To practice engineering in Kenya and for one to be recognized as an Engineer, it is necessary for them to register in both the Engineers Board of Kenya (EBK) and the Institution of Engineers of Kenya (IEK).
EBK is a regulatory body resulting from the Engineers Act
2011 with the explicit mandate to regulate the engineering practice in the
country.
The board interests itself with all aspects of engineering
practice in Kenya from the accreditation of courses at the university level to
the Continuous Professional Development (CPD) of Engineers. Included in the
board of EBK are four individuals nominated from IEK including the Chairman of
the institution.
IEK on the other hand is the learned society of the
Engineering Profession in Kenya. The institution has the objective to spearhead
the wellbeing of the occupation and development of the engineering profession
in Kenya. The institution has been in existence since 1972 championing
engineers and looking for ways to protect and improve the practice of
engineering in Kenya.
A professional engineer is an individual, who has fulfilled
education and experience requirements and passed rigorous exams and thereafter
licensed to practice engineering. For one to practice as a professional
engineer in Kenya, one is required by law to register with the Engineers Board
of Kenya (EBK). The registration provides an assurance to the public that one
is adequately skilled to take the responsibilities that come with making
engineering decisions.
A registered professional engineer is issued with a
practising license every year. The main requirement in registration is for a
graduate engineer to demonstrate that he/she has acquired sufficient skills and
professional competence to work as an engineer. Typically, this is maybe
achieved within two and a half to three years where structured training is
effected.
It should be noted that one can register through IEK as a
corporate member and thereafter apply for registration to EBK while using the
same reports (with changed cover pages to reflect EBK). Done this way, you will
be subjected to only the oral interview by EBK.
Download this EBK notice on the same: EBK
Notice on Registration of Engineers and Provision of Professional Engineering
Services in Kenya
August 2021 Update:
You can download the updated notice on the application
procedure and timelines below:
EBK-Examination
Notice-August 2021
Keeping checking the EBK
website for any new guidelines: Check their “resource
section” of the website.
APPLICATION PROCEDURE FOR REGISTRATION AS A PROFESSIONAL
ENGINEER
Note that submission of applications and professional
interview documents may be done online.
1.Ensure that you meet the following qualifications:
- Registered
with EBK as a Graduate Engineer;
- Have
at least 3years of working experience from the date of
registration as a Graduate Engineer;
- Have
worked under the supervision of a Professional Engineer.
2.Fill in the Application Form; available on our website or
at the EBK’s Customer Information Desk.
3.Attach the below-listed documents:
- Certified
copy of Degree Certificate and other relevant academic certificates;
- Certified
copy of National Identity Card (ID)/ Passport;
- EBK
Graduate Engineer Certificate;
- IEK
Membership Certificate or Receipt of application;
- Curriculum
Vitae (CV) certified by one of the referees;
- Two
coloured passport photos.
Note: Certification to be done by the Commissioner of
Oaths whose names and addresses are fully displayed on the Rubber Stamp:
4. Applicant should deposit KSh. 10,000.00 application fee
at EBK’s Bank Account.
Account Name: Engineers Board of Kenya
Account No: 01001031539000
Bank: National Bank. Hill Plaza
5.Drop your application together with the Bank Slip at the
Customer Information Desk.
6.After all the documents are received, the Board will carry
out an administrative review of the documents and if there are any deficiencies
the Secretariat will advise the applicant accordingly.
7.The Board will contact the nominated referees. Upon
receiving at least two responses, the application will be forwarded to the
chairman of the panel of the respective discipline for technical evaluation.
8.The Panel will carry out a technical evaluation and
present their recommendations to the Board for approval of submission of
professional interview documents.
9.The Board will notify the applicant in writing of the
approval to sit for the professional interview and forward to them the notes
and rules on the conduct of the professional interview.
10.The applicant should prepare, submit and sit for his /
her professional interview within (1) one year from the date of notification.
11.After the applicant has sat for the professional
interview the recommendations will be forwarded to the Board for deliberations
and ratifications.
12.The applicant will be notified in writing of the Board’s
recommendations and thereafter a certificate of registration will be issued to
successful applicants.
Referees and supervisors
- Needs
three referees who must be very explicit on the recommendations supporting
the candidate’s readiness for registration.
- Two
must be from the profession of the applicant’s profession.
