advice needed please, degree not accredited

Lokolo

Has he actually applied for jobs and been told he won't get it because the course isn't accredited?

My degree has nothing to do with the job I will do and I suspect a lot of the stuff I've learnt will be irrevelant.

the_gorgeous_one

He wants to be an engineer/ design engineer so they will take someone that has done an accredited course before someone without but your right it may be that he is panicking and is 20 steps ahead. Time will tell and it is early days yet. Good luck with whatever you do and thanks for responding in a positive way

dmg24

the_gorgeous_one wrote: »

it is always good to have hindsight and know what you need to ask. When you are in a career it may seem obvious that there are certain requirements for a course, but if not then these are things that the 'establishment' should inform them of. Not being an engineer I would not have known to ask about accreditation

When applying for university you are expected to do sufficient research to ensure that the course is suitable for your needs. If you are capable of studying at this level you should be more than capable of clarifying this information.

Oldernotwiser

If the university's prospectus or website had said that the course was accredited, your son and his friends would have a very good cause for complaint. If neither of these said this and the students didn't bother to investigate this before applying and accepting then they have no case whatsoever.

The idea that they should expect money from the university to fund further study is totally ludicrous!

MrsManda

The BEng(hons) Mechanical Engineering degree at Manchester Met is accreditted to the Institute of Mechanical Engineers
http://www.mmu.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/courses/7688/

Even if his particular degree is not accreditted with an engineering body I do not see how/why the university should be held responsible for students not researching their decision to study a particular course properly. - A lack of accreditation may be why Manchester Met has lower entry requirements than other engineering courses

If you want to be a particular type of engineer you look at the appropriate body to find out what you need to do to qualify. Just like if you want to be a qualified psychologist as opposed to just studying psychology you check with the British Psychology Society about what you need, or want to be a lawyer rather than just studying law.

Yes it can be difficult to make these decisions at 18 but those who want to go to university shouldn't just see it as a right but as something which the brightest and most ambitious people should do and this means researching their decision properly - just like at 16 you need to research the decision of what A-levels to take in order to be able to study the kind of subject you want to should you go to university.

Your son may have to do a MEng in order to get his acreditation or do a postgrad certificate with the institute of engineering. There are ways and means to do what he wants but this time he'll hopefully research his options properly.

whitfreak

It all comes down to if accreditation matters. If your son has his heart set on becoming a Chartered Engineer or his desired employer expects their new recuits to get Chartered quickly. Then yes it matters.

Even then it doesn't really matter as:
A) Chartered Status now require evidence of a masters degree level of knowledge (so those BEng's still need to do further study...).
All professional bodies have an alternative route, which normally involves showing evidence that you've got as much knowledge as those with the right bit of parchment.
C) While some employers do have thier biases about particular degrees and where they came from, it will probably take a special type to worry about the accrediation status of the degree. So intial employment oppotunities probably won't be affected too much
D) Getting that status takes a few years of real world work anyway.

So my advice is unless there is evidence of misselling, I'd leave trying to get anything out of the university.

DO get him to get proper careers advice, from his tutors, the uni's career service, or one of the professional bodies. Or find a real engineer.

If he get goes down the do a Masters route. Make sure he does it else where as it does not look like any of thier Engineering masters are accredited/

the_gorgeous_one

Thankyou very much whitfreak, it is really appreciated advice. My son plans to talk to uni next week to check out the full details to see what went wrong etc. He is thinking of ways to fund his next training along with our help. We wont be trying to get money out of the uni, as it would probably be a waste of energy, as you can probably appreciate my previous comment was made whilst upset and shocked and I apprecieate this helpful positive none preachy post of yours, it matters a lot as a mother. Thankyou, my main reason for posting this blog was to get more information that I could understand and to vent my frustration. He is going to speak to another uni next week to see what his options are but I will point him in the direction of your advice when he comes home. He is thankfully still working hard to get good grades so he can move on from here.

bestpud

Oh boy! That's not what you want to hear at the end of your degree!!

I agree they are very unlikely to get any joy from the uni as it is their responsibility to check these things.

Best thing now is to keep him positive and get as much info as possible before he does anything. Hopefully it is just a little side step and he will soon be back on track with his chosen career.

I do think the uni should be informed of this and asked if they will take steps to ensure the promotional materials are accurate. It's easy for students to be sucked in by the spiel and they should really be clear about things like this imo.

AndyGuil

He needs a BEng(Hons) which will enable him to become IEng (Incorporated Engineer) and an MEng will enable him to become CEng (Chartered Engineer) with enough relevant experience. Is he doing an MSc or an MEng? Some MSc, PhD, EngD are relevant for the CEng.

It is worth noting that the IEng and CEng status are from the engineering council and not the IMechE, though they can issue it. This means that accreditation could be with another body such as IOM3, RAES, IEMA etc. The requirements are the same for all bodies. An MSc can be accredited by another body or bodies. Chartership with any of the bodies under the engineering council is worth the same.

the_gorgeous_one

It is a BSc, Thanks for both your comments Andygill and bestpud. Its not what we wanted to hear but life is sometimes like that. My son is coming home on Wenesday so hopefully he will know a bit more and I can also give him this advice. I wasn't sure what to do which is why I made these posts as there is usually someone else who can help. Thankyou for taking the time to respond and give your advice.