SECTION 245:15-3-7. Qualifications for original professional engineer license and engineer intern certification

  To be eligible for consideration for original licensure as a Professional Engineer or certification as an Engineer Intern, an applicant must meet all qualifications as contained within the Statutes and the Rules of the Board. An application for an Engineer Intern certification or Professional Engineer license shall be reviewed by the Board or its designee. Evidence of minimum qualifications is required by the Board in accordance with Title 59, 475.12a. and the following requirements:

(1)   Engineer Intern and Professional Engineer - education requirements for certification or original license:

(A)   Completion of one of the following shall be considered as minimum evidence that the applicant has fulfilled the education requirement for certification as an Engineer Intern or licensure as a Professional Engineer:

(i)   a bachelor's degree in engineering from an EAC/ABET-accredited program, or the equivalent, which may include a bachelor's degree in engineering from a degree program accredited by the Canadian Engineering Accreditation Board (CEAB) or signatories of the Washington Accord, a bachelor's degree in engineering from a program that meets the NCEES Engineering Education Standard, or a bachelor's degree in engineering from a program that, upon evaluation, does not meet the NCEES Engineering Education Standard, but deficiencies outlined in the degree evaluation have been corrected with further education approved by the Board or its designee,

(ii)   a bachelor's degree in a Board approved related science degree program which meets the Board's statutory definition of a related science degree,

(iii)   a master's degree in engineering from an institution that offers EAC/ABET-accredited programs,

(iv)   a master's degree in engineering from an EAC/M-ABET-accredited program, or

(v)   an earned doctoral degree in engineering acceptable to the Board.

(B)   The Board may accept a bachelor's degree in an engineering or engineering technology program if the program is EAC/ETAC ABET accredited within 3 years of the date of the conferred degree. All other degree programs which are not EAC/ETAC ABET accredited at the time of conferment of the degree, but are currently EAC/ETAC ABET accredited, will be considered by board policy.

(2)   Professional Engineer- experience (original license):

(A)   Experience credit may be claimed to the date of the application. Part-time experience shall be pro-rated after a review by the Board or its designee. Experience record is to be continuous from beginning to the date of the application. Experience time shall not exceed elapsed calendar time. Only experience obtained directly within the professional field will be considered as qualifying experience by the Board and must be verified by reference. Experience should be gained under the supervision of a licensed professional engineer or, if not, an explanation shall be made showing why the experience should be considered acceptable. Experience gained under the technical supervision of an unlicensed individual may be considered if the appropriate credentials of the unlicensed supervisor are submitted and approved by the Board or its designee. In evaluating experience that indicates to the Board that the applicant may be competent to practice engineering, the following will be considered:

(i)   Experience must be progressive on engineering projects and must demonstrate an increasing quality and responsibility.

(ii)   Experience must not be obtained in violation of the licensure act.

(iii)   Experience gained in the armed services must be of a character equivalent to that which would have been gained in the civilian sector doing similar work.

(iv)   Sales experience must demonstrate that engineering principles were required and used in gaining the experience.

(v)   Teaching experience must be in engineering or engineering-related courses at a junior-, senior-, or graduate-level in a college or university offering an engineering program of 4 years or more that is approved by the Board.

(vi)   Experience may be gained in engineering research and design projects by members of an engineering faculty, where the program is approved by the Board, or by industry or government employees.

(vii)   Experience in construction must demonstrate the application of engineering principles.

(viii)   Experience should include demonstration of knowledge of engineering mathematics, physical and applied science, properties of materials, and the fundamental principles of engineering design.

(ix)   Experience must include demonstration of the application of engineering principles in the practical solution of engineering problems.

(x)   The board may deem professional experience acquired by applicants outside the United States to be equivalent to the minimum Board requirements established by regulations for professional experience in that jurisdiction.

(B)   Partial experience credit may be given for experience earned prior to receipt of a baccalaureate degree, at the discretion of the Board, if the employment is at least half-time and the work is performed under the supervision of a professional engineer. At the time the experience was gained, the applicant must have passed upper level engineering or related engineering science courses and applied relevant engineering knowledge in the claimed experience. In no case shall the experience credit exceed one half of that required for approved qualifying experience.

(C)   A graduate degree that is used to satisfy education requirements cannot be applied for experience credit toward licensure. To be eligible for experience credit, graduate degrees shall be relevant to the applicant's area of professional practice. Experience credit for a graduate degree cannot be earned concurrently with work experience credit. Concurrent time spent in engineering work while attending school will be credited either as education experience or work experience but not both.

