Professional Engineer (PE) License
The PE license is granted by state licensing boards to engineers who meet education, exam, and experience requirements, and it allows them to take legal responsibility for engineering work. NCEES writes and administers the Principles and Practice of Engineering (PE) exam used by boards across the country.
Issued by National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES) · Official page
Who can apply
- Under the NCEES Model Law, typical requirements are a degree from an EAC/ABET accredited engineering bachelor's program (or an equivalent qualifying degree), passing the FE exam, and four years of progressive engineering experience after the qualifying degree.
- Becoming an engineer intern (EI/EIT) under the Model Law requires a qualifying engineering degree and passing the FE exam.
- The Model Law allows reduced experience with graduate degrees (for example three years with a qualifying master's) and longer experience for engineering technology degrees.
- NCEES states the PE exam is designed for engineers with at least four years of post college work experience.
- Actual requirements are set by each state board, which may also require a jurisdiction specific exam.
Exam
- Exam
- Principles and Practice of Engineering (PE) exam
- Format
- Computer based test (CBT) at NCEES approved Pearson test centers; more than 20 discipline exams
- Questions
- Data unavailable
- Time
- Varies by discipline; for example, PE Civil and PE Mechanical are 8 hours of exam time within a 9 hour appointment
PE Civil and PE Mechanical have 80 questions and are offered year round. PE Electrical and Computer: Power has 80 questions and is offered year round, while the Computer Engineering and the Electronics, Controls, and Communications exams have 85 questions and are given one day per year. PE Structural uses separate breadth and depth sections.
Official fees
| Fee | Amount | Notes | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE exam fee (paid to NCEES), most disciplines | $400 | Stated on the PE Civil, PE Mechanical, and PE Electrical and Computer pages. State boards may charge separate application or licensing fees. | Official page |
| PE Structural exam fee, per breadth or depth section | $350 | Charged for each breadth and depth section. | Official page |
| Cancellation processing fee | $50 | Deducted from refunds for eligible cancellations. | Official page |
Only fees published by the issuer or regulator are listed. Blank amounts mean no official figure was available to verify.
Renewal and continuing education
- Cycle
- Data unavailable
- Requirement
- License renewal periods and continuing education requirements are set by each state licensing board.
Timeline
Under the NCEES Model Law, licensure typically requires four years of progressive engineering experience after a qualifying bachelor's degree, in addition to passing the FE and PE exams.
State rules
Licenses are issued by individual state and territory boards, which set their own education, experience, exam, application fee, and renewal requirements. NCEES directs examinees to contact their board for details.
Related careers
| Occupation | National median wage |
|---|---|
| Civil engineers | $100,840 |
| Mechanical engineers | $104,110 |
| Electrical engineers | $120,630 |
Sources
- PE Exam, accessed October 18, 2026
- PE Civil, accessed October 18, 2026
- PE Mechanical, accessed October 18, 2026
- PE Electrical and Computer, accessed October 18, 2026
- PE Structural, accessed October 18, 2026
- NCEES Model Law (August 2025), accessed October 18, 2026
Verification notes
Renewal cycle is null because renewal rules are set by each state board and NCEES does not publish a single cycle. The licensure path is taken from the NCEES Model Law, which is a model that boards adopt at their discretion. Questions is null because it varies by discipline exam.
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