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Building a home
and a career
BORN AND RAISED in Mexico and the daughter of an
engineer, Elsa Hernández Manrique followed in her
dad’s footsteps. She graduated from the Monterrey
Institute of Technology and Higher Education in
Mexico and started her career as an onsite inspector
for bridge and highway projects.
When her husband accepted a position in
Lethbridge in 2018, the couple left Mexico and
settled in Alberta. After receiving her work permit,
she still needed to become licensed as a professional
engineer by the Association of Professional
Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta (APEGA).
“The life of a newcomer is not always easy,” she
says. “It requires you to adapt to new environments,
new language, new people — you practically start
all over. Professionally speaking, in my case, I had to
adapt to a different construction business, different
standards, different ways to build. The relationship
between clients, contractors, and the government is
also different.
“We don’t have a similar institution like APEGA
in Mexico. When I was looking for a job, many
employers preferred applicants who were registered
with APEGA or eligible to be a member of APEGA,”
she says.
She went online, learned more about becoming
a registrant, and realized she didn’t meet all of the
requirements needed to get licensed. She had work
to do. But she wasn’t ready to start down that path
just yet.
“The process is not complicated,” she says.
“But, for a newcomer, some things take priority
over others.”
Despite not being licensed, she could still work in
engineering under the supervision of a professional
engineer, which led to her securing a position with
Associated Engineering in 2020. The company
supported her application process and she earned her
P.Eng. designation in 2024.
She believes that APEGA’s certification process
ensures clients can have confidence in those
who have P.Eng. designations. They know these
certifications come only after a well-defined process
is completed.
“When I arrived in Canada, I didn’t understand
the function of APEGA in the engineering practice,”
she says. “But, in Alberta, working alongside
Canadian professionals, it became clear to me why
APEGA regulates the engineering profession.
“Why is it so important? It’s to protect the public.
APEGA’s function is to license professionals and check
that we meet the professional, ethical, and technical
standards. So, that creates trust — in the companies
and the individuals who practise engineering.”
Although earning a degree is the first step in
an engineer’s career, it’s just the foundation. To
protect the public, engineers must also gain practical
experience, show competency, and adhere to ethical
standards before taking on responsibilities such as
authenticating work. APEGA plays a critical role in
this process, ensuring accountability and oversight to
maintain high standards and protect public safety.
Hernández Manrique is so committed to her
professional development and the engineering
community that she volunteers for APEGA’s
Lethbridge Branch. It’s her small way of giving
back and embracing her new life and her growing
engineering career.
Alberta needs skilled talent to meet
the demands of the future. apega.ca/newcomers