Becoming an engineer wasn't the plan growing up
Reece Cooper dedicates himself to serving as both a Professional Registration Advisor (PRA) and a Professional Review Interviewer (PRI) at the IET. Through his volunteer work, he aims to instil the same self-belief in others that his own PRA instilled in him.
Not your usual career path
Like many of us growing up, Reece didn’t know what path he wanted to take. When we asked him what inspired him to become an engineer, he told us “It wasn’t the plan!”
At just 16, he decided to get into a trade. From that point onwards he enjoyed the aspect of travelling and the various challenges he faced in his engineering roles.
Now an Engineering Director for LOS Electrical Engineers, he worked hard to get where he is today by gaining the following qualifications:
- BEng Engineering
- NVQ7 Senior Construction Management
- EX12 Application Design Engineer (Hazardous Areas)
- Advanced Apprenticeship.
Reece wanted to validate his experiences and benchmark against an international standard, so he applied to become a Chartered Engineer.
“It also gave clients and customers confidence knowing my competences had been peer assessed at an international level.”
Taking on two roles
When applying for his Chartered Engineer (CEng) status, Reece was paired with a Professional Registration Advisor within the same sector as himself.
“Having someone who could relate to my work made the application so much smoother and gave me much more confidence in the application being a success.”
The support he received had a lasting impact, inspiring him to offer the same guidance to others on their professional journey. There were several other reasons why Reece decided to volunteer, some with a much deeper reasoning.
“I wanted to add my expertise to the long list the IET have and be able to be a Person of Colour (POC) for others in my sphere of influence to apply and assist with that process either on the front end with the applications or back end with interviewing” he tells us.
Insights from an expert
In his early career, he was always told that “the engineer who designed it thought it would work, stop and look at it from their perspective”. Now, as a volunteer, he applies this same principle in his role, as well as in his engineering career.
When asked what makes a good Professional Registration Advisor (PRA), Reece told us “The applicants believe they have achieved the experience required and it is our role to sit in their shoes and help draw out that competence and map alongside the UK Spec.”
As a Professional Review Interviewer (PRI), he offers insights into the interviewers' roles. Most importantly, he emphasizes that he aims “to make the applicant feel confident and really empower that ‘peer assessment’ rather than an interview.” He further explains that interviewees should view the process as a conversation, which will help them feel more comfortable discussing their work.
Networking and growing
Because of his roles, Reece meets others from all over the industry, many of them being some he has stayed in contact with. Whilst meeting new people, he tells us about the knowledge he has gained.
He can grow his Continuing Professional Development (CPD) as well, “I meet some really interesting people through my PRA and PRI role and often find myself scouring the web to find out more about what they had told me about during meetings or interviews”.
If you’re looking at volunteering with the IET, Reece has some encouraging advice – “Do it. There’s a huge sense of achievement helping others achieve their personal goals to obtain professional registration and advance in their careers.”