(D)   Applicants shall submit a minimum of five (5) acceptable references, three (3) of whom shall be Professional Engineers having personal knowledge of the applicant's engineering experience, none of whom may be current members of the Board or immediate family members. References must verify the periods of qualifying experience since the beginning of the history, leaving no gaps in dates. The Board shall not give credit for engineering experience that has not been verified by one or more references.

(E)   Applicants may apply for a waiver of the NCEES Fundamentals of Engineering examination by showing proof of a minimum of fifteen (15) years of acceptable progressive engineering experience following the date of the conferred degree qualifying the applicant for licensure. The required experience shall be verified by reference, and may not be self-verified. Experience earned prior to the conferred qualifying degree shall not be considered in the years of required experience. All elements of the application shall be evaluated by the Board when considering application for a waiver of the exam, including but not limited to reference responses, disciplinary actions and criminal history.

(F)   An applicant with a Board-approved doctoral degree in engineering shall be required to obtain two (2) years of experience credit after the doctoral degree is conferred, whether or not an M.S. degree was also conferred, to qualify for licensure.

(G)   An applicant with an education path described in OAC 245:15-3-7(1)(A)(i) or (1)(A)(ii), who further obtains a master's degree in engineering from an institution that offers EAC/ABET-accredited programs or CEAB-accredited programs, shall be required to obtain three (3) years of experience following the master's degree to qualify for licensure. Under the same conditions, if a Board-approved doctoral degree is conferred, the applicant shall be required to obtain two (2) years of experience following the Ph.D. in engineering.

(H)   An applicant with a bachelor's degree in engineering from a program that is a signatory of the Washington Accord shall obtain experience per Board policy and may be required to obtain a degree evaluation from a Board-approved evaluation service to qualify for licensure.

(I)   Non-U.S., non-EAC/ABET-accredited degrees, non-CEAB-accredited degrees which are not approved by the Board may be considered only following a degree evaluation obtained through a degree evaluation service approved by the Board. If the degree evaluation states that the degree is equivalent to the NCEES Education Standard, then four (4) years of experience will be required following the conferred degree. If the degree does not meet the NCEES Education Standard and deficiencies outlined in the degree evaluation are corrected by further education as approved by the Board, then four (4) years of experience will be required following the conferred degree to qualify for licensure. If the applicant described in this paragraph obtains a master's degree in engineering from an institution that offers EAC/ABET-accredited programs or CEAB-accredited programs, they may be required to obtain three (3) years of experience credit following the master's degree to qualify for licensure. Under the same conditions, if a Board-approved doctoral degree is conferred, the applicant shall be required to obtain two (2) years of experience following the Ph.D. in engineering to qualify for licensure.

(J)   Non-U.S., non-EAC/ABET-accredited degrees or non-CEAB-accredited degrees which are not approved by the Board which upon evaluation are not deemed equivalent to the NCEES Education Standard shall be considered at a maximum equivalent to a related science degree.

(K)   No examination shall be administered following July 1, 2020, for applicants who qualified prior to July 1, 2016 with a non-accredited technology degree or non-related science degree for licensure as a Professional Engineer.

(3)   Professional Engineer - examination requirements (original license): When the education requirements of the Statutes and of this Chapter are met, the applicant shall apply to NCEES to take and pass the Fundamentals of Engineering Examination and the Principals and Practice of Engineering Examination. Once these examinations are successfully completed and requisite qualifying experience is complete, the applicant shall apply to the Board for approval and may be, required to pass an examination covering the laws, rules, procedures and practices pertaining to engineering in the state of Oklahoma, prior to being licensed as a Professional Engineer.

[Source: Added at 10 Ok Reg 2211, eff 6-11-93; Amended at 18 Ok Reg 3023, eff 7-12-01; Amended at 19 Ok Reg 2029, eff 7-11-02; Amended at 20 Ok Reg 1568, eff 7-11-03; Amended at 23 Ok Reg 896, eff 5-11-06; Amended at 26 Ok Reg 1035, eff 5-11-09; Amended at 27 Ok Reg 1150, eff 5-27-10; Amended at 30 Ok Reg 1928, eff 7-25-13; Amended at 35 Ok Reg 1231, eff 9-14-18; Amended at 37 Ok Reg 1232, eff 11-1-20]