This occupation is predominately found in safety critical industries where software failure may cause serious damage or danger to life including aerospace, nuclear, automotive and process control sectors. The occupation can be found in large, medium and small employers across the world. High integrity software engineers may work on specific safety critical software products. They may also work on bespoke tooling and associated integrated environments and infrastructure. Employment fields include:
The broad purpose of the occupation is to design, develop and test, real-time safety-critical software. They develop embedded high integrity systems software and stand-alone applications used in sector specific support. They develop and test tools that support the creation of high integrity software. They support customers and suppliers by maintaining and improving software utilities and tools. They develop processes for the development and test of products. They review performance, design, test and use project management and continuous improvement techniques. They proactively find solutions to problems and identify areas for business improvement.
High integrity software engineers are typically office-based. They may be required to work in simulation rig testing facilities, or in operational environments.
In their daily work, an employee in this occupation may interact with customers. They may also interact with system operators, other specialist engineers, technicians, partners and suppliers. They also interact with colleagues across other areas in their organisation. For example, manufacturing, project management, quality assurance, finance, human resources, procurement and safety.
They typically report to senior engineers, senior specialists or chief engineers depending on the organisation.
An employee in this occupation is responsible for working ethically and professionally. They may work to regulatory requirements for sector specific industries. They must meet statutory and company regulations. For example, health and safety, environment and sustainability, cost, quality, accuracy and efficiency. High integrity software engineers work individually and as part of a team. They are responsible for the safety and security of the product they create. Depending on the size and structure of the organisation they may manage software technicians or teams of engineers.
Aerospace software engineer
Embedded software engineer
High integrity software engineer
Safety embedded software engineer
Senior safety engineer
Software engineer
Systems engineer
Whilst any entry requirements will be a matter for individual employers, typically an apprentice might be expected to have already achieved academic qualifications of 96* UCAS points or above at A-Level standard or equivalent, to include two STEM-based subjects such as Maths, Physics, ICT, Computing or Electronics, plus five GCSEs at Grade 4 and above** including Mathematics, English and Double Science or equivalent qualification. (*Equal to 240 UCAS points prior to 2017, **Equal to Grades C and above).
| Duty | KSBs |
|---|---|
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Duty 1 Define and maintain the engineering plan detailing the implementation of software engineering solutions. In collaboration with multidisciplinary teams and organisational stakeholders. |
K1 K2 K3 K4 K5 K6 K7 K8 K9 K10 K11 K12 K13 K14 K15 K16 K17 K18 K19 K20 K21 K22 K23 K24 |
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Duty 2 Identify, evaluate, derive, analyse and maintain software requirements for customer and projects. |
K1 K2 K3 K7 K10 K12 K14 K17 K18 K20 K21 K22 K24 K26 |
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Duty 3 Define and maintain the architecture and design of software products, tools, utilities and applications to meet project requirements. |
K1 K4 K5 K6 K7 K10 K12 K13 K14 K15 K17 K18 K19 K20 K21 K22 K23 K26 S1 S2 S3 S4 S5 S6 S7 S11 S12 S13 S14 S15 S17 S19 S20 S21 S22 |
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Duty 4 Implement high integrity software design from combinations of new, modified and existing components to meet project requirements. |
K1 K7 K8 K9 K10 K11 K12 K13 K14 K15 K17 K23 K25 K26 K27 S1 S2 S3 S4 S5 S6 S7 S8 S11 S13 S14 S15 S16 S17 S18 S19 S20 S22 S23 S24 |
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Duty 5 Develop, define and execute testing of high integrity software products to verify functionality and performance. |
K1 K2 K3 K4 K5 K6 K10 K11 K12 K13 K14 K16 K17 K18 K20 K21 K25 K26 K27 |
|
Duty 6 Analyse and review the high integrity software outputs. |
K1 K2 K4 K5 K7 K8 K11 K12 K14 K15 K16 K17 K18 K20 K21 K25 K26 |
|
Duty 7 Undertake and complete build, configure and release of the high integrity software product. |
K12 K13 K15 K16 K18 K19 K20 K23 K24 K25 K26 K27 |
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Duty 8 Verify that software processes and procedures comply with standards throughout the life cycle. These include local, national and international regulatory, legislative, customer and company standards. For example, cyber security, development, environmental, anti-bribery and corruption. Official Secrets Act, export control, safety standards. |
K1 K2 K4 K6 K7 K8 K10 K12 K13 K14 K15 K16 K17 K19 K20 K21 K22 K23 K25 K26 |
|
Duty 9 Review the in-service performance of software products, processes and systems. Assess the cause of any faults or problems and propose solutions. |
K7 K12 K13 K14 K16 K18 K25 K26 |
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Duty 10 Manage stakeholders by communicating project status, technical and commercial information. For example, communicate success, risks and issues to all levels of the business. |
K12 K15 K16 K17 K18 K19 K20 K21 K22 K23 K24 |
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Duty 11 Define, monitor and co-ordinate the continuous improvement of software processes and methods. |
K1: Mathematics: the mathematical techniques and analytical methods required to model software and hardware systems: algebra, calculus, geometry, Boolean Logic, trigonometry and statistics.
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K2: Software requirements development: the requirement lifecycle from concept to release; gathering, specifications, validation.
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K3: Software requirements engineering: maintenance, operating environment, identification of software security, modelling, human computer interaction, and identification of system safety.
