# PE vs. AACE Certification



## schedengr (Aug 29, 2018)

After 2 failed attempts with taking the PE Civil Construction exam, I'm reconsidering taking the exam ever again and am more likely going to strive after an AACE certification. I feel that the amount of PMP's out there has saturated the market and I don't fully support the direction NCEES is taking with the PE exam. I hold a civil engineering degree but am more focused on project controls/scheduling and don't see the PE as a good fit in my career. Has anyone had any experiences taking an AACE certification for either Earned Value Professional, Planning &amp; Scheduling Professional, or Certified Cost Professional? I like the structure of their exam where it is all not just multiple choice but part essay and real life scenario, something that needs to be strongly suggested to the NCEES board to make it more practical to real life engineering. I'd much rather spend $300 toward an exam that actually values real life scenarios &amp; not theoretical concepts.


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## KOKOMO777 (Aug 29, 2018)

There's a lot of jobs out there other than consulting that will accept PMP over a PE certification. I will pursue the PMP if I do not pass the PE.


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## schedengr (Aug 29, 2018)

KOKOMO777 look into AACE certification. PMP again is multiple choice and all about memorizing the PMBOK.


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## MspSdf (May 27, 2019)

I have a Civil Engineering degree and have never heard of AACE certifications until now. I honestly haven't seen any job listings for Engineers require or prefer AACE certifications. It sounded like you aren't actually designing anything, that could be the reason why you are struggling with PE exam. I myself just passed PE but am also considering taking PMP exam next year. A lot of times, engineers also manage projects. If you aren't designing or managing, then why would you need either PE or PMP certification?

The catch is eventually you will need either PE or PMP to be able to move to a higher level. I prefer PE as you only need to do it once. PMPs need to retake the exam every 5 years.


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## John QPE (Jul 30, 2019)

This sounds like a lame excuse for not getting your ass in gear and studying.


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## civilrobot PE etc etc (Aug 4, 2019)

MspSdf said:


> I have a Civil Engineering degree and have never heard of AACE certifications until now. I honestly haven't seen any job listings for Engineers require or prefer AACE certifications. It sounded like you aren't actually designing anything, that could be the reason why you are struggling with PE exam. I myself just passed PE but am also considering taking PMP exam next year. A lot of times, engineers also manage projects. If you aren't designing or managing, then why would you need either PE or PMP certification?
> 
> The catch is eventually you will need either PE or PMP to be able to move to a higher level. I prefer PE as you only need to do it once. PMPs need to retake the exam every 5 years.


PMPs are not required to retake the exam every five years. One must obtain 60 PDUs every three years. That’s it. I’ve had a PMP since 2015 and the only exam I’m studying for is the PE exam.


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## Fisherman504 (Aug 20, 2019)

You are not allow to quit until you fail the exam three times. You have no place to complain. Keep trying. Even if you do not agree with NCEES' approach, you should be careful how you voice your concerns on a public forum. Hopefully nobody screenshot your post, because you are straight dogging NCEES on their methodology.


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## civilrobot PE etc etc (Aug 20, 2019)

schedengr said:


> After 2 failed attempts with taking the PE Civil Construction exam, I'm reconsidering taking the exam ever again and am more likely going to strive after an AACE certification. I feel that the amount of PMP's out there has saturated the market and I don't fully support the direction NCEES is taking with the PE exam. I hold a civil engineering degree but am more focused on project controls/scheduling and don't see the PE as a good fit in my career. Has anyone had any experiences taking an AACE certification for either Earned Value Professional, Planning &amp; Scheduling Professional, or Certified Cost Professional? I like the structure of their exam where it is all not just multiple choice but part essay and real life scenario, something that needs to be strongly suggested to the NCEES board to make it more practical to real life engineering. I'd much rather spend $300 toward an exam that actually values real life scenarios &amp; not theoretical concepts.


Perhaps you should consider the PSP. If you are more focused on project controls and scheduling then that is a more appropriate certification than PMP. I agree with @Fisherman504 that you shouldn't just give up. Try again. What's the harm? A hurt ego? You don't have to tell anyone that you're sitting for it again. If you haven't done so already, consider a review course. I'm taking EET right now and it's helping me. I don't know if I will pass but I'm going to try. I'm prepared to regroup and take it again if that's what it takes. This is a marathon and not a sprint for some of us.


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## schedengr (Oct 18, 2019)

Appreciate that response @civilrobot. I'm going to wait to take the computer based exam in a couple years. It will allow you to take the exam 4x within a year and I like the fact I won't have to spend more $$$ having to drive 3 hours to a testing site and purchase a hotel room for the night before.


