Required Qualifications for Registration as REA

Section 11(1) of the Act specifies the criteria for registration.

Applicants must be EITHER:

(a) Born before the 1st January 1936, with a basic engineering training plus at least 12 years of engineering experience, including a minimum of 6 years in positions of responsibility in relation to engineering work, OR;

(b) Hold a NZ Certificate of Engineering or a First Class Marine Engineer's Certificate or an equivalent qualification approved by the Board. The minimum engineering experience comprises a basic engineering training plus at least 6 years of engineering experience, including 1 year in positions of responsibility in relation to engineering work, (ie around 10 years engineering experience), OR;

(c) Have a basic engineering training, plus at least 12 years of engineering experience including a minimum of 6 years in positions of responsibility in relation to engineering work. An applicant in this (c) group will be requested to submit a written statement of at least 4,000 words demonstrating an expert knowledge on an engineering topic approved by the Board.

Registration under (a) was for persons who in their younger days did not have the opportunity to carry their education to the standard expected and required today, but have, by experience and ability in industry, attained positions of high responsibility in the engineering field.

For registration under (c), applicants must satisfy the Board that they have achieved a standard of knowledge and experience warranting registration. Further information on these requirements is provided in the registration pack.

'Responsibility' is the extent to which an applicant carries the responsibility for personal decisions and the actions of others. This could apply to solving technical problems, technical management, engineering design, or be related to education and research. The Board is the sole judge of "adequate responsibility" for registration.

To maintain and improve the quality of technical engineers within the engineering industry, the Board considers the formal recognition of technical academic qualifications, the related technical training, and the competency advances of technical engineers through experiential development. The Board utilises a peer review method for ascertaining competency and proficiency of candidates.