PE License renewal and continuing education

[EngineerDave]

I know this will vary by state, but unfortunately I lost the letter stating the PE licensing and continuing education requirements for a PE in the state of Ohio.

I received my PE in Metallurgy 2003 and would like to keep it active (even though technically I work in another field)

In general does anyone have any suggestions on how to keep certified? I don't know about you but the thought of studying for and taking that test again isn't too appealing!

 

[JAE]

Just check out Ohio's Engineering Board site:

http://www.ohiopeps.org/

 

[TDAA]

You would not have to retake the test. You would have to become up to date on your CE. If you practice, while not current, and get audited, you would be in trouble.

 

[JStephen]

It's not a matter of taking the test. It's a matter of paying more money, or, if you wait too long, having to reapply (but not retest).

Continuing Ed can be a problem, especially if you're not in a mainstream field. Look into the courses from the professional societies (not just yours- related ones, too- for metallurgy, consider ASCE/structural/Pressure Vessel/Welding societies). Local junior colleges may have continuing ed courses- AutoCAD, Visual Basic, for example. (Not to be confused with semester-long classes).

 

[EngineerDave]

Looks like cost of recertification will be a bit high as a result of the need of taking a seminar or two (more likely and less time consuming than a university class which I might not have time to do)

 

[metengr]

Doesn't your company pay for this expense?? This is considered professional development.

 

[bridgebuster]

"Doesn't your company pay for this expense?? "

My company will pay the registration fee but won't pay for any continuing education. We have a lot of non-billable vice presidents to support :-(

 

[metengr]

bridgebuster;
Time to consider employment with a more progressive company, my friend. But then again, if you are a consulting engineer you make more than enough money to afford your own professional development, right?

 

[Qshake]

Non-billable VPs in this present day and age?! I'm amazed. I hope they hold out so that you can have your cake and eat it too.

About 10 years ago I worked for a firm like that. Haven't seen that around for a bit. I always dreamed....it would be like a Professor getting tenure.

Regards,
Qshake

Eng-Tips Forums:Real Solutions for Real Problems Really Quick.

 

[bridgebuster]

I work for a company run by accountants - everything is BOTTOM LINE. What bothers me is that the overhead increased significantly this year. Even though the fees on the projects I work on are negotiated we'll have to squeeze the labor. Let's face it, clients have a bottom line figure as well.

 

[EngineerDave]

Yeah I'll have to pay for it since I'm working in a different field. Maintaining the PE is important to me however for some consulting work I might eventually do.

 

[MiketheEngineer]

Check out the Internet resources. Their courses are reasonable.

Try

http://www.pdhonline.org

 

[EngineerDave]

Thanks for the link. That would be ideal. I wonder if I can convince Ohio to start accepting those for credit?

 

[EngineerDave]

Seems for us Ohion engineers some groups have put together some rather cheap seminars to satisfy the continuing education requirements. The first one is this month (March). I don't have the details on me but could post info later for any interested.

 

[MissouriPE]

Just some thoughts for people looking for reasonable Continuing Ed:

1. Look at the regional chapters or local chapters of either something like NSPE or something more discipline specific.
2. If you work in an industry with a lot of government regulations, look at the state departments - some offer seminars.
3. Look at web seminars from a variety of organizations.
4. Don't forget about some organizations for minority engineers. Often their professional development seminars at conferences and on the web are open to non-members. SWE has some great PD seminars that are applicable to almost any engineer and are cheap (web seminar for non-member $49 - free with your $100/yr membership and membership is open to men).

I always have tons of PDHs or CEUs or whatever you want to call them. I have been working in the stormwater field and therefore have worn a lot of different hats requiring me to know tons about a lot of different areas. I have gotten great education from the Association of State Floodplain Managers (both at the national and state levels - state conferences usually get me about 8-10 hours of PDHs for like $100). I have gone to some great IECA regional workshops/conferences. I just got a newsletter from my 4-state chapter (so I never have to go THAT far from home to attend) and I can attend one day for about 8 hours of pdhs for $100 or another half day for $60. Our local chapter of MSPE gives 0.5 PDH for each monthly lunch meeting (with speaker). I've attended training put on by EPA and our DNR on NPDES - all seminars were free or like $15 (covering lunch). The regional planning commission up in Kansas City hosts some LID seminars for like $100 or so for a day or two. Oh, and if you want to go to one of the BIG conferences (national/international) - VOLUNTEER! I saved $150 on my last SWE conference by volunteering and I attended two days of the international APWA conference for free for volunteering. Not bad!

Just call me the queen of stretching the professional development dollar.

 

[ssiguy]

For licensing information, you might want to check the NCEES site:

http://www.ncees.org/licensure/licensing_boards/

The following site also has a good comiplation of resources:

http://www.pevault.com/

Regarding best deals on continuing eduction, MissouriPE seems to have summed up all the tips. However, make sure to document all the courses taken. Many states are getting really picky on what can and cannot be accepted as continuing education.

http://www.soil-structure.com

 

[EngineerDave]

Yeah there is an online company in Florida that offers PE credits. I may go this route for the majority of them, but I did enjoy the one day seminar/lecture that i went to in April that earned me 3 of them.