PHOENIX — The increasing number of safety-related applications that depend on software to operate is prompting an industry debate about the certification of software engineers. A recent airline crash in the South Pacific that may have stemmed from a software-related malfunction has helped spur the debate.

"Software licensing is a major issue now," according to John Steadman, chairman of the IEEE-USA Licensure and Registration Committee.

At present, software engineers are not licensed by government agencies under a Professional Engineer's registration. Yet at the recent IEEE-USA Professional Activities Conference for Engineers, Steadman noted that at least some moves are being made to oversee the development of software engineering.

One is taking place on the academic front. At present, software engineering is not part of the engineering accreditation process in universities. But there is a proposed merger of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) and the Computer Science Accreditation Board (CSAB), where CSAB would become an organization of ABET, and a "lead society for software engineers." The boards are likely to vote on the proposals this year.

On another front, the national engineering council is eyeing recognition of software engineering as a branch of engineering, which could pave the way for a "PE" type licensing exam.

Steadman has some concerns about any attempt to license software engineers: