INGENIEUR
WA-OBE Approach for substantial
equivalent of Engineers’ Qualifications
OBE in the case of engineering education under
the WA standpoint, has the aim of achieving
engineering qualifications of “substantial
equivalence” — not the same, but equivalent —
meaning as far as graduate attributes go, they are
equal in value, amount, or other qualitative (not
quantitative) consideration.
OBE qualification is not the same as
“prescription based” types — due to inconsistence
of prescriptions.
Qualifications of “substantial equivalence”
are suitable for quality assurance/quality control
(QA/QC) considerations for engineers involved
in Cross Border Trade in Services (CBTS) -
in Engineering and Construction Services ~
CPC8672 – Engineering Services (as covered
by the ASEAN MRA on Engineering Services);
CPC8673 – Integrated Engineering Services (not
yet recognised by BEM nor the ASEAN MRA); and
CPC cluster: 511-518 for trade based Construction
& Engineering Services. The WA for Cross
Border Trade in Services (CBTS) for professional
engineering services was completed three years
after the start of GATT’s Uruguay Round launched
in 1986 and concluded at the end of 1994 giving
rise to WTO on January 1, 1995.
It takes 4-5 years of study to build up
the Knowledge Profile and Graduate
Attributes.
Respecting the sovereign rights of jurisdictions,
the WA cannot and does not prescribe a standard
method of delivering the learning and teaching
process, or the volume of knowledge and
descriptions of contents. Only outcomes are
prescribed such as The Knowledge Profile and
Graduate Attributes, which for an engineering
programme to build up these two sets of
summative outcomes will be achieved in four to
five years of study – for “WA-graded engineers”.
Those programmes structured for four years
must have eight full semesters of “contact time
study”.
Any programme that takes away a full
semester for “industrial attachment”,
leaving only seven full semesters for study,
runs the risk of failing to conform to the WA
requirements.
The WA does not require industrial attachment
during the undergraduate stage.
Generally, it is a national Government policy;
e.g. in Malaysia – we accommodate the industrial
attachment after the sixth semester (end of Year
3) during the year-end long vacation for a period
of eight to 12 weeks’ attachment. Students may
wish to use up the whole vacation for an industrial
attachment, but it is worth only one credit-hour for
two weeks of attachment up to a maximum of six
credit-hours; i.e. twelve weeks’ worth of industrial
attachment.
As stated earlier, the WA expects an engineering
graduate to build up his/her knowledge profile
plus graduate attributes, which are achievable in
four to five years of study; depending on the level
of a student at entry.
An industrial attachment is not a WA
requirement; it is a BEM-EAC requirement.
Certain IHLs try to market their
graduates as “market ready” by having
their undergraduates spend six months of
industrial attachment achieved by utilising
one full semester plus the long vacation
between Years 3 and 4 resulting in only seven
full semesters for “study”. This infringes the
WA’s requirements as stated earlier and for
which a “red flag” was raised by WA experts
when they visited Malaysia.
Among WA jurisdictions there is a view “the bar
needs to be raised” for a programme meant for
engineers that may require four and half to five
years. Currently some feel that four years may be
too crammed.
Minimum Standard for quality
Engineering Education
Graduate attributes form a set of individually
assessable (or objectively measurable) outcomes
that are indicative components of a graduate’s
potential to acquire the necessary competence
to practise at the Engineer level – the end
goal! The graduate attributes are exemplars of
the attributes expected of a graduate from an
accredited engineering programme. Graduate
46 VOL 81 JANUARY-MARCH 2020