Can you tell us a bit about your background?

My name is Luke Seabright. My current role is Lead Engineer and CRE-C for the Track discipline, working for Colas Rail as part of the South Rail Systems Alliance. I started my railway career in 2015, as a Trainee CAD technician with AECOM for the track design team working my way to assistant design engineer, then joining Colas Rail in 2018 as a Development Engineer working my way to my current position as Lead Engineer and CRE. I attended the University of Wolverhampton part-time since the start of my railway career, undertaking HNC, Foundation Degree and then Bachelor’s degree in engineering. I am still a member of the University as a part-time postgraduate research student, working towards a PhD. 

Why did you want to become professionally registered?

Attending university as a part-time student and gaining knowledge of Professional Registration sparked an interest within me to understand the concept and why it could be an important part of my career and personal development. From that point, I always wanted to be professionally registered with an institution relevant to my line of work. However, I procrastinated way too much and never got around to doing it, until I got to a point in my career where I was thinking about what more I could do to further bolster my career and personal development options. My ambition to achieve as much as possible drove me to stop toying with the idea and just do it, realising the journey to Chartership is one that should be enjoyed and seen as a good experience rather than daunting and worrying about whether or not I was capable.

How did you find the Professional Registration process with the PWI?

The process was enjoyable and helped me to really think about my experience and knowledge, and to understand where I can improve myself professionally. From start to finish, there was no pressure, and I set myself a specific deadline, enabling me to work through my professional report in a timely manner without added stress. The team at the PWI and my sponsors have been extremely helpful at all times and encouraged my professional development, making it a smooth process and, most importantly, a successful process!

How will IEng recognition help you in your career?

Being an engineer, it’s hard to tell from one to another the level of competence without diving into a CV or seeing them in action, so for me this shows other professionals in the industry that I am competent, committed, and on a journey to becoming the best version of myself. 

Thank you, Luke, for taking the time to share your journey and for choosing to pursue Professional Registration with the PWI.

If you’re interested in achieving IEng and taking the next step in your engineering career, click here to learn more about how we can support you.