California Professional Examination, Civil 2

[42805]

I want to take the PE for civil in California. I have a non ABET degree and a licensed civil engineer from foreign
country. I'm currently working in a government institution as an engineer non PE. I fuction as a project engineer/manager. Been working in the government for 19 years and 4 in private. I want to waive the EIT/FE, do i have to convert my experience and education to EIT/FE or could i directly fill up the PE form? Could some be kind enough to guide me. Thanks a lot.

 

[whyun]

For special consideration, you should contact the board directly and find out what the board would require. Many of us here can only "guess" how much credit the board will count towards your eligibility.

http://www.dca.ca.gov/pels/contacts.htm

I know of a foreign educated engineer with a Ph.D. from the US. He had to take the EIT. He may be eligible for PE by now...

Contact the board and let them know your situation, they may or may not WAIVE the EIT...

 

[tslewis]

I am a foreign eductaed civil engineer working in CA with a supposedly accreddited ABET degree from a UK univeristy - supposedly because the UK engineering council says it is accredited in accordance to the Washington accord yet ABET says this is not the case ans I have to pay a 100 dollar fee to have it assessed, ridiculous I know.

I also have 5 years experience in the UK and 2 years here. I also have a PhD. All of this was not enough to waive the EIT exam which I just sat a month ago.

Yes, it was difficult even though I had a PhD because you have to study topics that I last looked at 13 years ago during my first year of my uder graduate degree - thermodynamics, Electronics, chemistry. Ridiculous.

 

[swine]

The EIT is a very easy exam to pass. If you are not able to pass the "Fundamentals" of engineering exam--perhaps you should consider another profession.

 

[HgTX]

The FE ("EIT") exam is not trivial if too much time has elapsed since one's undergraduate days. There's a lot of material there that many people will not have seen since their first or second year of college. For me it had been 7 or 8 years since I'd seen biology, chemistry, circuit theory, or any physics beyond simple mechanics. I ended up doing well on the exam, but prep was a major annoyance.

Hg

Eng-Tips guidelines: faq731-376

 

[swine]

Hi HgTX,
It reminds me of highschool students saying, "what do I need to learn that for?" The threads in the Structural Forum gave me the same irk. How can this person possibly think they're above the EIT. California is breeding mediocrity. California used to have the best schools and DOT it the Nation. Now we're nearly the worst.

 

[LHA]

42805, I have never heard of any board "waiving" the EIT. I am pretty sure you will have to take it.

I agree with tslewis and HgTX. I am a civil PE in PA, USA. I am very certain I could not pass the EIT today, without a whole lot of review. There are a lot of diverse disciplines, and no engineer uses all of them.

Even back when I took the EIT 9 years ago, I would not have agreed with swine that "The EIT is a very easy exam to pass." I studied a lot for it, and I would guess most people do also.

Remember: The Chinese ideogram for “crisis” is comprised of the characters for “danger” and “opportunity.”
-Steve

 

[HgTX]

Tejas might waive FE:

From

http://www.tbpe.state.tx.us/lic_waiver.htm

Under certain conditions, the Board may waive the Fundamentals of Engineering Examination (FE) and/or the Principles & Practice of Engineering Examination (PE).

Applicants requesting an exam waiver(s) must not pose a threat to the public health, safety, or welfare, and have:

* not taken and failed the principles and practice examination in the previous four years, and
* an accredited degree acceptable to the Board and 12 or more years of engineering experience, or
* a non-accredited degree and 16 years of engineering experience, or
* a Ph.D. in engineering from a recognized college or university that offers an EAC/ABET-approved undergraduate or master's curriculum in a related branch of engineering, or a Ph.D. in engineering or other related field of science or mathematics that is individually assessed and approved by the board during the evaluation process; and taught in an EAC/ABET program for at least six years, or have at least six years of experience consisting of an acceptable combination of other creditable engineering experience or EAC/ABET teaching experience.

The Board may waive the Fundamentals of Engineering examination for any applicant with at least four years of creditable engineering experience and who holds Ph.D. credentials as described above.

Eng-Tips guidelines: faq731-376

 

[VER]

42805,

My colleague at work finished his Mechanical Engg. in the Phils. and has 10 years experience in Water Treatment Industry when he took the California P.E exam and passed. He waived the FE exam because of his 10+ years as Engineer.

Ver101

 

[swine]

It should be pointed out that "Fundamentals of Engineering Exam" is just that, fundamentals. There are only a few fundamental principles, everything overlapse and collapses upon these principles. For instance, statics helped me learn circuits (writing equations applying boundary conditions). AC Circuits overlapped and helps me understand seismic design and other phase, resonance, and damping type problems: as well as column buckling. Thermodynamics helps me understand corrosion, thermal expansion, vapor pressure, aging, embrittlement, and stability. It's good to remember that the only thing that is reliable is that the disorder of the universe increases.

 

[4819]

hi !!

i m just new in this forum . i m a foreign civil engineer. working in my back home as an govt. civil enginner for 25 yrs . Now i came to usa (CA) as a permanant residence .Actually my questions are :
1.i dont know what i have to do here or is there any possibility to get any civil engineering job ?
2.Do i need to pass EIT exam ?

pls is there anybody who can show me right way ... to go..

qayum

 

[4819]

hi !!

i m just new in this forum . i m a foreign civil engineer. working in my back home as an govt. civil enginner for 25 yrs . Now i came to usa (CA) as a permanant residence .Actually my questions are :
1.i dont know what i have to do here or is there any possibility to get any civil engineering job ?
2.Do i need to pass EIT exam ?

pls is there anybody who can show me right way ... to go..

qayum

 

[dddggg1423]

