NCEES Council Record

[PatBethea]

I'm not sure which forum is the most appropriate for this question.

Are there any out there with experience with the NCEES Council Record? I've got a small business and am looking at some opportunities in other states. In my mind, my first step is to obtain a PE in that state, and then a CA for the company. The Council Record looks attractive, but I am wondering if it is worth the cost. Does is really speed up the process of obtaining additional PEs? Does anybody have any thoughts on this?

 

[MiketheEngineer]

Works great and is worth the money if you are doing more than say 5 or 6 states. NOT all states accept all of the NCEES records. Check the states you think you need.

If I was doing only 2 or 3 states - forget it.

Not sure if it really speeds up anything - but sure cuts down on the paperwork. I am registered in like 37 states..

 

[zdas04]

I got mine before I started the company, and it REALLY speeded things up in the second state I applied to, the third state felt that they know better than the first two states, NCEES, and the university that let me sit for my Masters and didn't think my undergraduate preparation was adequate. Even for that state the effort to get rejected was significantly reduced.

Remember, that not being registered in a state may not be a hinderance to many legitimate activities. I can't stamp a drawing that the state requires stamped in State Three, but I can do all of the other things that my company does (including stamping a federal requirement like SPCC Plans).

As an ME you probably won't be stamping any of the Civil or Structural stuff that states regulate very closely. The only thing that I stamp regularly in any state are SPCC plans and the occasional drawing that a manufacturer wants me to do the performance calculations on. The vast majority of my work does not require a stamp.

David

 

[atlas06]

It can come in handy if you have your own firm.
You never know when you will be bidding on an attractive project in a nearby state (especially Federal Projects). NCEES sometimes speeds up things.

I'd say that if you own a business, it's well worth it, and you don't have to bother your old bosses any more, and the cost is insignificant.

 

[PatBethea]

Gentlemen, thank you for the feedback. It sounds like David was going to have a tough time in "state 3" whether he had the record or not.

Atlas touched on the subject that's been bothering me lately - old bosses. In the past few days I've made contact with past supervisors and mentors asking if they would be willing to serve as references and/or to give them "heads up" that I would need someone to verify past employment. All have said "yes" and a couple even asked me if I wanted a job (made me feel good). My point is that I hate cold-calling old contacts when I need a favor. I was hoping that by establishing the Council Record I would only have to do it this once. It sounds like that is the case. How about it - do the individual states still ask for references outside of those contained in the record?

 

[greenone]

Hey, zdas-in CA you need to be a CA PE to stamp SPCC plans. CA is very, shall we say, picky?
Of course, now that SPCC regs are revised, many facilitites no longer need stamped plans.

 

[JAE]

Pat - I've gotten licensed in about 16 states after getting an NCEES file - it really mostly helps you in saving a bit of time filling out the experience, education, and sometimes reference forms. Some states won't accept the NCEES references so you have to do those new sometimes. NCEES requires a single new or updated reference every year.

Overall I think its a good thing to do - their annual fee isn't all that much.

 

[zdas04]

greenone,
That's good to know. The other states that I've looked at don't seem to want anything to do with SPCC. The recent changes do look like they're going to help, but the regs are still so complex that I'm having people who could self-certify ask me to prepare their plans just because they don't understand the requirements.

David

 

[MillR]

I used the NCEES Record to get several licenses and then let it lapse - it's expensive to maintain and I had the states I needed.

Nor was it as simple as I thought originally. In a number of states, I still had to contact old bosses. Also, to establish the record was fairly difficult, in that every time period from high school on had to be accounted for, which is more than most states ask, and the old bosses had to fill out more of a paragraph type reference.

 

[ashleyassociates]

I am registered in 11 states, and in some states it helped more than others. As long as I have the idea that I may get registered in another state, I will keep it current, as the fees are not that much. If you know for a fact that you are not getting registered in any more states, it is simply a professional membership to appear on a resume', and probably not worth it.

 

[BBENG]

If you get an NCEES record your old bosses and friends you are using as references will appreciate it as well. If you are going after 5 states, they will only have to fill out one form for you instead of 5.
In my case, completing my NCEES application was easier then the first state I went after. Also there are 4 states now that only take applications by NCEES, if you note on your original application that you are going after these states, NCEES will not charge you their normal $60 fee for these states.
If a project comes up that you need a license in a hurry, you will typically get it faster w/ NCEES then the standard way.