New member EIT

[bramsey]

Hi all,

I graduated with a B.S. in Civil Engineering in Dec 2023, passed FE and became CA EIT. I rushed through college in 5 semesters, so I am only 20 years old and I am figuring out what to do next. (PE?)

In Jan 2024, I started doing consulting traffic engineering in VA with primary work in signal timing for the east coast states.

I would like to take the PE Exam this year and to figure out which state in the east doesn't require experience. I also heard about the new exam format and also am wondering about which course to take.

 

[Hamilton_PE]

Here's what I would suggest: Find a PE practice exam for the transportation depth exam, and take it. See how much of the information you actually know. If you feel like you have a basic understanding of 50% of the questions, you can probably study your way up to a passing score. If you feel like you are drowning in new information while taking it, it might be better to wait a little longer and gain some more experience before taking the exam.

 

[youngmotivatedengineer]

Most if not all states require experience before being issued a license. Once you get your license you can sign off on plans, it’s not safe to have someone signing off on plans who. Has no experience working under a professional engineer

 

[bramsey]

Most if not all states require experience before being issued a license. Once you get your license you can sign off on plans, it’s not safe to have someone signing off on plans who. Has no experience working under a professional engineer

I definitely agree, it wouldn’t be good to have an inexperienced or under qualified PE. To reiterate, I am going to earn my experience and be well prepared to handle the responsibility, but I was originally wondering what state allows me to sit for the PE exam without the experience.

I just discovered that VA and NC (local to me) would allow me. In my opinion, doing the exam earlier in my career might reduce any headaches that could arise so that I can focus on other things like getting a master’s or a TE & PTOE as transportation is my intended focus.

 

[pgheng]

bramsey, it's called decoupling. About half of the states decoupled the exam from experience. I highly recommend Maine. No board approval, and you can take the PE exam in any state. You need to have an NCEES Record with college transcripts showing you graduated, and an EIT certificate. After passing the exam and getting experience, you can either apply for a Maine PE license or use the test credit to apply for a PE license in another state. Decoupling is a great thing. All states should do it.