Okay, it is even strange to discuss that topic. Of course you need to take both exams. American engineering school is so weak in comparison with european, that you will pass easy, as long as you prepare for the tests. The tests are also made for americans. I mean the style of multiple choices and entrapment with misleading statements. While european examination authorities consider the solution and ability of engineer to think - this is not the case here. In fact, they feel threatened by any foreigner trying to compeet for the job and they are protecting themselves trying to confuse you with language statements in the problem Even asking for help to obtain EIT video course was conidered insulting, and removed from the forum. Well, let me ask you this: how come they use Interpol police officers, without asking for license qualifications? They also use foreign austronauts on the space missions without asking for US pilot's license.... and they have many of american licensed PE's who prostitute their license and sign almost about any nonsense. At the same time they are using cheap labour of foreign engineers, who have to work long hours and be really good at what they do, in order to compete. I have seen enough of this over 15 years. My advice is following: study for a year, pass exam, open your own company, and make sure to spend 80% of your time for a paperwork, because they like to sue everybody, who got money!

 

[whyun]

In talking about American Engineers, one can't ignore the fact that more than 50% of any engineering curricula is occupied by foreigners (foreign nationals with a student visa) or first/second generation immigrants. Percentage is much higher than this at graduate level.

Observing the demographics of engineering license exams (in California), one can find similar ratios from examinees. I personally havent attended exams in other states, therefore will not comment.

 

[cvg]

I have some further advice, if you hate the American way so much, why are you here?

 

[4819]

hi!!

1st thx to every one and this forum for helping me.
I again need some further information about Credentials Evaluation.
I already contact to ABET's about equivalency of my degree and it cost $450.
I also heard about another credential service and that is

http://www.ierf.org

and they do it for only $85.
Is there any one who already did their degree equivalency from this International Education research foundation, Credentials Evaluation service?
OR which one is reliable ?
qayum

 

[henri2]

As has been pointed out, foreign educated engineers with enough years of experience can have the EIT waived and take the CA PE exam. However, there are a few points to take into consideration.

1. The experience will have to be verified by a PE and it must be relevant engineering experience.

2. The CA PE exam consists of several parts; there is the NCEES exam (national exam), the CA seismic exam, the CA surveying exam, and some micky-mouse exam you have to mail in or probably do online.

While the FE exam is a walk in the park for seniors enrolled in US universities, it presents a formidable challenge for individuals who have been out of a school for a long while, especially those who were educated overseas. IMHO, this exam is even tougher than the PE. For folks in the foreign category, problems they face include: the multiple choice format, and the way the examiners jazz up the stem of the questions with interesting scenarios (you gotta blow the smoke away to determine what you are being asked); if indeed, you fall into this category and have to take the FE, my advice is, shell out the dinero and take a review course.

Everyone wants to protect their turf and it seems that CA protects their CEs (civil engineers) better than anyone else. For instance, in the UK, the PE equivalent for civil engineers is the MICE/C.Eng (member of the Institution of Civil Engineers---Chartered Engineer). For individuals trained in the UK who have the appropriate experience, it is not that tough unless your written communication skills are weak. It basically consists of a 1 hour interview followed by a 2 hour essay. However, for foreign trained engineers, they require that you take the AMICE exam first before you can take the MICE exam. IMHO, the AMICE is much tougher.

 

[francesca]

For instance, in the UK, the PE equivalent for civil engineers is the MICE/C.Eng (member of the Institution of Civil Engineers---Chartered Engineer). For individuals trained in the UK who have the appropriate experience, it is not that tough unless your written communication skills are weak. It basically consists of a 1 hour interview followed by a 2 hour essay.

You are missing the long, bureaucratic, drawn-out process that preceeds the interview and essay. You have to compile a portfolio of experience, signed off by a CEng at every step, proving you meet about 100 "core competencies" on a range of levels. You need demonstrated experience in the office and on site, and in more than one field of engineering. In addition, the education requirement is moving toward a Masters degree. While it is possible to obtain chartered status within 5 years, more usually it takes 7-10 years. Experience prior to obtaining your undergraduate degree does not count at all.

Recently, the Institution of Highways and Transportation has acquired Chartered status, and that institution is not as bureaucratic as the ICE; however, the process is the same and acquiring chartered status is only marginally easier through them.

Many professionals in the Transport Planning/Traffic Engineering realm prefer to obtain chartered status through the Chartered Institute of Transportation; the CIT charters Transportation professionals including Town Planners. It is not an equivalent qualification to CEng/MICE, but it prevents the need to get experience in other fields.

 

[henri2]

Francesca,

Great points. I should have elaborated more on the "appropriate experience" requirement.

No doubt the qualification criteria either via IPD or career appraisal is tough. In fact it is much tougher than qualifying for the PE exam. It takes deligence to get all the documentation in order. However, once you have crossed that bridge, the rest is smooth sailing, assuming you studied in the UK, can write well, and worked for a British firm or one that operates in a country where British standards of practice are the followed.

I do like the fact that they require you to have, not only office experience, but also field experience in the field.

BTW, do they still allow HNDs to become chartered? Last I heard they wanted to raise the bar to qualify.

What of reciprocity with EU nations...how is that handled?

 

[francesca]

I don't know what an HND is, but they recently began allowing technicians with solid experience to qualify as CEng. The move was viewed in a positive light; of course there is an IPD requirement too.

I obtained my Bachelor's degree in South Africa, and many of my friends also moved to the UK for a spell (there is a 2-year working holiday visa for South Africans traveling to the UK). Those who moved before they'd acquired substantial experience in South Africa were seeking chartership through the (British) ICE. Those who'd already made substantial strides toward chartership through the South African ICE prefered to complete that process and the British ICE honored their chartership.

It is my experience that the rest of the world is much more open to recognizing foreign qualifications than is the US.