Continuing Professional Development

When the revised Continuing Professional Development practice standard comes into effect, licensed professionals will no longer be required to submit continuing professional development (CPD) hours and CPD activities into myAPEGA.

Instead, each year, licensed professionals will be required to complete online learning modules and create and follow a Personal Annual Competency Evaluation (PACE) plan.

The learning modules focus on core concepts of the Engineering and Geoscience Professions Act and common issues identified in practice

Each licensed professional will create their own PACE plan and will continue to take responsibility for maintaining and enhancing their professional competency. Once published, requirements will be found in the revised version of the Continuing Professional Development practice standard, and recommended best practices regarding the PACE plan are outlined in the new version of the Personal Annual Competency Evaluation practice guideline.

These requirements must be completed by each licensed professional’s annual expiry date, which can be found on their registrant card on the dashboard of myAPEGA.

APEGA’s Continuing Professional Development practice standard is changing based on feedback from licensed professionals and common issues noted during practice reviews. The revised Continuing Professional Development practice standard puts more emphasis on licensed professionals holding themselves accountable for remaining competent, including planning continuing professional development (CPD) activities tailored to their needs and role, and remaining up to date on their legislated obligations and how they consistently meet them.

The revised version of the Continuing Professional Development practice standard interface in myAPEGA is under development and ongoing updates will be shared in 2025. Until further notice, licensed professionals are required to record their CPD hours in myAPEGA as usual.

A Personal Annual Competency Evaluation (PACE) plan is a personalized plan each licensed professional creates for themselves to ensure they are completing the continuing professional development (CPD) activities required to remain competent at their practice and fulfil their role and responsibilities in their profession. CPD activities are chosen by the licensed professional, who also tracks their completion and evaluates if they have met the intent of their plan.

Once available, licensed professionals will be able to review the revised version of the Continuing Professional Development practice standard, the new Personal Annual Competency Evaluation practice guideline, and the PACE template for requirements and recommended best practice when writing their PACE plans. Each PACE plan will be unique to the individual—it is each licensed professional’s responsibility to determine what is required for their own competency.

Licensed professionals must maintain written records of their PACE plan and CPD activities. If a PACE plan and supporting documents for CPD activities are requested by APEGA at any time, the licensed professional must provide them.

Requirements will be communicated when the revised Continuing Professional Development practice standard and new Personal Annual Competency Evaluation guideline come into effect.

All APEGA licensed professionals will be required to adhere to the conditions set out in the revised version of the Continuing Professional Development practice standard, no matter the kind of work their role requires.

At this time, life members, students, and members-in-training do not have to complete the requirements.

Licensed professionals will continue to record continuing professional development (CPD) hours in myAPEGA until the revised CPD standard comes into effect. Upon coming into effect, submissions of hours for activity-based reporting in myAPEGA will no longer be required.

The learning modules are hosted on APEGA’s learning management system, and licensed professionals can access them by logging in to their myAPEGA account and selecting Learning Modules on the top right-hand side of the dashboard taskbar. Some modules are already available.

Licensed professionals may be familiar with some modules or may have taken them previously. However, even if a licensed professional has taken one of the modules before, they must complete them again by their expiry date on their registrant card in myAPEGA, once the revised practice standard comes into effect.

The Personal Annual Competency Evaluation (PACE) plan is similar to continuing professional development (CPD) requirements of Engineers and Geoscientists British Columbia. The focus is to switch to specific learning requirements for licensed professionals. The learning modules were added as a requirement due to findings from practice reviews which identified key standards and legislation obligations that were not being consistently applied across the professions.

As recommended in version 1.0 of the Personal Annual Competency Evaluation practice guideline, licensed professionals are encouraged to discuss their Personal Annual Competency Evaluation (PACE) plans with another licensed professional, such as a Responsible Member, supervisor, peer, or mentor, but doing so is not a requirement.

Licensed professionals have an obligation through the Engineering and Geoscience Professions Act to maintain their competency, and it is their responsibility to create and follow their Personal Annual Competency Evaluation (PACE) plan as part of meeting their legislated obligations. APEGA will be providing a PACE plan template for licensed professionals to refer to while developing their own plan. APEGA will not verify PACE plans are adequate because it is up to the licensed professional to determine what is required for them to maintain competency.

Some modules will remain the same, but they will be updated and adjusted as legislation, practice standards, guidelines, or bulletins are revised.

This change shifts the focus to the quality of continuing professional development (CPD) activities instead of the quantity of CPD hours. It ensures licensed professionals focus on key standards and requirements, and each individual owns the maintenance of their competency and is able to justify it to their peers, if need be, through their Personal Annual Competency Evaluation plan and CPD activity records.

At any time, the Practice Review Board may request a licensed professional’s Personal Annual Competency Evaluation (PACE) plan. Failure to provide a complete written record of their PACE plan, including supporting documents demonstrating adherence to their PACE plan, will result in cancellation of registration after the expiry of the time frame specified in the notice to comply, in accordance with the General Regulation 19.1 under the Engineering and Geoscience Professions Act.

If the Practice Review Board (PRB) is not satisfied that a licensed professional is complying with the requirements of the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Program, General Regulation 20(2) authorizes the PRB to conduct a review of the licensed professional’s practice. If non-compliances are identified, the PRB may determine appropriate consequences, which may include referring the matter to the Investigative Committee.

All licensed professionals will be required to complete the requirements of the revised Continuing Professional Development practice standard. Those in management roles can ensure their Personal Annual Competency Evaluation (PACE) plans align with the responsibilities of their role and help them to remain competent professionals.