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The title "SE" for a structural engineer. 8

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3doorsdwn

Structural
May 9, 2007
162
Recently I became an SE [in Illinois; my base state (original state of licensure) does not license by discipline] and one thing I have always been confused about is if it is proper to have "SE" behind your name on business cards, e-mails, etc.. I've heard one school of thought that says it is not proper to use if the state you live in is a non-SE state, and others who say that it is ok. I've seen some people use the new "MLSE" thing that NCEES has come up with as a title instead.

Thoughts? Does anyone know (in general) what the regs are about this? Thanks in advance.
 
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ToadJones said:
...

John Doe, Elementary School Completer, High School Diploma, BSCE, MSCE, PE, SE, MLSE, State Football Champion, 4.55 forty yard dash, 260 pound bench press

That MSCE sounds an awful lot like MCSE. I had to go back and re-read that.

A graduate degree sounds okay to me if it is in the subject you are claiming to be an expert in.


Critter.gif
JHG
 
LOL @ Toad.

although this name is impressive.

John Dork, PE, SE, PhD



 
Holy crap Toad, I may be your evil twin! I bet there wasn't a category in that round of Jeopardy like Musicals or 18th Century British Literature. Love that show, and the SNL versions with Will Ferrell. Thleven.

If I go back to grad school I may just add Master to my title, and keep people guessing - Master of What?

Uhmmm, everything...? (At least that is what I tell my wife.) Master of my domain.

Had a professor (PhD) in school tell us this:

Bachelor's degree- you know a little about a lot of things
Master's- you know a lot about a little
PhD- you know a lot about nothing!

 
I'm not meaning to ruffle anyone's feathers. Just making a couple jokes.
But, I have had occasion to work with a few huge companies (Bechtel, URS etc...). It has been my experience, and maybe mine only, but the only people I ever saw tagging 4 or 5 suffixes to their name seemed to have very little interest in engineering and a lot of interest in management and $$$$.
Nothing wrong with that, just an observation.
After having seen that many times, I tend to leave off suffixes whenever I can. I don't want to be guilty by similarity.

a2mfk...no, it was all very real subjects. No artsy-fartsy "answers".
 
See ToadJones - I work for a large company and here we put the alphabet soup behind our names to get people to leave us alone! for some nice reason most business minded people think that when the SE or PhD are added the person is too technical and would never agree to the usual hare-brained scheme any way...so we're left in the dark closet to blosum into mushrooms.

As to the mystery behind the intials, a2mfk, the old theory is like this:

BS - Bull Sh$t
MS - More Sh$t
PhD - Piled Higher and Deeper.



Regards,
Qshake
[pipe]
Eng-Tips Forums:Real Solutions for Real Problems Really Quick.
 
lol you guys crack me up. My 40 time back in the day wasn't too hot either (more in the 4.7-4.8 range).

Thanks for the replies.
 
I agree with Toad:
"I'm not meaning to ruffle anyone's feathers. Just making a couple jokes.
But, I have had occasion to work with a few huge companies (Bechtel, URS etc...). It has been my experience, and maybe mine only, but the only people I ever saw tagging 4 or 5 suffixes to their name seemed to have very little interest in engineering and a lot of interest in management and $$$$."


I have a PE but my college was the school of hard knocks so no degrees. I was raised in the UK so I have no idea what I would do the forty in, but I did the hundred in 10.3 or 4 if my memory serves.

Michael.
Timing has a lot to do with the outcome of a rain dance.
 
Back OT: If the SE is a qualification recognized by the state in which the project will be built, it is probably necessary. In Texas, you must use your PE (or seal) on anything which is "engineering work product." Reports get a "Name, PE" with a signature. Drawings get a seal and signature. Some states do require that the name and seal to be an SE rather than PE.

You will start seeing much more of this as states realize that the new exam is a distinction worth recognizing.

As far as multiple, marginal designations go, whatever floats your boat. I steer away from people digging to deep (masters degrees, and yes, I've seen a few BS degrees). Stay with the relevant ones that qualify you for what you do.
 
TXStructural,

A couple of months ago, one of my managers asked me about the thermal performance of one of his projects -- one I had not worked on. This is engineering, albeit, not structural engineering. The thermal analysis had been contracted to an engineer outside the company. I pointed out...

[ol]
[li]...that the engineer was the guy who had trained me on COSMOS FloWorks.[/li]
[li]He holds a masters degree, so he is supposed to know what he is doing.[/li]
[/ol]

The manager is not asking useful questions.

It was useful for me to know that the engineer holds a graduate degree. I have no idea of how fast he runs 40 yards.

Critter.gif
JHG
 
Without breaking any state laws, I say use the initials. If nothing else, they serve as a little marketing for yourself. Both of these have happened to my bosses:

1. You have a PhD? Yep, my thesis was on XXX. Well I've got a case coming up dealing with just that, want to be an expert witness?

2. I see you are an SE. Are you licensed in Illinois because we've got a project coming up?
 
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