An engineering education is preparation for a vast range of careers that concern technologies of value to people; engineers advance humankind's reach in any way possible. Engineers acquire the intellectual skills, knowledge, experience, and cultural understanding that prepares them to render their professional services. However, they are obligated to be responsible for how every person is affected by their work. McCormick graduates possess these professional attributes, and they have established an admirable record of impacting the modern world with their life work.
At the center of the engineering profession are discipline-specific societies that serve the career needs of their members and husband progress in their respective fields. The largest of these societies is the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers; many smaller, but nevertheless influential, engineering societies abound (search at http://www.nae.edu/nae/naehome.nsf). Furthermore, each state in the country offers engineering licensure as a way of assuring the quality of practitioners whose work affects recognized concerns for public safety; see http://www.nspe.org.
Engineering Ethics
In addition to being organizations that serve as central foci for engineers in their specialties, the following professional societies make available their respective statements on engineering ethics:
- The American Institute of Chemical Engineers, AIChE, is a professional association that provides leadership in advancing the chemical engineering profession.
- The American Society of Civil Engineers, ASCE, has members of the civil engineering profession worldwide, and is America's oldest national engineering society. See:
- The Association for the Study of Medical Education, ASME, is a membership organization for doctors and medical educators from any specialty and level.
- The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, IEEE, is an organization has advanced the theory and application of electrotechnology and allied sciences.
- The IEEE Computer Society is the world's leading organization of computer professionals. It is the largest of the societies of IEEE.
- The National Society of Professional Engineers, NSPE, is the only engineering society that represents individual engineering professionals and licensed engineers across all disciplines.
- Tau Beta Pi, the engineering honor society, is the only engineering society representing the entire engineering profession.