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## Mo84 (Oct 19, 2019)

Fisherman504 said:


> You are not allow to quit until you fail the exam three times. You have no place to complain. Keep trying. Even if you do not agree with NCEES' approach, you should be careful how you voice your concerns on a public forum. Hopefully nobody screenshot your post, because you are straight dogging NCEES on their methodology.


It's ok to have and share an opinion of the exam methodology, it's part of the freedom of speech.  



schedengr said:


> After 2 failed attempts with taking the PE Civil Construction exam, I'm reconsidering taking the exam ever again and am more likely going to strive after an AACE certification. I feel that the amount of PMP's out there has saturated the market and I don't fully support the direction NCEES is taking with the PE exam. I hold a civil engineering degree but am more focused on project controls/scheduling and don't see the PE as a good fit in my career. Has anyone had any experiences taking an AACE certification for either Earned Value Professional, Planning &amp; Scheduling Professional, or Certified Cost Professional? I like the structure of their exam where it is all not just multiple choice but part essay and real life scenario, something that needs to be strongly suggested to the NCEES board to make it more practical to real life engineering. I'd much rather spend $300 toward an exam that actually values real life scenarios &amp; not theoretical concepts.


Maybe the exam itself is not a solid measure of anyone's competency as an engineer, but the time spent to prepare for the test and the diverse covered material is what I found beneficial. Sometimes it's about the journey not necessarily the destination. As an engineer, you'll definitely want to have your P.E. more than the other cert you've mentioned above.


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## Redleader (Jan 19, 2021)

"Maybe the exam itself is not a solid measure of anyone's competency as an engineer....you'll definitely want to have your P.E. more than the other cert you've mentioned above."

I'd have to agree with that first part. During my time in engineering I met some people w/ PE's, even those who passed it first time around but they didn't know how to design anything, they were just good test takers. Likewise, the folks out in construction knew a ton and some didn't have PE's (some didn't even major specifically in Civil). However in many instances, whether in a private design firm or working for the public, you will need a PE to be promoted beyond a certain level and definitely need one to be a project manager. 

I'm not sure what the options are going into construction are but I did spend a couple of years in my early career, doing Project Controls, specifically for the electrical engineering contracts on the San Francisco Int'l Airport expansion project (yes, this was decades ago). So, the job didn't require any "Civil" expertise and no one in the project controls group was specifically an engineer. My direct boss was an MBA and the majority of our jobs had to do with tracking, reporting, and managing manhours, budgets, construction change orders, etc.


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## KOKOMO777 (Apr 4, 2021)

Fisherman504 said:


> You are not allow to quit until you fail the exam three times. You have no place to complain. Keep trying. Even if you do not agree with NCEES' approach, you should be careful how you voice your concerns on a public forum. Hopefully nobody screenshot your post, because you are straight dogging NCEES on their methodology.
> 
> View attachment 13646


Is that your exam result? What made you decide on taking the WRE instead of taking the Transportation depth again on the 4th attempt?


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## Aviatrix85 (Jul 24, 2021)

.


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## WingNut (Jul 25, 2021)

I would NOT give up on the PE exam-- irrespective if you have had difficulty passing it to this point. The PE license is just that, a license, NOT a certificate-- there is a BIG DIFFERENCE. You CAN and WILL pass the PE exam. Obviously, whatever study techniques, if any, you are using are not working. Take a review course in your discipline and then STUDY and STUDY HARD the material. You can do this-- you are a smart individual-- you are not a bonehead. The exam is designed to ascertain minimal competency-- we are looking for the C- student, not the A* student. Take the review course and then study hard the material-- really know what is on the syllabus-- that is where the questions come from. Know the reference manual, all of the formulae that you need to work the exam are in the reference handbook. There is no reason NOT to pass this test the next time-- no reason to continue to spend money taking the exam. If you are not ready and feel competent, don't take it. The exams are designed that each question takes 6 min to answer. Some questions can be answered by inspection-- others may have 4-5 calculation steps involved. You should be able to see the question and know what they are asking for. The CBT modality allows us to ask more realistic questions to see if the candidate really knows the material. You CAN DO this-- just buckle down and STUDY hard-- I mean 14 hours a week now until test time and then about 25 hours a week 3 weeks before the test. Thinks of this as "One and Done." I don't care how long out of school you are-- I was 32 years out and had been in senior corporate management for the past 28 years when I took and passed the exam, the first time. Yes, i did study and \Yes, I was equally spooked along with the young engineers, however, I was not willing to have to take the test a second time. You can do this-- just do it.


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