Professional Awareness Topics for S-PACs.

Six categories represent the professional awareness issues of concern to IEEE Student Members: 

Career Growth
Professional registration and certification, continuing education (including post-graduate degrees), changes in job responsibility (e.g., technical to management), intellectual property rights (trade secrets, patents, copyrights), oral and written communication methods, and other career maintenance and development issues. 

Working
The realities of getting a job and being successful in the working environment, including job hunting, resume-writing and job interview skills, creating one's own company, consulting careers, role models and mentors, and office climate and working conditions. 

Professional Ethics and Social Responsibility
Ethical standards and conduct of engineers in dealing with employees, colleagues, clients, and the public, professional integrity versus corporate loyalty, whistle blowing, product liability litigation, the engineer as "expert witness",the relationship between technology and society, and promoting public understanding of the engineering profession. 

Self-Management
Developing personal management skills, including financial planning for the future, insurance, pensions, investments, time management skills, and managing committees and meetings. 

Engineers and Public Policy
Shaping and directing public policy by interacting with government and regulatory agencies, drafting and introducing legislation, lobbying, being technologically competitive, and creating technical policies. 

Role of the Professional Society
How professional societies, such as IEEE, conduct volunteer activities, provide opportunities for professional development and personal growth, and report on the state of the art and practice of engineering.