Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the limitations imposed by practicality, regulation, safety and cost.

in the title of engineer in countries like Belgium, The Netherlands, and Indonesia) is derived from the Latin words ingeniare ("to contrive, devise") and ingenium ("cleverness").

The work of engineers forms the link between scientific discoveries and their subsequent applications to human and business needs and quality of life.

His/her education will have been such as to make him/her capable of closely and continuously following progress in his/her branch of engineering science by consulting newly published works on a worldwide basis, assimilating such information, and applying it independently.

His/her education and training will have been such that he/she will have acquired a broad and general appreciation of the engineering sciences as well as thorough insight into the special features of his/her own branch.

In due time he/she will be able to give authoritative technical advice and assume responsibility for the direction of important tasks in his/her branch.Engineers develop new technological solutions.

[8] Engineers must weigh different design choices on their merits and choose the solution that best matches the requirements and needs.

Their crucial and unique task is to identify, understand, and interpret the constraints on a design in order to produce a successful result.

Analytical engineers may supervise production in factories and elsewhere, determine the causes of a process failure, and test output to maintain quality.

Engineering analysis involves the application of scientific analytic principles and processes to reveal the properties and state of the system, device or mechanism under study.

[9][10][11][12] Many engineers use computers to produce and analyze designs, to simulate and test how a machine, structure, or system operates, to generate specifications for parts, to monitor the quality of products, and to control the efficiency of processes.

Engineers also may specialize in one industry, such as motor vehicles, or in one type of technology, such as turbines or semiconductor materials.

In addition to engineers' core technical competence, research has also demonstrated the critical nature of their personal attributes, project management skills, and cognitive abilities to success in the role.

Each engineering discipline and professional society maintains a code of ethics, which the members pledge to uphold.

Depending on their specializations, engineers may also be governed by specific statute, whistleblowing, product liability laws, and often the principles of business ethics.

Accreditation is the process by which engineering programs are evaluated by an external body to determine if applicable standards are met.

[citation needed] In the United States, engineering is a regulated profession whose practice and practitioners are licensed and governed by law.

Such person does not have the final authority to approve, or the ultimate responsibility for, engineering designs, plans, or specifications that are to be incorporated into fixed works, systems, or facilities on the property of others or made available to the public.

Once the IntPE title is awarded, the engineer can gain easier admission to national registers of a number of members jurisdictions for international practice.

In the Indian subcontinent, Russia, Middle East, Africa, and China, engineering is one of the most sought-after undergraduate courses, for which entrance examinations are highly competitive.

In Egypt, the educational system makes engineering the second-most respected profession in the country (after medicine); engineering colleges at Egyptian universities require extremely high marks on the General Certificate of Secondary Education (Arabic: الثانوية العامة al-Thānawiyyah al-`Āmmah) – in the order of 97 or 98 per cent – and are thus considered (along with the colleges of medicine, natural science, and pharmacy) to be among the "pinnacle colleges" (كليات القمة kullīyāt al-qimmah).

[citation needed] In France, the term ingénieur (engineer) is not a protected title and can be used by anyone who practices this profession.

Anyone misusing this title in France can be fined a large sum and jailed, as it is usually reserved for graduates of French engineering grandes écoles.

Before the "réforme René Haby" in the 1970s, it was very difficult to be admitted to such schools, and the French ingénieurs were commonly perceived as the nation's élite.

So much so that people holding such qualifications are entitled to use the pre-nominal title of "Ingegnere" (or "Ingegnera" if female - in both cases often abbreviated to "Ing.")

[32] Certain Spanish-speaking countries follow the Italian convention of engineers using the pre-nominal title, in this case "ingeniero" (or "ingeniera" if female).

The engineering profession enjoys high prestige in Spain, ranking close to medical doctors, scientists and professors, and above judges, journalists or entrepreneurs, according to a 2014 study.