In this guide
Use this material to examine your own work. Confirm current requirements, forms and dates with IStructE before applying.
The minimum standard is Experience for both Incorporated-Member and Chartered Member.
What strong and weak evidence look like
Look for
- A hazard you designed out, with what the alternative would have cost.
- A residual risk you could not remove, and how you recorded and communicated it.
- An occasion when you stopped work or refused to sign, and what followed.
- Evidence you understand your duties under the relevant legislation in the role you held.
- A risk assessment where your input changed the method.
Watch for
- Listing the safety courses you have attended.
- Describing the company's safety management system rather than your actions in it.
- Naming the legislation without being able to say which duty holder you were.
- A design that apparently eliminated every risk.
Portfolio items that tend to work here
Suggestions, not a required list. What matters is that the item is yours, that it is annotated, and that it demonstrates the standard rather than the subject.
Questions to ask yourself
- Which duty holder was I on this project?
The roles are specific, reviewers ask, and a vague answer undermines the whole objective.
- What hazard is still there because of a decision I made?
Residual risk is where honest safety evidence lives.
- When did raising something cost me?
Use a specific occasion to explain your action, its consequences and the professional responsibility involved.
The same objective, in different kinds of work
| Setting | What the evidence tends to look like |
|---|---|
| Designer | Removing a working-at-height task from the maintenance regime, and recording what could not be removed. |
| Site | Rewriting a method statement that looked compliant but did not match how the work would really be done. |
| Client-side | Setting the pre-construction information properly, so risk was managed before the job was priced. |
Illustrative. The objectives are written to be met in a range of ways by anyone practising as a structural engineer.
Questions for interview practice
Prepare to explain the principal hazards on your project, your actions, legal duties and how you would respond to unsafe work on another site. Consider welfare and mental health alongside physical safety.
The original interview question bank can be filtered by objective and grade.
Official sources
Selected publisher pages were rechecked in September 2026. Other source records were last checked in July 2026. Open the latest official document before relying on a requirement.