The professional organisations of today were founded tn the growth of societies dedicated to the advancement of knowledge in previous centuries, as our resident historian Dick Evans explains
The foundation and development of learned and professional organisations representing science and technical disciplines is a fascinating story in its own right, but a study of their history also identifies many similarities with the evolution of technical and scientific education. During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, both science and technology were in rapid transition and these disciplines had to fight hard to gain recognition and a place in the education system
Before the Industrial Revolution science had little impact on the lives of ordinary people except in areas that involved navigation and war. Science was perceived as the exclusive domain of the gentry, the enthusiastic rich amateur, royal courts and the then narrow world of academia. These benefactors often supported gifted amateurs financially to undertake scientific research. The first scientific learned societies and institutions reflected this exclusive, elitist status, and grew up in a time aptly known as the ‘aristocratic period’ (see table below).
Practical skills.
The Industrial Revolution was driven by gifted, creative individuals. Most of them had never attended university and learned their skills through direct experience of their respective trades and crafts – and in some cases though apprenticeships. For understandable reasons they were prone to be protective of their discoveries, and seldom shared their ideas.
But as the Industrial Revolution gained momentum, scientific and technological discoveries blossomed and there was an increased need for improved communication between individuals and industries. As a result, a greater sense of industrial identity gradually developed, creating a new spirit of community – almost ‘corporateness’ – across the evolving specialisms in science and technology. This in turn led to the establishment of institutions and societies representing specific areas of technical and industrial activity. Initially these institutions represented the more general aspects of their discipline but more specialist institutions gradually evolved, becoming the norm in the twentieth century.
The growth of professionalism
The majority of professional organisations were – and still are – independent institutions, promoting their disciplines and the specialist knowledge, skills, competences and professional conduct expected of their members. Many set entry standards and encourage professional status. Some accredit university and college programmes whilst others set their own examinations for the various membership grades.
Qualifications to gain entry to certain occupations began in the second half of the nineteenth century and added much to the status and recognition of technical and industrial education. The Institution of Civil Engineers was one of the first to establish examinations in 1897, whilst the Institution of Mechanical Engineering and the Institution of Electrical Engineers followed in 1912 and 1913 respectively. As more universities were established and various qualification reviews and reforms were introduced,professional societies formed closer ties. By the middle of the last century, over 150 organisations offered professional qualifications, including 80 in science and technology, 50 in commerce, sociology and law and 12 in agriculture.
Over the years professional institutions have conducted surveys, commissioned inquiries and reports and lobbied governments communicating their concerns about the quality of the education and training of people entering their professions. The tables below show the development periods.
The ‘Aristocratic Period’
| Date of Foundation | Society / lnstitution |
|---|---|
| 1660 | The Royal Society |
| 1754 | The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts |
| 1771 | The Royal Physical Society of Edinburgh |
| 1783 | The Royal Society of Edinburgh |
| 1799 | The Royal Institution of Great Britain |
| 1804 | The Royal Horticultural Society |
| 1831 | The British Association for the Advancement of Science |
The Nineteenth Century
| Date of Foundation | Society / Institution |
|---|---|
| 1818 | The Institute of Civil Engineers |
| 1819 | The Royal Microscopic Society |
| 1834 | The Institute of Building The Royal Institute of Architects Royal Statistical Society Society of Engineering |
| 1838 | The Royal Agricultural Society of England |
| 1841 | The Chemical Society |
| 1847 | The Institution of Mechanical Engineers (First president George Stephenson who was instrumental in establishing the Institution following the refusal by the Institute of Civil Engineers to admit him without submitting an essay to satisfy his competence!) |
| 1860 | The Institution of Naval Architects |
| 1863 | The Institution of Gas Engineers (Now known as Institution of Gas Engineers and Managers |
| 1865 | London Mathematical Society |
| 1866 | The Royal Aeronautical Society |
| 1869 | The Iron and Steel Institute (Now known as Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining) |
| 1871 | The Institution of Electrical Engineers (grow out of the Society of Telegraph Engineers) Merged in 2006 with the Institute of Incorporated Engineers to become Institution of Engineering and Technology |
| 1873 | The Institution of Municipal Engineers |
| 1874 | The Society for Analytical Chemistry The Physical Society (Now known as the Institute of Physics) |
| 1876 | The Royal Society of Health |
| 1877 | The Institute of Chemistry |
| 1881 | The Society of the Chemical Industry |
| 1883 | Edinburgh Mathematical Society |
| 1886 | The Institute of Brewing |
| 1887 | Association for the Promotion of Technical Education |
| 1889 | The Institute of Marine Engineers (Now known as Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology) The Institution of Mining Engineers |
| 1892 | The Institution of Mining and Metallurgy |
| 1895 | The Institute of Sanitary Engineers (Now known as Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management) |
| 1896 | The Water-works Institute (Became the Institution of Water Engineers in 1911) |
| 1897 | The Institution of Heating and Ventilation Engineers (Now known as the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers) |
The Twentieth Century
| Date of Foundation | Society / Institution |
|---|---|
| 1900 | The Ceramic Society The Institute of Refrigeration |
| 1901 | The British Standards Institution (Became the British Standards Institution in 1930) |
| 1903 | The Faraday Society |
| 1904 | The Institute of British Foundrymen |
| 1906 | The Institution of Automobile Engineers The Institute of Plumbing and Heating Engineering |
| 1908 | The Institute of Metals The Institution of Structural Engineers |
| 1909 | Illuminating Engineering Society |
| 1911 | The Junior Institution of Locomotive Engineers |
| 1912/13 | Institution of Railway Signal Engineers |
| 1913 | The Institute of Petroleum |
| 1914 | Association of Supervising Engineers |
| 1916 | The Society of British Aircraft Constructors |
| 1917 | The Institute of Quarrying |
| 1918 | The Institute of Physics (Formerly the Physical Society) Institution of Fire Engineers |
| 1919 | The Institute of Transport |
| 1920 | The Institution of the Motor Industry |
| 1921 | The Institution of Production Engineers The Institution of Rubber Industry |
| 1922 | The Institution of Chemical Engineers |
| 1923 | The Institute of Welding/Welding Institute Institution of Lighting Engineers Institution of Royal Engineers |
| 1925 | The British Institute of Radio Engineers The Textile Institute |
| 1927 | The Institute of Fuel (Now known as the Energy Institute) The British Boot and Shoe Institution |
| 1930 | The Institution of Highway Engineers (Now known as Institution of Highways and Transportation) |
| 1931 | The Institute of Housing The Plastics Institute |
| 1938 | Institution of Agricultural Engineers |
| 1943 | Institute of Healthcare Engineering and Estate Management |
| 1944 | Institute of Measurement and Control |
| 1945 | Institution of Engineering Designers Society of Operations Engineers lnstitution of Water Officers |
| 1950 | The Institute of Biology |
| 1954 | British Institute of Non-Destructive Testing |
| 1957 | British Computer Society |
| 1958 | The Institution of Nuclear Engineers |
| 1959 | Society of Environmental Engineers Institute of Nuclear Engineers |
| 1960 | Institute of Physics and Engineering in Medicine |
| 1965 | Institute of Highway Incorporated Engineers |
| 1974 | The Institute of Acoustics |
| 1980 | The Royal Society of Chemistry (previously four separate societies, namely The Chemical Society, The Society of Analytical Chemistry, The Royal Institute of Chemistry and The Faraday Society) |
| 2006 | Institution of Engineering and Technology (Successor to Institute of Electrical Engineers and the institution of Incorporated Engineers) |