Reciprocity License

[martinv]

Hi everyone!

I've just passed the PE (Civil, Construction) exam in Maryland. Since I work for a company overseas, with many offshore wind projects across the East Coast, my boss is already asking about the reciprocity of the MD license in other states (MA, NC, VA, NY, NJ). Does anyone have any experience applying for reciprocity licenses? Any advice?

Thanks in advance!

 

[leggo PE]

Firstly, congrats on passing!

Yes, many people are licensed in multiple states! However, I'm not one of them. I'd suggest you look at each state board's requirements for applying for reciprocity.

Beware, NY is notorious for being extremely difficult to get reciprocity in, though I'm really not sure why. In any case, the means by which you apply for reciprocity likely vary between all states, and thus you may should refer to each stat's boards. Off hand, I can imagine that they might have difference years of experiences requirements, which could affect when you'd be able to apply for reciprocity.

You may also be interested in creating an NCEES Record, which can make applying for reciprocity in multiple states easier. However, I'm not personally sure what states do and do not accept NCEES Records for reciprocity. Others here might know the answer to this, at least on a state-by-state basis. Regardless, I'd do some research with NCEES and all the state boards you're looking to get licensed in to get the official answers!

Also, have any of your coworkers gone through this process? They might have some helpful advice too!

 

[martinv]

Firstly, congrats on passing!

Yes, many people are licensed in multiple states! However, I'm not one of them. I'd suggest you look at each state board's requirements for applying for reciprocity.

Beware, NY is notorious for being extremely difficult to get reciprocity in, though I'm really not sure why. In any case, the means by which you apply for reciprocity likely vary between all states, and thus you may should refer to each stat's boards. Off hand, I can imagine that they might have difference years of experiences requirements, which could affect when you'd be able to apply for reciprocity.

You may also be interested in creating an NCEES Record, which can make applying for reciprocity in multiple states easier. However, I'm not personally sure what states do and do not accept NCEES Records for reciprocity. Others here might know the answer to this, at least on a state-by-state basis. Regardless, I'd do some research with NCEES and all the state boards you're looking to get licensed in to get the official answers!

Also, have any of your coworkers gone through this process? They might have some helpful advice too!

Many thanks for the response. Indeed, I've seen that to create a NCEES Record might be the key for some states (NC, for example). It will be a matter of getting the MD license first, and then double check each state requirement. 

Unfortunately, none of my coworkers have gone through the PE process, I am the first PE in the company that I work for (+3,000 employees), so everything is quite new for everyone there as well. 

 

[LyceeFruit PE]

@martinv i started reciprocity for NJ but then the pandemic hit and I didn't complete the process. you can submit your NCEES record for NJ but you still need to fill out their application - which is paper btw and covers basically everything in the NCEES record. you also need a passport photo and for someone to notarize your application (which is largely why I gave up on my app once the pandemic hit since everything was closed & I couldn't get a notary. but now my projects in NJ are done so I'm going to ignore it until the next round of NJ projects come up lol) If & when you submit your NJ application, you'll need a check or money order as well. 

as for NY, you need to be REALLY detailed and thorough in your description of your work experience otherwise you can get denied. like other states are more ok with the general overview but i had a former coworker who wasn't detailed enough about the standard he worked on & was rejected. 

if you have your MD number already, i would start filling out your ncees record. you can do parts of it without the number, you just can't go anywhere with it.

with the NCEES record, you will have to pay a fee for *each* state you send it to, on top of each state's fee (application fee or like PA, background check fee) and then your stamps, and all of the various CEUs/PDHs you need to maintain the licenses in those states (i'd just remind your company of the cost of license by comity). Also within the NCEES record, you need to get your PE & EIT verified and I had to pay for one of them (I think the state just ignored the fee for the 2nd one since it wasn't in their online portal as an option for me to request verification on) 

for your stamps, i'm personally partial to the self inking from PEstamps.com (it's one of the banner ads on this website and there is a discount code). But it's also a local (to me) company [theyre based in maine]