in the areas of their competence
   3. Issue public statemens only in an objective and truthful manner
   4. Act… for each eployer or client as faithful agents or trustees
   5. Avoid deceptive acts in the solicitation of professional employment
   6. Conduct themselves honorably, responsibly, ethically, and lawfully so as to enhance the honor, reputation, and usefulness of the profession.
2. Rules of practice (amplify canons)
3. Obligations

ACM Code

1. 4 Moral imperatives:
   1. Contribute to society and human well-being
   2. Avoind harm to others
   3. Be fair and take action not to discriminate
   4. Honor property rights including copyrights and patents
   5. Give proper credit for intellectual property
   6. respect the privacy of others
   7. honor confidentiality

Codes in General

Common hierarchy/priority of interests:

1. Public
2. Employer or client
3. Profession and peers
4. Engineer (self)

Put well-being of others before yourself.

Texas-Specific Legal bounds

Texas Engineering Practice Act and Rules Concerning the Practice of Engineering and Professional Engineering Licensure

• 68 pages
• 6 chapters
  • We'll deal with Ch. 137c: Professional Conduct and Ethics.

Texas Board of Professional Engineers (TBPE)

Responsibilities:

• manage registration and licensing of engineers using exams
• review conduct and ethics of practicing engineers
• enforce state law and sanction violators

6 Canons of Texas Law

Read and understand the actual code text!

1. Protect the public (very broad definition)
2. Be objective and truthful
3. Actions shall be competent
4. Maintain confidentiality of clients
5. Responsibility to the profession
6. Action in another Jurisdiction

Regulation of Engineering Practice in Texas

Only a licensed engineer may engage in the practice of engineering

any service or creative work, public or private, requires engineering education, training, or experience

"Industry exemption": One does not have to be a licensed engineer to work on internal projects within company

Registration Process

1. Pass fundamentals of engineering (FE) exam (3rd or 4th year of college)
2. Graduate from accredited engineering program
3. at least 4 years of experience (incl. graduate engineering degrees)
4. Complete application with references
5. Prep for and pass the PE exam in your discipline