The CI Construction Engineering Education Committee has been interacting with the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES) with the goal of improving the recognition of Construction Engineering in the professional engineering licensure process. As one result of these interactions, David Johnston, Chair of the CI committee was appointed as an external consultant to the NCEES Special Committee on Experience Evaluation. The Special Committee proposed revisions of experience evaluation that are contained in the revised Model Rules of NCEES, which can be downloaded from the NCEES website.
Johnston notes that NCEES was very receptive to the input of the CI Construction Engineering Education Committee. There have been two major changes which should be helpful to construction engineers in evaluation of their experience. Section 230.20.A.11 which previously was stated in the negative—“Experience as a contractor in the execution of design by a professional engineer or in employment considered as that of supervising construction of such work may not be considered as creditable experience.”—has been revised to read parallel to other experience evaluation statements—“Experience in construction, to be creditable, must demonstrate the application of engineering principles.” Appendix A, Suggested Guidelines for Progressive Engineering Experience, lists work experiences that may be useful in guiding, mentoring, and verifying experience of engineer interns and/or intern applicants for the second exam. Most of the example experiences are attainable by engineers pursuing careers in construction, but must be adequately described by the applicant. Each state board determines its own evaluation procedures, but most use the Model Rules as a resource for this purpose.
The CI Construction Engineering Education Committee has also published a Guide to Professional Engineering Licensure for the Construction Engineer. A copy can be obtained by sending an email to johnston@eos.ncsu.edu with the subject line “PE Guide” and a left-justified 3 or 4 line mailing address in the message.
The National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES) recently announced plans to offer a construction module as part of the depth portion of the Civil Principles and Practice of Engineering (PE) exam starting in 2008. Individuals taking the PE exam can also choose from other modules, such as environmental, geotechnical, structural, transportation, and water resources, to take in addition to the breadth section of the exam.
The discussion about the development of a construction module was sparked by the Construction Engineering Education Committee within the American Society of Civil Engineers Construction Institute. This committee, chaired by David Johnston, Ph.D., P.E., came to NCEES to express their concerns over the need for licensing in construction engineering through the PE exam. NCEES began researching the topic through the administration of a survey. The results of this survey showed that a need exists for a construction depth section on the PE exam.
Johnston is also the chair of the NCEES Construction Engineering Exam Subcommittee, which is in the process of developing questions for the new construction depth module. The subcommittee is made up of 27 licensed engineers specializing in construction. More information on the new module will be available in late 2007.
Construction Institute of the American Society of Civil Engineers