INGENIEUR
the Institute of Labour Market Information and
Analysis. A survey by a higher education advisor
and published by https:/afterschool.my has shown
that the 10 engineering fields with a great future
in Malaysia are:
• Chemical engineering
• Civil engineering
• Mechanical engineering
• Automotive engineering
• Computer engineering
• Software engineering
• Petroleum engineering
• Mechatronics engineering
• Electrical & Electronics engineering and
• Telecommunication engineering
From a vantage point, the aspiring engineer
can look forward to an exciting future as the
engineering profession is changing with the times.
For one, career choices have widened with new
categories of engineering professionals following
liberalisation of trade and services and amended
engineer registration requirements. Also,
working abroad has become easier as accredited
engineering degrees in Malaysia are getting wider
recognition around the world. In addition, the
Malaysian engineer in the 21 st century will take
on the challenges posed by Industrial Revolution
4.0 or Industry 4.0 in terms of evolving job
descriptions.
Contribution to Nation Building
The Economic Transformation Programme (ETP)
Roadmap 2010 highlighted engineering services
as a sub-sector contributed 9% to the country’s
sub-segment share of Gross Domestic Product
(GDP) or 0.38% share of GDP in the 2000-2009
period with the second highest growth rate. The
contribution from engineering services is the
second highest among other business services.
BEM acknowledged the immense contribution
of engineers in shaping the socio-economic
landscape of the country in its book “Engineers
in Nation Building”. The profession started from
a few sub-professionals undertaking public utility
and infrastructure projects in the early colonial
era and grew by leaps and bounds to be a well-
established profession today. Engineers have
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touched the lives of people at home, at work and
at play being involved in housing, public health,
utilities, transportation, telecommunications and
information technology.
International Recognition
BEM has paid close attention to raising the
standard of engineering degrees and diploma
programmes offered by local institutions of higher
learning. In 2018, the country, represented by
BEM, was accepted as full signatory for two
international mutual recognition agreements for
education programmes namely:
• The Sydney Accord for engineering
technology education, generally in the
form of Bachelor in Engineering Technology
(recognised in 10 countries) and
• The Dublin Accord for engineering
technician education, generally in the form
of Diploma in Engineering or Diploma in
Engineering Technology (recognised in
eight countries).
Accredited Malaysian engineering degree
education was recognised under Washington
Accord in 2009. The Accord outlines the mutual
recognition between the participating bodies, of
accredited engineering degree programmes. It has
grown from a initial group of six signatories to 18
signatories.
Local engineering firms used to enjoy some
degree of protectionism in marketing their skills
on their home ground. Competition was limited as
foreign engineers or firms could not enter the local
market freely. However, times have changed.
BEM took the initiative to ‘liberalise’ the
engineering sector. According to an article by
the late Ir. Dr Abdul Majid bin Dato’ Kassim,
entitled “Liberalisation: Is it time for change for
Professional Engineering Service Industry and
the Laws that governed it – Part 1” the push for
Malaysia started with the signing of multilateral,
regional and bilateral free trade agreements
(FTAs). These were with ASEAN countries, the Asia
Pacific countries and nearby regions. Under the
terms of various FTAs, the Malaysian Government
is to relax restrictions on various forms of trade
and services, and reform regulations to ease entry
and ownership under specified deadlines.