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What does it mean to be a Professional Engineer?
Professional Engineers in Texas are certified by the Texas
Board of Professional Engineers and carry the designation ‘Engineer,
Professional Engineer or P.E.’ after their names.
For Texas, in order to become a certified Professional Engineer,
the Engineer must complete the following:
- 4 years of active practice in engineering work of a character satisfactory to the Board along with a Bachelor of Science in Engineering from an accredited program
- 5 references, of which, 3 are from licensed P.E.s
- 3 licensing examinations
- Fundamentals of Engineering
- Principles and Practice of Engineering
- The Texas Ethics of Engineering
An accredited program must include a minimum of 8 hours of mathematics
beyond trigonometry and 20 hours of engineering. During the years of
active practice a P.E. candidate must keep a log of engineering work
performed. Common types of acceptable engineering work can either be
Design or Analysis.
Rules for Professional Engineers
Engineers must seal, sign and date engineering plans and documents when
issued on subject matter that they are qualified by either education or
experience.
Registered professional engineering firms can acquire legal engineering
status only through the licenses of their own licensed professional
engineers who are full-time employees. They cannot acquire legitimization
through retained or part time employees who are engineers.
Licensure gives the individual the legal authority to practice engineering.
The registration of the firm gives the firm the legal authority to offer
the engineers’ services to the public. Other types of firms requiring
registration include certified public accountants and professional land surveyors.
For a complete description go to http://www.tbpe.state.tx.us
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