Professional Ethics for Engineers

Course overview

Prior to 1900, professional societies generally subscribed to the belief that ethics was a matter of an engineer's personal responsibility and not appropriate for a written code. That changed with the development of the first written codes of conduct for engineers in the early 1900's. These early codes emphasized the importance of an engineer's loyalty to his or her employer. It wasn't until the middle of the 20th century that engineering codes of ethics began addressing the engineer's obligation to the public. On October 28, 1946, the Board of Directors of the National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE) adopted a "Canon of Ethics for Engineers" that was prepared by the Engineers' Council for Professional Development (ECPD), which is now the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET). The ECPD/ABET model, which has evolved over the years, is the basis for the codes of conduct enacted as law by the state engineering boards. This course investigates the most common ethics violations prosecuted by state engineering licensing boards and provides guidance on how to ensure that you don't end up on the wrong side of a board disciplinary hearing. Additionally, a section near the end of the course examines conflicts of interest. Case studies are used throughout the course to demonstrate real life scenarios where engineers have faced ethical dilemmas in professional practice related to the subjects covered in the course.