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ENGR201 Professional Practice and Responsibility ©
Lesson 1 Podcast Transcript: What is a Profession?
Attributes of Professionals and the Professional System

In this podcast, we will discuss two aspects of the relation between professionals and
society – the attributes of professionals and the nature of the professional system.
Attributes of Modern Professionals

Modern professionals share four main attributes. These attributes are:
• Intellectual skills that are acquired through a formalized system of education or
training
• The exercise of judgment on matters connected with the practice of work
• Membership in self-governing societies
• Their practice of work contributes directly to advance public welfare
The attribute of skill: A key aspect of the nature of skill that professionals possess is
that it is composed of varied and intellectually demanding techniques and practices,
thus requires individuals to exert considerable effort in acquiring them. In order to
acquire these skills individuals are required to undergo an extensive and formal
education usually at the university level. This is so because many of the techniques
require a base of scientific, technological or mathematical education that can only be
gained from university based education. It is therefore not enough to have an individual
serve as an apprentice for practical training.
The attribute of judgment: A key factor of this attribute arises from the nature of the
work that professionals perform. Since the work is varied and not routine work, it cannot
be mechanized. The variation in the requirements of work means that individuals as part
of their work have to make choices. These choices while based on the training they
receive, have to be made by the understanding of the individual. These choices have
direct consequences for the public.
The attribute of membership in self-governing societies: Given the specialized
training and knowledge that professionals possess, and given the importance of their
work for public welfare, it is vitally important that the actions of professionals be
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governed by other professionals who are capable of evaluating the nature of work they
do. Thus modern professionals need to be members of self-governing professional
associations. These associations are usually established by the government to govern
the actions of professionals to ensure that they practice their profession to further public
welfare.
The attribute of advancing public welfare: A critical aspect of a professional is the
important role they play in advancing public welfare in society. If they practice their
profession in an ethical fashion, professionals make a significant contribution to
improving the welfare of citizens. Conversely, malpractice or the unethical practice of
the profession can have a significantly adverse effect on citizens and society. For
example, consider the effect that bad construction in a bridge could have on the general
population that relies on the bridge to meet their transportation needs.
In Canada, a professional is usually described as a person who meets these above four
attributes. For example, in the Canada Labour code, a professional is defined as in the
course of their employment, engaged in the application of specialized knowledge
ordinarily acquired by a course of instruction and study resulting in graduation from a
university or similar institution, and is eligible to be a member of a professional
organization that is authorized by statute to establish the qualifications for membership
in the organization.
Now, even though professionals may all possess these same attributes, professionals
may be categorized into two kinds depending on the type of employment they have.
These two kinds of professionals are independent professionals and employed
professionals.
• Independent professionals as the name indicates work independently and are paid
directly by the client for the service provided by the professional. As a result of their
independence in employment these professionals have much greater autonomy in
their actions.
o A good example of this kind of an arrangement might be a consulting
engineer or a private doctors or architects.
• An employed professional, on the other hand, is usually hired by a company or
organization. In return for a monthly salary, the professional provides their services
to their employer. It is the employer that usually sets the terms of their work and so
the professional has much less autonomy in their actions.
o An example of this kind of professional would be a nurse working in a
hospital, a manufacturing engineer working for a company.

Professional System
Since professionals play a vital role in advancing the public welfare of societies,
governments around the world have devised mechanisms to control how professionals
can be made accountable to society at large for their actions. When a member of the
public feels they have been treated unjustly or unfairly by a professional, there needs to
be a mechanism that will allow the public to ask a professional to explain their actions.
One such means is the professional system. The professional system can be defined as
a formalized organization that links professionals with society they operate within. The
key objective of the professional system is to ensure that professions are organized to
be accountable to society. Professional associations composed of professionals
practicing the same profession are a key aspect of the linkage between professionals
and society.
The professional systems vary considerably around the world depending on local values
and norms. But there are some aspects that are common between most professional
systems.
• First, most professional systems have formal rules (sometime laws) that govern the
actions of individual professionals.
• Second, professionals become members of a profession when they receive a
license to practice the profession. The professional license, just like a driver’s
license, allows the individual to practice that profession.
• Third, breaking formal rules can result in penalties and depending on the nature of
violation even loss of license. It is through the licensing system that the actions of
professionals are governed by the government.


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ENGR201 Professional Practice and Responsibility ©

Lesson 1 Podcast Transcript: What is a Profession?

Attributes of Professionals and the Professional System

Attributes of Modern Professionals

© May not be copied or duplicated

© May not be copied or duplicated

© May not be copied or duplicated

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