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K4: Software architecture: operating system concepts and architectural considerations.
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K5: Software design development: structures, methodologies, techniques and validation.
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K6: Software design engineering: software functions and interconnection, flexibility, coupling and cohesion, readability, maintainability, testability, safety, security and design verification.
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K7: Modelling and simulation: creation and simulation of design models.
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K8: Software implementation development: creation of executable code.
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K9: Software implementation engineering: underlying concepts of computational thinking, abstraction, representation and modelling, language specifications including assembler, analysis, and inspection methodologies.
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K10: Testing the software solution: test environments; debugging and profiling facilities.
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K11: Test methodologies: methods used to test software; criticality.
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K12: Configuration control: configuration management methods, software build processes, tools and change control.
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K13: Software development environment: tool configurations, library functions, operating environment, compiler process and options, scripting and hardware or software integration.
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K14: System security: statutory, regulatory, organisational and certification principles in a software product.
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K15: Principles of quality: process conformations and assurance in a high integrity software engineering environment.
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K16: Continuous improvement principles and techniques: Plan-do-check-act (PDCA), Lean, 6 Sigma, and Statistical Process Control (SPC). Lean manufacturing tools. Process mapping.
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K17: Safety requirements: statutory, regulatory, organisational and certification principles (software safety integrity levels) in a high integrity software environment.
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K18: Teamwork: conflict management, people development techniques, performance management, diversity and inclusivity.
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K19: Information technology: general data protection regulation (GDPR), digital tools for presentation of data, digital communication and collaboration packages.
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K20: Communication techniques: verbal, written and presentations.
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K21: Time management techniques.
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K22: Environment and sustainability: role of software design and implementation in the end-to-end value chain for sustainable products; optimising energy and resource consumption; relationship between obsolescence and sustainability.
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K23: Project management: project planning, management of risks, commercial awareness, financial management and resourcing.
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K24: Report writing techniques and methods. IT applications for technical reporting.
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K25: Problem solving tools and techniques: lateral thinking, root cause analysis (RCA).
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K26: Software development techniques: Waterfall, Agile, and Hybrid.
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K27: Software integration techniques.
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S1: Apply analytical methods; use mathematics and associated toolsets to characterise properties and behaviour of software.
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S2: Read, interpret and use software engineering data. For example, requirements, design, code, test and release documentation.
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S3: Develop and apply algorithms. For example, produce specification, design and implementation for algorithms.
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S4: Select the design approach and tools for a given software engineering application and environment.
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S5: Apply model-based techniques. For example, using simulations to verify the compliance to the parent requirements.
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S6: Produce system and software designs. For example, produce state machine diagrams.
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S7: Setup and configure tools and the environment. For example, verification tool to target hardware requirements, management tool to design tool, and configuration tool to development tools.
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S8: Implement functional software solutions. For example, developing software solutions that incorporate new, legacy or commercial components.
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S9: Develop and execute high integrity software test plans.
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S10: Analyse and review high integrity software outputs. For example, design reviews, code walkthroughs, test script reviews.
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S11: Use problem solving tools and techniques. For example: lateral thinking, root cause analysis (RCA), Kaizen, Lean manufacturing and Kanban.
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S12: Apply configuration management and software build processes.
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S13: Communicate with internal and external stakeholders; verbal and written.
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S14: Write reports. For example, data, technical information, drawings, outcomes and recommendations.
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S15: Present information. For example, presenting project progress and key performance indicators (KPI's) such as cost, quality, time, risk and opportunities. Presenting technical results into design reviews.
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S16: Use information technology: digital tools for presentation of data, digital communication and collaboration packages.
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S17: Use continuous improvement techniques and make recommendations. For example, Kaizen, Lean manufacturing and Kanban.
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S18: Use project management techniques. For example, in estimating, risk, cost and budget control, time management and resource management.
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S19: Identify and comply with legal and statutory requirements. For example: cyber security, software certification requirements, data protection, high integrity software safety, environmental protection and sustainability.
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S20: Plan and manage own time.
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S21: Apply and uphold ethical principles.
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S22: Apply team working principles.
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S23: Apply software development techniques. For example, Waterfall, Agile, or Hybrid.
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S24: Apply software integration techniques. For example, networks, hardware or system integration.
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B1: Lead by example and promote health and safety.
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B2: Lead by example and promote environment, ethical and sustainable practices.
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B3: Adapt to challenging or changing situations and be resilient to the effects.
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B4: Collaborate and promote teamwork across disciplines.
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B5: Lead by example to promote accessibility, diversity and inclusion.
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B6: Commits to their own and others' professional development.
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Apprentices without level 2 English and maths will need to achieve this level prior to taking the End-Point Assessment. For those with an education, health and care plan or a legacy statement, the apprenticeship’s English and maths minimum requirement is Entry Level 3. A British Sign Language (BSL) qualification is an alternative to the English qualification for those whose primary language is BSL.
This standard aligns with the following professional recognition:
| Version | Change detail | Earliest start date | Latest start date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1.2 | Occupational standard and end-point assessment plan revised. | 13/01/2025 | Not set |
| 1.1 | Standard and end-point assessment plan revised. Funding band revised but remained | 06/11/2023 | 12/01/2025 |
| 1.0 | Approved for delivery | 03/09/2015 | 05/11/2023 |
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