Engaging in CPD demonstrates your commitment to keeping your skills current and in line with the highest standard of contemporary practice.


With the rapidly changing landscape of work expectations, APEA strongly supports the requirement of professional engineers to maintain the highest standards of contemporary practice through Continued Professional Development (CPD) 

In order to meet the CPD requirements for assessment for registration in Queensland:

  • If you worked full-time as a registered practising professional engineer – 50 hours of structured CPD is required over the last 12 months irrespective of the area/s in which you are registered.
  • Your 50 CPD hours are expected to have been undertaken across a breadth of continuing professional development (CPD) activities.


    • CPD Categories and limits


    Limits apply for a three-year period in some categories. Limits are the maximum contribution of that category to your overall requirement to undertake 50 hours over the 12 months immediately prior to lodgement of your application. Additional hours may be supplied, however only the limits will contribute to your eligibility for assessment.

    One of our most popular solutions is our CPD offering. We have an extensive range of CPD available to help both members and non-members meet their renewal requirements for ongoing registration in Victoria. Become a member of APEA to take advantage of the full range.

    Members of APEA can also keep their CPD information all in one place in preparation for their renewals and ongoing registration. Please login to My dashboard to access My CPD log, it is very easy to use and to keep up-to-date.

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    Category A - Formal postgraduate education (No Hour Limit) Evidence is required

    (No Hour Limit) Evidence is required

    Formal postgraduate education aligned to your work which can attract an award on completion from a higher education institution.

    This may include individual units of postgraduate study, which may be on or off campus and can include lectures tutorials, lab work, research, and must involve some form of assessment. You can undertake programs and or structured courses through Australian Universities or accredited registered training organisations (RTO). If you are undertaking distance study, then you should work out what the estimated number of hours would be if it was face-to-face.

    You can claim the time that is the definite hours for all lectures, tutorials and laboratory works. If you have not completed the whole course at the time of application, you are permitted to include the completed units on the provision that these were taken within the three-year period. Private study, planning and preparation related to the completion of formal post-graduated education can be claimed as CPD.

    The courses and or units must aligned to your current role and responsibilities, or explicitly related to the discipline in which you seek registration in.
    Category B - External or Employer Provided Training (No hour limit) Evidence is required

    (No Hour Limit) Evidence is required

    Education provided by your employer or by a provider that is not a higher education provider but that aligns with your work or profession.

    Formal training programs offered by an employer or by a non-higher education provider or RTO is acceptable as an activity under this category.

    Online courses are acceptable. Private study, planning and preparation related to the completion of formal postgraduate education can be claimed as CPD. There is no limit to the number of hours you can claim for this category.
    Category C - Conferences, seminars, industry technical presentations (No hour limit)

    (No hour limit)

    Attendance at a conference, seminar, industry technical presentation.

    Can include webinars, podcasts, technical presentations normally delivered by recongnised practitioners in the field.

    The logbook must only detail the hours the applicant spent in attendance at the event.
    Category D - Presentations (Limited to 45 hours per paper/presentation) Evidence is required

    (Limited 45 hours for three years) Evidence is required

    Presenting at a conference or meeting outside of normal employment aligned to your work and profession and can include presentation and preparation of material.

    Category D refers to the preparation and presentation of materials specifically for conferences, seminars, or meetings which require the application and learning of updated skills or knowledge. Only presentations outside the regular work-based meetings will be accepted. Assessors are looking for information regarding the topic of the presentation, the processes of preparing for the presentation, and the audience of the presentation.

    Category E - Workplace Learning/On the Job Training (Limited to 75 hours)

    (Limited to 75 hours )

    Workplace learning involving theories, concepts, practices, that extent your knowledge. Normal work activities using current knowledge cannot be claimed.

    Normal work activities using current knowledge cannot be claimed. APEA believes that on the job learning plays a vital contribution to the development of professionals and is a category which is often overlooked. The types of activities applicants should consider for this category are those which enhances their knowledge and understanding of engineering in theories, concepts, and practices.

    Some activities might include:
    • Development of safety or training manuals/programs.
    • Learning of new software or programs.
    • Preparation of meeting materials or briefing notes regarding updated workplace theories, concepts and practices.

    Importantly, activities claimed for this category must be for the extension of existing knowledge, or the development of new knowledge and skills.
    Category F - Published works (Limited to 75 hours) Evidence is required

    (Limited to 75 hours) Evidence is required

    Producing a published paper for a university, conference, engineering organisation relevant to the profession, can include research and preparation.

    This category refers to any written material published in a technical journal, university publication, in conference papers or any other publication deemed acceptable to the assessor.

    Where the paper was co-authored, the applicant can claim a pro- rata split of the total time.

    You can claim up to 45 hours over a three-year period for papers that have been published in journals as well as conferences. You can claim the preparation of material for courses that are not part of your standard role.

    You can claim up to 75 hours over a three-year period for papers that are peer reviewed prior to publishing.
    Category G - Private study (Limited to 75 hours, 57 hours for research, 18 hours for reading industry journals/magazine

    (Limited to 75 hours over three-years - 57 hours for research and 18 hours for reading)

    Extension of your knowledge of legislation, regulations, codes, standards and specifications through work or private study.

    Private study can include the reading of any materials which, extend your knowledge of legislation, regulation, codes, standards, and specifications. Specific sources of this knowledge may include technical or industry magazines and journals, as well as research through the internet searches and digital information sources, online technical communities, and discussion forums.

    You are expected to include sufficient information to identify the source claimed, including where possible, the title of the publication/material, author/source, date-published and link. Applicants are advised to use a conservative estimate when claiming activities in this category, as the assessor may choose to investigate the activity to confirm.

    Applicants are advised to use conservative estimate when claiming activities in this category, as the assessor may choose to investigate the activity to confirm.
    Category H - Contribution to the Profession (Limited to 50 Hours)

    (Limited to 50 hours)
    Activities associated with the applicant’s contribution to the profession such as acting as a mentor, being an assessor for an engineer registration scheme, serving on a board or committee relating to the profession of engineering can be considered, peer review of technical publications.

    Contribution to the profession can include:

    Being an assessor/interviewer for engineers seeking registration
    Reviewing technical publications
    Mentoring engineering colleagues
    Serving on boards and committees relating to the profession of engineeirng
    Preparation of submissions relating to engineering standards or areas relevant to your engineering discipline.

    Additional Information


    Ultimately, the assessor has the discretion to determine if the activities provided in an applicant’s CPD log are adequate, and meet the expectations of a Registered Professional Engineer of Professionals Australia (RPEng).

    Applicants are expected to exercise their best judgement and give reasonable consideration regarding which activities they choose to include as CPD, and under which category.

    Importantly, assessors only accept activities undertaken within the three-years immediately prior to submitting an application.

    Assessors may also choose to seek additional information regarding particular activities entered in the CPD log to confirm the applicant’s participation and to ensure that the skills and knowledge detailed in the CPD log were truly developed.


    Preparing your CPD log for your application


    Members, you can keep your CPD information all in one place. Please login to My dashboard to access My CPD log, it is very easy to use and to keep up-to-date.

    When preparing to make your application, be mindful that we require the following information for your CPD log:

    • Institution/employer/provider of each activity
    • Duration of each activity
    • Evidence of completion/participation
    • A contact person to verify completion/participation

    Still have questions?

    Our team can assist on 1300 273 762 or at rpeng@professionalsaustralia.org.au  
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