The State Registration Board for Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors and Geologists regulates the practice, licensure and registration of engineers, land surveyors and geologists in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in order to safeguard life, health and property and promote the general welfare.
The majority of members in the Pennsylvania Society of Professional Engineers (PSPE) are licensed engineers and for that reason we pay close attention to what is happening at the licensing board.
Contact the State Registration Board directly at:
P.O. Box 2649, Harrisburg, PA 17105-2649
Phone: (717) 783-7049
Fax: (717) 705-5540
Licensing Information
While PSPE is not the licensing board, we pay close attention to what the board is saying since our organization is made up primarily of engineers licensed in Pennsylvania. We learned at the recent meeting:
- Engineers licenses in Pennsylvania are set to expire September 30, 2011. (ref. 1)
- If you have not done so already, begin the process to renew your Pennsylvania Engineer’s License today. (ref. 2)
- The renewal form will ask if you have obtained 24 hours of continuing education.
- If you have met this requirement, indicate that you have done so.
- If you have NOT met the 24 PDH requirement indicate that you have not.
- The Registration Board for Engineers, Land Surveyors and Geologists will send you additional information on how to proceed.
- You may be eligible to receive a six month extension to complete the required 24 Professional Development Hours.
- Please note that there may be a delay in response time to phone calls and e-mails.
- The Pennsylvania State Registration Board for Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors and Geologists’ office has been inundated with questions.
2. RENEWAL FORM: http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/gateway/
PTARGS_0_185581_1091814_0_0_18/Eng%20Renewal%20Application%20-%20PE.pdf
http://www.pspe.org/education/continuing-education/
Continuing Education Requirements for Engineers Licensed in Pennsylvania
Frequently Asked Questions
Many questions are being asked about Pennsylvania’s continuing education requirements for professional engineers, land surveyors and geologists. Following is a list of frequently asked questions with answers that attempt to frame the issue.
Q. When will Professional Development Hours (PDH) be required to renew my license?
A. Licensees will be required to have met the requirement for 24 Professional Development Hours (PDH) when license renewal occurs on September 30, 2011. PDH earned from October 1, 2009 through September 30, 2011 will qualify.
Q. When can I start taking courses and collecting PDH?
A. PDH earned between October 1, 2009 and September 30, 2011 will qualify for the requirement during the current licensing cycle.
Q. What courses will qualify?
A. It is relatively safe to say that any course that relates to a licensee’s practice of engineering will qualify. Courses on marketing, office management, general business courses or practice building are specifically excluded and will not qualify. In other words, the licensee is responsible to take courses that relate to his or her respective engineering practice. In the event that a course is questionable, the Registration Board has final authority. Courses in ethics and law do qualify.
Q. Can I get a list of approved courses?
A. There is no process that allows for preapproval of courses or providers in Pennsylvania so no pre-approved course list exists.
Any provider offering “Pennsylvania preapproved” courses for engineers should be viewed skeptically. (New York State DOES require courses to be pre-approved. PSPE is an approved evaluator for NY courses.)
Q. Can the Pennsylvania State Registration Board challenge my determination that a course relates to my professional practice?
A. Yes. The Registration Board makes the final determination of whether or not a course qualifies.
Q. Will membership or holding an office in my technical society count?
A. No
Q. Will I get credit for teaching a course?
A. Yes and no.
Full time faculty may not use teaching credit for courses taught at their employing institutions.
If you teach a course outside your full time employing institution, instructing a course qualifies for double the PDH value of taking the course.
Those PDH can only be earned the first time the course is taught.
Q. I work in a very advanced, technical field. The sessions I have seen promoted to date are simplistic. Where can I find courses that will be valuable to me?
A. In addition to courses offered by engineering professional and technical societies, colleges and universities are good sources. Courses in ethics are also acceptable for continuing education and can be found at www.nspe.org.
Q. Can I take courses online?
A. Yes.
Q. Do the courses have to be college level?
A. No
Q. If I hold more than one type of license issued by the Registration Board, must I take separate courses for each (e.g. 24 PDHs for engineering and an additional 24 PDHs for land surveying)?
A. As long as a course relates to your professional practice in both fields, the PDH may apply to both license renewals.
Q. What documentation must I have to prove to the Board that I met the continuing education requirement?
A. Licensees will be required to keep proof of completion of continuing education for 5 years. Required records shall include all of the following:
- A log showing the type of activity claimed, sponsoring organization, location, duration, instructor’s or speaker’s name and PDH credits earned.
- Attendance verification records in the form of completion certificates or other documents supporting evidence of attendance.2
Reference:
- Title 49: Chapter 37. Final annex. Revised August 16, 2010.
- HB 975 (Act 25 of 2010)
Phone: 717.441.6051 
Fax: 717.236.2046