- Need
to have a registered engineer as a supervisor.
It is possible to look for a supervisor among
registered engineers.
Professional Interview (PI) Documents
The applicant will be given guidelines on how to prepare PI
documents but you may note the following:-
These are two documents to be submitted in 3 copies are:-
- i)
Training and experience report and
- ii)
Project Report
August 2021 Update:
For electrical, you can download the updated Notes and Rules for Professional Interview-Electrical
Engineering, by downloading this PDF, EBK
Notes Rules-Electrical Engineering Profesional Engineer
1) TRAINING AND EXPERIENCE REPORT
In the preliminary, take care of the following:-
- Take
note of the cover page,
- Declaration
must be made by the candidate that the report correctly describes his/her
training and experience gained in the course of his duties.
iii) Certification by supervisor that the report submitted
correctly describes training and experience gained by the candidate under his
supervision
This training and experience report is done in two parts as
follows
- i)
Summary of Training and Experience to be prepared in matrix form as below
and suitably in portrait format.
PERIOD |
INSTITUTION |
WORK DONE |
SUPERVISOR |
DURATION in Months |
The matrix data will start from time at the University and
will include any attachments and training received during the period.
Change of employer, position or station will require a separate row.
Supervisors must be indicated by name. There should be no gaps in time and the
entire period from entry to University to date must be accounted for.
- At the
end of the matrix, show total duration
- The
matrix must show appropriately the training received which should be at
least 24 months.
A table showing Summary of time spent is required following
the matrix:
- Engineering
Education-months
- Training
months
- Design
months
- Construction
months
- Customer
service months
- Project
Management months
TOTAL months
Total Duration (months) should be the same as on the matrix.
The second part is:
2.0 Detailed Training and Experience Report
The candidate will expand on each items covered in the
summary of training and experience report giving a paragraph or so on each row
covered. This is presented in paragraph form to explain training and experience
gained.
Download Training and Experience Report Templates (for
Electrical) below:
PROJECT REPORT
- Project
reported should not be more than 5 years old.
- A
purely academic project is not acceptable.
- Attention
to cover page, title of project.
- Declaration
by the applicant is required declaring that the project is his work
carried out in the course of his /her duties.
- Certification
is also required from the supervisor certifying that the project was done
by the candidate under his supervision.
- The
application can be made to both IEK and EBK.
- It is
possible to get a supervisor from other professional engineers.
Specific on the project
- Show
Problem statement necessitating the project
- Discuss
possible solutions and come up with a preferred solution
- Analyse
the current situation
- Design
the preferred solution
- Show
design calculations,
- Drawings,
- Bill
of quantities
- Implementation
- Cost
benefit analysis
Download Project Report Templates (for Electrical) below:
- EBK
STANDARD FORMAT FOR PROJECT REPORT -July 2020_EBK
- IEK
STANDARD FORMAT FOR PROJECT REPORT -July 2020_IEK
Interviews
At the interview, candidate will be required to explain his
training and experience, present his/her project and answer questions from the
panelists. The candidate is expected to bring along a copy of his/her reports
and some writing material to take notes during the interview. Candidates below
45 years of age will be required to write a 2 hour (hr) essay on a topic to be
advised by the panel.
Discussions
- Applicants
whose documents have shortcomings are invited for discussions where these
shortcomings are brought to their attention and are advised to improve on
their reports.
- For
those who have not achieved adequate training and experience, they are advised
to seek attachment with suitable firms to get relevant experience.
Scoring
Based on how well the candidate prepares and presents
his/her reports, the candidate will be marked out of the following in the
respective areas of submission.
- Training
and experience report- (10 marks)
- Calculations
(15 marks)
- Drawings
(10 marks)
- Bills
of Quantities (5 marks)
- Interview
presentation (50 marks)
- Essay
for young candidates –those below 45 years ( 10 marks)
Professional Interview Preparation (PIP) Seminars
Professional Interview Preparation Seminars are organized by
IEK to assist those wishing to become Corporate Members of IEK and to register
as Professional Engineers. The seminars are one day and are held twice a year.
But since the start of Covid-19 pandemic lockdown, the PIP seminars are now
held online regularly.
Collaborations
Through MoU’s with the Engineering Boards and Institutions in the Eastern Africa, It is possible to have registration in any East African countries and have it recognized in Kenya.