The BEng programmes of the Faculty of Engineering are formulated and designed to meet the requirements of the Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA) for accredited BEng programmes. As recently as August 2021, a full accreditation panel of ECSA reviewed all programmes of the NWU in view of the next 5-year accreditation cycle. All NWU BEng graduates meet the ECSA requirements. ECSA exit level outcomes ensure that students exit the NWU being the best engineers they can be.
The latest program in Mechatronic Engineering was provisionally accredited by ECSA at the end of 2022. A full accreditation evaluation will take place as soon as the first group of Mechatronic Engineers graduate. Based on that, the degrees of the first graduates - as well as graduates after that - will be fully recognized.
The bachelor’s degree awarded in the Faculty of Engineering is recognised by:
-
The Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA) as a qualifying degree for registration as a professional engineer (PrEng) in terms of the Engineering Profession Act (Act no 46 of 2000).
- The following Engineering societies for membership:
SA Institute of Chemical Engineering (SAIChE)
SA Institute of Electrical Engineering (SAIEE)
SA Institute of Mechanical Engineering (SAIMechE)
SA Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (SAIMM)
SA Institute for Industrial Engineering (SAIIE)
- Other local universities and universities abroad for advanced postgraduate study.
International comparability
International comparability of this whole qualification standard is ensured through the Washington Accord, an agreement for the mutual recognition of professionally oriented bachelor’s degrees in engineering. The standards are comparable with the Washington Accord Graduate Attributes. Washington Accord signatories are: Australia, Canada, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong China, India, Ireland, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Russia, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America. Comparability is audited on a six-yearly cycle by a visiting Washington Accord team.
The current signatories and the Graduate Attributes can be found at http://www.ieagreements.org.
Please note:
ECSA requires that a graduate engineer has to undergo in-service training for a period of three years under the guidance of a professional engineer before registration as a Professional Engineer is possible. This period may be shortened by one year after obtaining an advanced university degree (In terms of the Engineering Profession Act).
Our Faculty CPD numbers are as follows:
- ECSA CPD Licensed Body Ref Number LB_052/2026
- ECSA CPD Service Provider Ref Number SP_040/2026
- Contact: Ms Vanda Pretorius at vanda.pretorius@nwu.ac.za