Preparing for your Professional

Review (interview) with ECSA

WHEN THE INVITATION ARRIVES professionals from the industry, so when NN If you have not already done so,
You have already applied to ECSA for articulating your competency, be sure to prepare a Portfolio of Evidence file that
Professional Registration and then, sud- use any related technical terminology and includes sample drawings and docu-
denly, an e-mail pops up in your inbox to make reference to principles, codes, ments showing off some of the most
inviting you to attend for an interview specifications, etc, specific to your sub- complex and challenging work that
next week. What now? What preparation discipline. More importantly, you are ex- you have done. Specifically include
can you, or should you, be doing? Here are pected to be able to show the complexity in here any work that you may have
some guidelines. of the project assignment(s) (where you done since the completion of the ECSA
Firstly, check the details of the e-mail have worked at Degree of Responsibility application. While you’re allowed
to determine if you have been invited for D or E) through the use of engineering to make references to your current
an Experience Appraisal interview or a first principles and advanced specialist work – for information purposes –
Professional Review interview. knowledge. remember to pay more attention to the
If it is for an Experience Appraisal information contained in your original
interview this means that there was ADVANCE PREPARATION submission, as this is the only infor-
inadequate information in your applica- Irrespective of which one of the interview mation the assessors and reviewers
tion documentation to allow a majority types you are going for, your preparation can assess you on.
of the assessors to make a clear decision will basically be the same: NN Prepare a 15-minute Power Point (or
on whether your experience meets the NN Acknowledge the e-mail and confirm similar) presentation based on your
requirements and expectations of ECSA. your attendance at the given day, time submitted Engineering Report, high-
This interview will therefore be focused and venue. lighting the key areas of your recent
on questioning you around your experi- NN Go back and read your application work, which should represent you as
ence and seeking clarification regarding documentation carefully, tagging any working at a level equivalent to already
the depth of your competencies against specific pages you may wish to refer to being professionally registered (Degree
each of the 11 Outcomes. It will also prove during the interview. of Responsibility E). You should in-
to be good experience for the subsequent NN Re-read any key documents that you clude good-quality colour photographs
Professional Review. have referred to in your application and diagrams that will support the
If it is for a Professional Review inter- and be prepared, if necessary, to talk documentation already in the applica-
view this means that you have passed the about any parts of these documents tion. (Note: The low-resolution used
Experience Appraisal stage and that you that are mentioned in your application. by ECSA to scan your application
now have to convince the reviewers that NN Remind yourself of the requirements document for ease of distribution to
you possess the required competencies of the 11 ECSA Outcomes and ensure the assessors and reviewers would
against all 11 Outcomes. Remember, the that you are prepared to answer have meant that detail drawings or
onus is on you to demonstrate how your questions as to your knowledge, com- photographs included in your applica-
project experience to date satisfies the 11 petency and experience against each tion might not necessarily have been
Outcomes. The panel of reviewers will be of them. easily readable.)
NN Rehearse your presentation to ensure
If it is for a Professional Review interview this means that you have that you can present within the 15
minutes allowed. The interviewers are
passed the Experience Appraisal stage and that you now have to working on a tight time schedule so
convince the reviewers that you possess the required competencies are liable to cut you off if you go over
your allotted time.
against all 11 Outcomes. Remember, the onus is on you to demonstrate  [Note: The requirement to do a
how your project experience to date satisfies the 11 Outcomes. presentation is now applicable to all

60 January/February 2019  Civil Engineering

 categories of application, i.e. engineers,
technologists and technicians.]
ON THE DAY
This is an important interview, so make
sure that you are dressed appropriately
as if you were meeting a prospective em-
ployer or client. Plan to arrive at the venue
in plenty of time, including allowing for
any unforeseen happenings that could
occur on the way there. Rather be too
early than arriving late.
It is unlikely that there will be a pro-
jection screen available, so use the largest
screen computer that you have, or possibly
take a medium-size screen with you. You
may want to print three copies of your
presentation and hand these to each of the
panel members. This will help mitigate
against any unanticipated event, such as
a power outage or your laptop’s battery
running flat.
THE INTERVIEW
You will be required to prove that you are
who you say you are, so have an ID Book or
driver’s licence with you as proof of identity.
Civil Engineering  January/February 2019
We are there when you need support
Need help with your concrete? We offer a free advisory service
for general concrete queries. Perfect concrete with us.
Remember that, as one of the Outcomes is “Communications”, your
ability to present and then state your case is part of the assessment
process. You should therefore be confident and positive in your
presentation and when responding to questions. Do not be afraid to
take out a piece of paper and make a sketch to support your responses.
You should be interviewed by three people, in communicating effectively. These could
but circumstances sometimes mean that include drawings, sketches, calculations,
there are only two – this is acceptable etc, from your Portfolio of Evidence file.
provided that you have no objection. Also, The interviewers are trying to assess
if you have an objection against any of the your understanding of the basic under-
interviewers, this should be stated up front. lying principles relevant to your chosen
Remember that, as one of the sub-discipline, so in answering technical
Outcomes is “Communications”, your questions, use references to the principles
ability to present and then state your case of design rather than to the latest software
is part of the assessment process. You packages. Remember that as a registered
should therefore be confident and positive professional you will have to take respon-
in your presentation and when responding sibility for the work, including checking
to questions. Do not be afraid to take the output of computer-driven designs.
out a piece of paper and make a sketch to
support your responses. However, arguing Best of luck and have a good interview!
with one or more of the interviewers would
not be good practice! Due to the time limi- Stewart Gibson Pr Eng FSAICE
tation, you may bring along any additional
stevlyn@ibi.co.za
material you deem necessary to assist you
61
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+27 11 315 0300