For the sake of Pete...I got my PE for the very fact that my snazzy, top-ranked engineering school did a poor job of making me a "practical" engineer. I am grateful to my school, but geez, every school has its own strengths. Mine was very good on the theory but not so much the nuts and bolts. Studying for the PE really helped me there. Anyone who graduates with an engineering degree from a top-ranked school or not should be proud.
I took the FE fall of my senior year and then took the PE 5.5 years later, for a total of 5 years out of school.