Phase 3 · Complete your IPD
The three routes for demonstrating IPD
Individually managed, comparable accredited training records, or retrospectively collated — how to choose.
Who this is for:Candidates at any stage ·Mentors ·Employers
There are three routes for demonstrating that you have achieved your IPD. They suit different situations, and the Institution is explicit that none of them gives you a better chance at the interview.
What the guidance says about choosing
Institution of Structural Engineers
- There are three routes for demonstrating achievement of IPD: individually managed, accredited training schemes, and retrospectively collated.
- You should pick the route most suitable for you.
- There is no clear difference in pass rates in the Professional Review Interview based on the route used.
From IPD Guidance — Chartered Member, Institution of Structural Engineers.
The three routes side by side
| Individually managed | Accredited training records | Retrospectively collated | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who it suits | You have a mentor and are building evidence as you go | You are on a comparable scheme accredited by another body | Neither a mentor nor a scheme has been available to you |
| Mentor | A personal mentor, meeting you regularly | As your scheme requires | A Chartered Member may assist, but need not sign anything |
| Records kept | IPD quarterly report forms and a progress summary record | Your scheme's full training records, signed | Assembled from previous experience up to the point of application |
| IPD final report forms | Required, signed by your personal mentor | Required | Required |
| Sent to reviewers | Portfolio, plus quarterly reports and progress summary | Portfolio, plus signed training records | Portfolio |
| Pass rate at the PRI | No clear difference | No clear difference | No clear difference |
From the current IPD guidance. Supporting documents go directly to your reviewers, not to the Institution, and do not count towards the portfolio page limit.
How to choose
Work backwards from your situation rather than from which route sounds most rigorous.
Do you have someone who can mentor you properly? Not someone who will sign a form, but an experienced structural engineer who will meet you regularly, review your progress against the Core Objectives and tell you when your evidence is thin. If yes, the individually managed route is the most useful, because the records it requires are also the records that make writing the final report forms possible.
Are you on a comparable scheme accredited by another body? The Institution does not accredit company training schemes, but it will accept records from schemes accredited elsewhere — ICE and HKIE are the examples the guidance names. The experience must be in structural engineering.
Neither? The retrospectively collated route exists for exactly that, and it is not a lesser option. You assemble the documents from experience you already have. A Chartered Member can help you do it without needing to sign anything.
The practical difference
It is in when the work happens, not how much of it there is.
Individually managed spreads the record-keeping across years, in small pieces, while the detail is fresh. Retrospectively collated compresses it into the months before you apply, from memory and old files. The total effort is similar; the second is harder, and the evidence tends to be thinner because the specifics have faded.
If you are early in your career and have any choice at all, that is the argument for starting records now.
Choosing your route
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Related pages and tools
- Individually managedManaging your own training with a personal mentor: the records, the meetings, and the forms at the end.
- Accredited training recordsUsing training records from a scheme accredited by another body to demonstrate the Core Objectives.
- Retrospectively collatedAssembling the documents from experience you already have, where a mentor or scheme was never available.
- MentorWho can mentor you, what to expect of them, and what a mentor should and should not do.
- IPDWhat IPD is, how it is described in Core Objectives, and what all experience can count towards it.