Licensure as a civil engineer requires both years of field experience plus a degree in Civil Engineering.
Can still do it with only OJT in Washington state. No degree required. Not sure if you would pass the test without the book learning, however.
No degree requirement in NY or PA either.?ÿ It is surprising how many people don't realize that many states don't have a degree requirement to become a PE.?ÿ
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When AI can look at various evidence and determine a boundary then we might be in trouble, but I really don't see that happening, ever.
I wonder if I can complete the requirements without a degree to become a Pennsylvania land surveyor and then be eligible for reciprocity in other states. What most other states allow me to take the exam or obtain reciprocity through being already licensed in PA? I have a Master's Degree in an unrelated field. I am in the Lehigh Valley, PA area. How many hours per week would a typical internship be? I was a government zoning administrator and subdivision agent previously and worked with surveyors. This is where I gained interest. How many hours per day to hours in the office do you typically spend? I already have experience reviewing and approving plats. I have also done some deed research in the past.?ÿ
The surveyors that I worked with were very intelligent, honest, and hard working. I would really enjoy a career that gets me outdoors and allows me to make an honest living while dealing with likeminded people.?ÿ
@jd00 Most states have "comity" provisions, not reciprocity. You still have to fulfill the requirements of the later state, but your experience and examinations will count. In most states you will have to take and pass the 2-hour state specific portion of the PS exam in order to be licensed.
@jd00?ÿ
What I understand is that many states look at the date when you first got licensed in another state, what their own requirements were, as far as whether they required a degree or not at that time.?ÿ So, obtaining your license in PA now without a degree wouldn't change anything regarding the states that currently require one.
@jph?ÿ
When I applied by comity in AK they used the date for when I got my OR license for the requirements, but they also said that if I had waited another (some not very long timeframe) to apply then the requirements were changing and a full Bachelors degree would have been required. I don't know how many other states had similar rules, that was the first time I had heard of it.
On a side note about reciprocity, many, many moons ago when dad got his NY license he was allowed to be licensed in PA, NJ and CT(?) by reciprocity, but I don't know if those arrangements are still in place.
I remember someone telling me that NJ a few years ago allowed anyone who met their LS requirements and was licensed in another state, could apply and receive his NJ LS without having to sit for the exam.?ÿ
Maybe someone else here could confirm that, or maybe it's just BS, or my faulty memory
@jph?ÿ
IMO it would make sense for NY & NJ to have reciprocity, since I believe they most likely are very similar in their laws. The same might hold for the other surrounding colonial states (not necessarily all 13), but that might be as far as it goes. I couldn't see reciprocity between colonial and USRS states. I remember some of those many, many moons ago as a budding surveyor in NY, reading some of the articles in POB (remember that?) about some of the court cases around the country and wondering "What the heck is this S##, T##, R## stuff and what's it mean?."
I agree that the actual surveying in the colonial states is similar.?ÿ The subdivision and administrative rules are the things that vary.
Only for surveying, not for engineering.?ÿ There will still be an experience-only route for engineers in NY as far as I know.
@jph?ÿ
There was a short period of time where the state-specific exam requirement lapsed.?ÿ They pretty quickly reinstated it.?ÿ It didn't have anything to do with having a survey license in another state.?ÿ But I suppose if you had a license in another state, and you met all their education and experience requirements, then yes, you could apply for licensure and not have to take the state-specific exam.?ÿ
It was an oversight, not by design.
@jd00?ÿ
Like others have indicated, you will have to get an ABET bachelor in surveying to get licensed in NJ (if it isn't ABET-accredited then they need to "evaluate it".)?ÿ If you have experience already, you can apply for licensure in NY.?ÿ But, as someone else said, they are changing the educational requirements in NY, so I would apply sooner than later.
In PA they have an internship requirement, so you will need to pass the FS exam, and apply for an LSIT designation, then gain 4 years of experience under a PLS before getting your license.?ÿ So, I would get on that sooner than later, even if you have a?ÿ degree you will need to meet that requirement as far as I know.
Good Luck.
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