John Day wrote:
> In most countries there is a precise legal definition of what or who
> is or is not a professional. In many  places an engineer is a
> professional, he has a minimum 4 year degree, has submitted to the
> entrance qualifications of a professional society, has obtained a
> licence and is bound by ethical standards and regulations. As a
> professional he is free to carry on his profession without
> supervision within the field for which he is qualified and licensed.

This is different from general "professional", which it sounded like you
were using.  Here in the US there is something known as a Professional
Engineering license, more commonly know as a PE license.  A person who has
one is sometimes referred to as a PE.  You have to pass a test to get a PE
license, and it legally required for some types of work.  This is usually
the case for structural engineers that design bridges and other public
structures.  There is such a thing for EEs, but is rarely needed.  I don't
have a PE license, for example, and it hasn't come up yet as a issue.  If it
did, I'd go take the test but so far haven't had a need to do so.

This means "professional" has different meaning in different contexts.  I am
a professional electrical engineer with nearly 30 years experience, but I am
not a Professional Engineer in the strict legal sense that allows me to sign
off on the design of certain public projects.


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