PE from project management.

[IAAWVU05]

I just took a project management job in march. I passed my EIT in 2006, and am not eligible for sitting in the FE until 2010. I worked from 2006-2008 mainly with ASME B31.3 and piping design, and from 2008-2009, I worked for a company designing AC units for the ground support industry.
My new job has to deal with managing research, design and demonstration for the power generation industry. I don't dive into the technical stuff as much, but I would still like to obtain my PE. I'm afraid project management will make me "soft" to all the serious computation and design work of an engineer. I read up on all the projects assigned to me, but what else can I do to obtain relevant experience such that I am well prepared to undertake the PE exam?

 

[JamesBarlow]

I wouldn't really worry about your work preparing you for the exam. I may be the exception but I didn't solve a single problem on the exam that could have come from my work as a machine designer, and I took the machine design section.

As long as you are all set, or will be set, for your references and work history to sit for the exam you should be set.

Study early, and often.

 

[shirsch]

You will need to prove that your work experience is in engineering and you will need a PE to sign off for all of your years of experience. I am not sure if there is a PE at your new PM job, but if not you may not be eligible to sit for the PE exam. How do you like working in PM versus engineering?

 

[IAAWVU05]

There are a few PE's in my division, and obtainig PE is encouraged almost as much as obtaining a PMP.

PM is a different kind of busy and a different kind of stress. It has its pros and cons. On one hand, I can direct where the project is going, and hold more say than an engineer. On the other hand, I can no longer solely rely on myself to get results, as my job is rated on milestones and objectives met by other people's work (but in PM theory, I managed those other people to get the results).

Overall, I like it because I can finally see the big picture instead of receiving one piece of the puzzle and wondering how everything fits together.

 

[IAAWVU05]

I also forgot to mention that the PE's in my division were PE's before they were PM's. I will be taking a slightly different route to achieving the PE.