Mentor Supported training helps engineers complete their initial professional development (IPD). The training is supervised by approved mentors who are experienced engineers and members of SLIE or registered elsewhere with Professional Engineering Institutions (PEIs) and who support trainees through their IPD, helping them progress to the next step in the professional qualification process – the Professional Review or End Point Assessment.
This guide to Mentor Supported training explains the purpose of IPD and who the training is for. It also outlines each aspect of the training, including:
IPD is the period when trainees start to develop the knowledge, understanding and skill and professional attitude required to practice as a professional. Learning and getting experience at work will help trainees take on positions of responsibility and make independent judgements.
IPD is recorded against a set of attributes that apply to the grade of professional qualification the trainee is aiming to achieve (CEng, IEng or EngTech). The attributes reflect the initial knowledge and skills required of a professionally qualified civil engineer.
The attributes are generic, which means they can be achieved in a range of ways, and by anyone working as a professional engineer. All work-based experience can be used towards IPD, whenever and wherever it is gained.
SLIE Mentor Supported training can be used by anyone who successfully applies to enter the scheme and who is unwilling or unable to utilise the SLIE Approved Employers Company Based Training Scheme and who would like to become a Member of SLIE (MSLIE) and to register as a Chartered (CEng) or Incorporated Engineer (IEng) or Engineer Technician (Eng Tech). It can also be used by current MSLIE members wishing to progress from one level of membership to the next via the Progressive Professional Review (PPR) route. It is a requirement to be supported by an approved mentor. It can also be used by student members who are not yet in full time employment but wish to start recording their experience (e.g. students undertaking work placements as part of their education).
If you’re applying for membership at Engineering Technician level (MSLIE EngTech) you don’t need to formally complete IPD, but if you think it will benefit your development you can follow Mentor Supported training.
If you work for a SLIE Approved Employer, you should follow the SLIE Training Scheme, if possible.
It’s important to be aware that completing IPD does not guarantee success at Professional Review or End Point Assessment. The trainee needs to show full competence at the required level at the Professional Review/End Point Assessment.
SLIE IPD Online supports trainees and mentors to register training, and record, assess and complete IPD.
Once registered on Mentor Supported training, trainees will be able to access SLIE IPD Online via MySLIE.
Mentors will receive an email notification once a mentee submits their evidence.
To review the evidence, you will need to access SLIE IPD Online and you do this by logging onto MySLIE and select the role ‘Mentor’ from the ‘Access SLIE IPD Online’ panel you can then see the evidence from
your mentee.
More information on SLIE IPD Online
Once you’ve accessed SLIE IPD Online, you can use the help centre to find out more.
Keeping records is an important personal discipline and a requirement of professional practice. It also helps trainees progress more quickly. The most important record of achievement is SLIE IPD Online. This is where progress is formally recorded and assessed.
It is recommended that the mentor should review the trainee’s progress against the attributes at regular intervals through each year: quarterly is suggested. CPD plans and records should also be reviewed at these development meetings.
The annual appraisal is carried out by the mentor who will use SLIE IPD Online to assess and record the trainee’s progress towards achieving the attributes, they will also check the trainee’s CPD plans and records and discuss the CPD development action plan for the coming year.
The trainee initiates and completes the first part of the annual appraisal before the mentor has access to it in SLIE IPD Online. The appraisal should be used to review previous experience and set targets for the next 12 months. The trainee should be given guidance to make the most of the experience they get at work. It’s important that the trainee’s strengths are identified, and that strategies to overcome areas of weak performance or experience are considered and agreed.
The aim of annual appraisals is to:Details of the annual appraisal must be recorded using SLIE IPD Online. The system gives an automatic reminder to carry out and record the annual appraisal.
The annual appraisal should be comprehensive, rather than lists of activities or vague statements such as, ‘a satisfactory year’. The annual appraisal date is set as one year from the date the trainee registered to use SLIE IPD Online. The mentor can change this using SLIE IPD Online.
The Training Review is the last stage of IPD, and is an appraisal of the entire training period, done by the mentor.
It should take place as soon as the trainee and mentor agree that the attributes have been achieved.
The Training Review ensures that the trainee has:
Trainees are responsible for keeping their records up to date within SLIE IPD Online to demonstrate their experience against the attributes. Trainees will need to ensure they maintain their membership of SLIE to continue their use of the SLIE Mentor Supported training.
All SLIE members make a commitment to continuing professional development (CPD) throughout their professional life.
As part of the SLIE Mentor Supported training, trainees are required to maintain a development action plan (DAP), which sets out the goals and priorities for the coming year. It enables trainees to plan their CPD, and meet personal, professional, and technical goals. The experience gained and activities completed should be recorded in a personal development record (PDR) with a minimum of 30 hours effective learning each year.
For more information on how best to plan and record your CPD, please read our CPD guidance.
CPD BookletMentors should always be available to meet with the trainee to discuss and resolve any issues of concern but the onus is on the trainee to request such a meeting..
The specific responsibilities of the mentor are to understand:
To remain capable of carrying out their role, mentors must:
Mentors shouldn’t have responsibility for more than six trainees at any one time, except for short periods.
If you’d like to cease your role as a mentor for Mentor Supported training, or you no longer mentor a trainee then please email SLIE.secretariat@slie-sl.org