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mindwaves · Nov 5, 2005, 10:59 PM

I was wondering if anyone here has taken the PE exam in their own state and what books and or advice can they recommend to me. I plan on taking this exam October 2006 after taking and passing the EIT/FE exam this past April 2005. I got some nice help last time and would be appreciative if anyone can help me again.

I plan on taking the EE portion of the exam, but I am currently undecided on which section to take. Thanks.

The Godfather · Nov 6, 2005, 02:13 AM

Don't you need 5 years of work experience under a P.E., after passing the EIT, to get your own P.E.? :/

The Godfather · Nov 6, 2005, 02:22 AM

This is 10 years old, but informative:
http://www.faqs.org/faqs/engineering/pe-eit-exam/

mindwaves · 08:30 AM

Originally Posted by The Godfather

Don't you need 5 years of work experience under a P.E., after passing the EIT, to get your own P.E.? :/

AFAIK, for CA, it is 6 years of "qualifying experience." From what I gather, that means 4 years of qualifying experience upon graduating from an accredited university so I have 4 years right there. One year of work experience plus one year qualifying experience with my Masters degree in EE this coming March.

Plus for EE, you do not necessarily have to work under someone with a PE, but I do know someone who does have a PE which I can use as one of my references. I think I need to cover 4-6 years worth of references. There is a clause in the CA rules which say that if you work in the aerospace industry (which I do), then non-licensed (but qualifying) engineers are fine references.

Thanks for the link! Will look at it.

SVass · Nov 6, 2005, 12:45 PM

I got my EE PE license about 25 years ago in Washington. Then, you had to have a certain number of years of experience after getting a degree as well as one reference from a license holder. I took the two exams on consecutive days.

I took a two week evening refresher course from a university professor who gave us hints about taking exams and how it was scored as well as covering basic topics. My advice is to find such a course and take it. sam

mindwaves · Nov 6, 2005, 01:13 PM

Originally Posted by SVass

I got my EE PE license about 25 years ago in Washington. Then, you had to have a certain number of years of experience after getting a degree as well as one reference from a license holder. I took the two exams on consecutive days.

I took a two week evening refresher course from a university professor who gave us hints about taking exams and how it was scored as well as covering basic topics. My advice is to find such a course and take it. sam

Thanks for the information. What do you mean by two exams? I was under the impression that there was one exam and one little ethics and codes exam which is a take home exam (30 days to fill out).

SVass · Nov 6, 2005, 04:44 PM

Originally Posted by mindwaves

What do you mean by two exams? I was under the impression that there was one exam and one little ethics and codes exam which is a take home exam (30 days to fill out).

I took the EIT on one day and the PE exam the next day. They may have changed the rules since then. I got my degree in 1960 and took these exams around 1978. (I had an advantage as they hadn't adjusted the exam for the existence of hand calculators yet.

) sam

mindwaves · Feb 2, 2007, 06:33 PM

I just received notice that I had passed. I'm now a registered Professional Engineer in Electrical Engineering for the State of California!

Big Mac · Feb 2, 2007, 06:39 PM

Grats, mindwaves. I have heard from intelligent friends EE is super tough, so that's a major achievement in my book.

ghporter · Feb 2, 2007, 08:45 PM

Woo hoo! Congratulations!!!

What's your specialty-if you have one?

The Godfather · Feb 2, 2007, 09:21 PM

Congratulations!

Here in Florida you need 4 years of POST-GRADUATE work experience to qualify for the PE license. *grumble*

Buckaroo · Feb 2, 2007, 10:14 PM

Congradulations mindwaves. That is awesome.

G4ME · Feb 3, 2007, 01:01 AM

yeah in Maine you need 3-4 years post grad, not sure if snagging your masters counts though. I will betaking the FE in EE this spring for the first time and am looking forward to it.

My uncle got his PE on the third try about 20 years after he graduated, he said it was like pulling teeth, everything had changed and had to completely relearn everything from the start DSP, transistors, programing, all new stuff to him.

Not sure if I want to snag the PE, but I mind as well try before everything changes again I find myself in a spot that requires me to have one.

mindwaves · Feb 3, 2007, 08:17 AM

Thanks everyone. There were 3 options to take on the 2nd half of the exam. They were Computers; Electronics, Controls, and Communications; and Power. I opted to take the Electronics, Controls, and Communication section.

When I took the exam, I had about 1.5 years of work experience after my double B.S. along with my MS EE degree so I qualified for the "6 years experience."

kcmac · Feb 3, 2007, 10:02 AM

Congrats. I'm a landscape architect that works for a fairly large engineering firm. We always have people studying for the test it seems. Hope you get a little bonus from your firm. Well deserved and good for the company. Best of luck.

ghporter · Feb 3, 2007, 10:12 AM

To my way of thinking, "E, C & C" is the way of the future. Computers require a lot of non-electrical engineering nowadays, and power is (I'll say it) boring. E, C & C is how everything goes together, and it's broad enough to keep you from being bored EVER. Great job!

SVass · Feb 3, 2007, 11:05 AM

Congratulations-I've retired from paid work and I am still using advanced mathematics analyzing the probabilities and statistics of dna research as an "amateur". Ultimately, your chosen specialty is unimportant, only critical thinking counts. Enjoying your job and having a variety of tasks also helps. sam