Should IT professionals be licensed by a regulatory body?

Most professions have regulatory bodies that license people working in the profession. Licensing ensures that a professional has the required training, skills and competence to practice the profession. On the other hand, the IT profession rarely requires a license to practice.

The IT profession spans many career titles including system administrator, network engineer, software engineer, programmer, tester, quality assurance engineer, software architect, UX designer, data scientist, and many more. Only in very few locations and cases does an IT professional require a license. For example, in a few countries a software engineer is required to have an engineering degree and be a registered engineer.

On one hand, having a license should ensure that an IT professional is competent and fit for the job. And on the other hand, the field of IT is broad and open by nature. Any interested individual with motivation and zeal can enter the field of IT on his or her own by studying, acquiring the needed skills and certificates and then starting their career. Requiring a license may hinder talented people from joining the field.

To prepare for this Discussion

Review this week's Learning Resources and consider these questions:

Should IT professionals be licensed by a regulatory body or not?

What are the advantages and disadvantages of licensing for IT professionals and for society?

Take one side of the debate on whether IT professionals should be licensed by a regulatory body and clearly state your position.

Present coherent arguments in support of your position.

In your arguments, counter the possible arguments that debaters on the opposite side might use.

Use external credible and scholarly resources to support your post.