Corporate Membership is awarded at the earliest point that the designations of Chartered Engineer (CEng) and Chartered Scientist (CSci) can normally be awarded to those who satisfy the postgraduate education, training and experience requirements. For those working in the NHS as pre-registration scientists and engineers, Corporate Membership can be awarded at the same time as registration as a Clinical Scientist by the Health Professions Council (HPC).
Rule C:4 is as follows:
Corporate Membership is open to those who fulfil the following conditions:
(i) hold a university honours degree, or equivalent academic qualification, acceptable to the Council,
AND
(ii) (a) have successfully completed a period of clinical scientist post-graduate training recognised by Council, normally of four years duration OR
(b) have a minimum of five years equivalent post-graduate experience under supervision, no more than three years of which will have been as a full time postgraduate student OR
(c) have a minimum of six years postgraduate experience including at least two years of relevant training,
AND
(iii) have satisfied Council, normally following an interview, that the education, training and experience received was of a sufficiently high level,
(a) they are working in a physical science applied to medicine or biological engineering, or related biological sciences OR
(b) their work is of a high standard and, in the judgement of the Council, is making a significant contribution to the practice of physical sciences or engineering applied to medicine or related biological sciences.
Corporate Members may use the designatory letters MIPEM.
Guidance for Applicants
The routes to Corporate Membership and the processes involved will vary according to the background of the applicant. Although the majority of applications will be from scientists and engineers working in the NHS, and the majority of those will be from scientists and engineers who have completed pre-registration education and training, the Institute encourages applications from those working in academe and industry, and those in the NHS who have followed entry pathways that have not involved participation in a formal training scheme.
Candidates for Corporate Membership of IPEM, who have not completed a formal training route must provide a description of the training they have received and the experience they have obtained. This 'Statement of Training and Experience' is in addition to the requirement for the completed Application Form and CV. The document should be typically of 2000 words in length. It should describe, in chronological order, the subject areas in which training and experience have been received and should be sufficiently detailed for the depth of knowledge gained, to be assessed. It should be validated by at least one signature of a Corporate Member of IPEM with a knowledge of the training and experience received.
All applicants for Corporate Membership will be required to attend an interview at one of three or four interview boards which will be held each year. The dates of the interview boards together with a timetable for receipt of applications for consideration at each board will be published in advance. and applicants will have to attend at their own expense. Applicants whose applications are unsuccessful may request guidance from the Chairman of the Membership Panel about actions they must take to improve the prospects of a future application being successful. Applications for Corporate Membership must be proposed by two Fellows or Corporate Members. Each proposer will be approached for a reference and must therefore have detailed professional knowledge of the candidate.
NHS employees completing pre-registration training are required to be assessed by assessors appointed by the Association of Clinical Scientists (ACS), having provided a portfolio of evidence required by ACS. These assessors will determine whether or not a Certificate of Competence should be issued that will allow the candidate to apply for registration with the Health Professions Council (HPC). ACS undertakes this role for HPC on its behalf as an umbrella body for all the clinical science organisations that are its members. In practice ACS assessors for physics and engineering are also assessors for IPEM Corporate Membership and so the ACS assessment now serves, following the recent Rules change, as the Corporate Membership interview for these candidates.
Chartered Engineer (CEng) Registration may also take place concurrently with a Corporate Membership application, where candidates have undertaken specialist training and acquired responsible experience in an engineering subject. In these cases, interviews for Corporate Membership will be undertaken by assessors who are Chartered Engineers (and ACS assessors where assessment for a Certificate of Competence is involved) and will take the form of a Professional Review Interview. Applicants for Chartered Engineer Registration who are already Corporate Members will be required to complete an application form which will be considered by the Chartered Engineer Registrar, after which the candidate will be required to attend a Professional Review Interview.
Chartered Scientist (CSci) Registration may also take place at the same time as the award of MIPEM, if the candidate is working as a scientist rather than / or as well as an engineer. Success in the IPEM Corporate Membership interview for those working as scientists is all that is required.
For those working in academe and industry, where registration with HPC is not relevant, the Corporate Membership interview will be equally as rigorous as that required for ACS / HPC purposes, but will focus on issues that are relevant to the candidates' own professional and working environments.
What to send
- Original + 1 copy of your Application Form
- Originals or properly authenticated copies of educational certificates (copies can be authenticated by a solicitor, a notary public, the Registrar of the issuing body or a Fellow, Corporate or Incorporated Member of the Institute who has seen the original certificates.
- Original + 1 copy of your CV or supporting information for those who have not followed a formal training route a statement in addition to the application form and CV (maximum length of 2000 words) detailing their training and experience.
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