An engineering technician is primarily trained in the skills and techniques related to a specific branch of engineering, with a practical understanding and has general fundamental engineering concepts.[1] Engineering technicians often assist engineers and technologists in projects and research and development. An engineering technician sits between a skilled craft worker and a Technologist.
The Dublin Accord was signed in 2002 as an international agreement for the recognition of engineering technician qualifications. The Dublin Accord is analogous to the Washington Accord for engineers and the Sydney Accord for engineering technologists.
Engineering technicians solve technical problems. They build or set up equipment, conduct experiments, and collect data and calculate results. They might also help to make a model of new equipment. Some technicians work in quality control, where they check products, do tests, and collect data. In manufacturing, they help to design and develop products. They also find ways to produce things efficiently.There are multiple fields in this job such as; software design, repair, etc.[2] They may also be people who produce technical drawings or engineering drawings.
Engineering technician diplomas and 2-year degrees are generally offered by universities and non-university higher education institutions like colleges of further education, industrial schools, and community colleges. University institutions having 4-year programs offer technical engineering training and undergraduate courses in science and engineering that are useful for obtaining entry-level jobs as an electrical or electronics engineering engineer.[3] Many 3 and 4-year colleges and universities offer bachelor's degrees in engineering technology, but graduates of these programs often are hired to work as applied engineers after further studies, not technicians.[4] In some countries, there were vocational education schools that may have also conferred the title without awarding any degrees.
Both Portugal and Spain use the title of engenharia técnica/ingeniería técnica, literally "technical engineering", for the professionals who were awarded a short-cycle 2- to 4-year undergraduate degree (associate degree or bachelor's degree) in a technical engineering field by colleges or technical engineering institutes in the case of Portugal, and universities in Spain. Spanish "technical engineers" have full competency in their respective professional field of engineering, being the difference that the three year Engineers have competence only in their speciality (Mechanical, Electrical, Chemical, etc.)and the "Engineering Superior School" Engineers have wider competences.
In the United States, the Technology Accreditation Commission of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) grants 2-year associate program degrees to students that meet a set of specified standards. These programs include at least a college algebra and trigonometry course and, if needed, one or two basic science courses at any accredited school. The number of math and science prerequisite courses depends on the branch of engineering that the student chooses.
Engineering technicians apply scientific and engineering skills usually gained in postsecondary programs below the bachelor's degree level or through short-cycle bachelor's degrees. However, some university institutions award undergraduate degrees in the field of engineering which may confer the title of Engineering technician to the student, who is, however, eligible to become a full chartered engineer after further studies at the master's degree level. Engineering technicians are called professional engineers in the UK only.
Experienced technicians in a specific tool domain typically have intermediate understanding of theory and expert proficiency in technique. As such, technicians are generally better versed in technique compared to average laymen and even general professionals in that field of technology. For example, although audio technicians are not as learned in acoustics as acoustical engineers, they are more proficient in operating sound equipment, and they will likely know more about acoustics than other studio staff such as performers.
Technicians may be classified as either highly skilled workers or at times semi-skilled workers, and may be part of a larger (production) process. They may be found working in a variety of fields, and they usually have a job title with the designation 'technician' following the particular category of work. Thus a 'stage technician' is a worker who provides technical support for putting on a play, while a 'medical technician' is an employee who provides technical support in the medical industry or to the medical profession. An engineering technician in the UK is a highly skilled, highly educated occupation requiring 5–8 years post high school training in a formal apprenticeship and college of further education.
