ESEP Certification and its Value
by Myra Parsons Gross, ESEP, Communications Director
The ESEP certification is reserved for senior systems engineers with significant systems engineering experience and proven professional leadership qualities. Acquiring an ESEP certification puts you in an elite group of systems engineering professionals who have demonstrated considerable experience and advanced knowledge. The necessary work experience, knowledge, application process, and other requirements involved to earn this accreditation speaks volumes about a systems engineer’s level of expertise. Most ESEPs are technical degreed professionals with over 25 years of experience. There are less than 300 ESEPs of nearly 12,000 INCOSE members worldwide.
The Chesapeake Chapter has 31 ESEP members which make up 10 percent of our membership. We are proud to welcome our newest Certified Expert Systems Engineering Professionals (ESEPs). Four newly certified ESEPs from our chapter attended the Gala and were recognized for their accomplishment. In speaking with each of them, each had a profound message to share regarding their journey.
James Hubbell, ESEP
Being recognized by the INCOSE organization as an ESEP is truly an honor. Joining this very selective and elite group of professional engineers has given me pause to reflect on a career in engineering that has spanned over 30 years now. In pursuing the ESEP certification and the accompanying documentation process I was taken back through the years. Through my accumulated experience and leadership roles I grew and expanded my knowledge of engineering which culminated in being recognized as an ESEP. The arch of my career from beginning to end was laid out in the process, resulting in an amazing reflection of one’s career.
Robin Hershey, ESEP
I received my bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical engineering more than thirty years ago and although most of my career has been in systems engineering, I was never formally recognized as a systems engineer. I applied to become an ESEP to gain recognition and to validate my experience. The application process was both challenging and rewarding: It required a complete description of my career, including the functions I performed, and especially the leadership and support I provided in advancing the practice of systems engineering. The description was by far the most comprehensive summary of my career I have ever written. As an INCOSE ESEP, my career has been validated and I have achieved recognition within my company and amongst my colleagues. I highly recommend pursuing an ESEP certification.
Peter Butziger, ESEP
The INCOSE ESEP certification represents a mastery of a broad range of SE disciplines and is a humbling opportunity to join the ranks of SE experts across all industries. The ESEP certification process provided a valuable retrospective on my career and I appreciate the many existing ESEPs that served as references and mentored me through the process. I have been blessed to work for Vencore which enabled me to provide systems integration to the Intelligence Community maximizing cloud based intelligence sharing.
Vantresa Scott, ESEP
The most significant aspect of the ESEP process for me is that it gave me the opportunity to "play the tape". The exercise in deep reflection of my career. I fully realized the magnitude of my career achievements and the extraordinary educational, global, and leadership opportunities that my work afforded me in 25 years. I could have never imagined that a small-town country girl from the bayous of Louisiana could have accomplished so much, and made such an impact through systems engineering. My ESEP certification will forever be a constant reminder of my contribution to the world. I believe the ESEP process will be a valuable time of introspection for anyone.
Please visit Incose.org for more information on applying for an ESEP certification.