PE Continuing Education

Many CAD resellers offer "after hours" classes to introduce you to their products. These classes may be free. The VAR I work with offers free classes about once a month, including Cosmos (FEA).

"ms" wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@comcast.com:
I doubt CAD would count as further education for a PE.
And pushbutton FEA certainly wouldn't.
Cheers
Greg Locock

Depends on the state probably, but CAD can count if job-related. Its an engineering skill like many others. Cosmos has different versions--I was not thinking of the pushbutton variety you refer to (Cosmosworks Express).
FWIW, to fulfill continuing education requirements for PE I have taken project management courses, FEA (Algor), and risk analysis training, as well as CAD training (Solidworks & ProE).
Maybe another source of online training for the original poster could be National Instruments or Matlab courses. Kinda depends on your engineering discipline.

The free after hours courses probably wouldn't count because of the requirements for the training. The training has to have the following:
1. A clear objective 2. Be related to the practice of engineering 3. Have an exam (that is retained) that is graded to show that some learning has happened.

CONVERSION TABLE
One college semester hour................................. 45 PDH One college quarter hour................................... 30 PDH One continuing education unit (CEU)................... 10 PDH One contact hour of teaching for first time ............ 2 PDH Each published paper, article or book................... 10 PDH Each patent.................................................... 10 PDH

Typically, each licensee is required to obtain 15 (30 if biennial) PDH units during the renewal period year.

Am I missing something here? I am a PE licensed in Connecticut. I was not aware of any continuing education requirement (not that it is a bad idea)
M Walter

The continuing education requirement depends on the state. Here is the requirement for Utah, as a reference. By the way, it says nothing about requiring an exam except for Internet and home study programs.
R156-22-304. Continuing Education for Professional Engineers, Professional Structural Engineers and
Professional Land Surveyors.
In accordance with Subsection 58-22-303(2) and Section 58-22-304, the qualifying continuing professional
education standards for professional engineers, professional structural engineers and professional land surveyors are established as follows:
(1) During each two year period ending on December 31 of each even numbered year, a licensed professional engineer, professional structural engineer and professional land surveyor shall be required to complete not less than 24 hours of qualified professional education directly related to the licensee's professional practice.
(2) The required number of hours of professional education for an individual who first becomes licensed during the two year period shall be decreased in a pro-rata amount equal to any part of that two year period preceding the date on which that individual first became licensed.
(3) Qualified continuing professional education under this section shall:
(a) have an identifiable clear statement of purpose and defined objective for the educational program directly related to the practice of a professional engineer, professional structural engineer, or professional land surveyor;
(b) be relevant to the licensee's professional practice;
(c) be presented in a competent, well organized and sequential manner consistent with the stated purpose and objective of the program;
(d) be prepared and presented by individuals who are qualified by education, training and experience; and
(e) have associated with it a competent method of registration of individuals who actually completed the professional education program and records of that registration and completion are available for review.
(4) Credit for qualified continuing professional education shall be recognized in accordance with the following:
(a) unlimited hours shall be recognized for professional education completed in blocks of time of not less than one hour in formally established classroom courses, seminars, or conferences;
(b) a maximum of 12 hours per two year period may be recognized for teaching in a college or university or for teaching qualified continuing professional education courses in the field of professional engineering, professional structural engineering or professional land surveying, provided it is the first time the material has been taught during the preceding 12 months;
(c) a maximum of four hours per two year period may be recognized for preparation of papers, articles, or books directly related to the practice of professional engineering, professional structural engineering or professional land surveying and submitted for publication; and
(d) a maximum of eight hours per two year period may be recognized at the rate of one hour for each hour served on committees or in leadership roles in any state, national or international organization for the development and improvement of the profession of professional engineering, professional structural engineering or professional land surveying but no more than four of the eight hours may be obtained from such activity in any one organization;
(e) unlimited hours may be recognized for continuing education that is provided via Internet or through home study courses provided the course verifies registration and participation in the course by means of a test which demonstrates that the participant has learned the material presented.
(5) A licensee shall be responsible for maintaining records of completed qualified continuing professional education for a period of four years after close of the two year period to which the records pertain. It is the responsibility of the licensee to maintain information with respect to qualified continuing professional education to demonstrate it meets the requirements under this section.
(6) If a licensee exceeds the 24 hours of qualified continuing professional education during the two year period, the licensee may carry forward a maximum of 12 hours of qualified continuing professional education into the next two year period.
(7) A licensee who documents they are engaged in full time activities or is subjected to circumstances which prevent that licensee from meeting the continuing professional education requirements established under this section may be excused from the requirement for a period of up to three years. However, it is the responsibility of the licensee to document the reasons and justify why the requirement could not be met.
(8) Any licensee who fails to timely complete the continuing education required by this rule shall be required to complete double the number of hours missed to be eligible for renewal or reinstatement of licensure.
(9) Any applicant for reinstatement who was not in compliance with the continuing education requirement at the time of the expiration of licensure shall be required to complete 24 hours of continuing education complying with these rules within two years prior to the date of application for reinstatement of licensure.
Hope that helps