Licensure as an Engineering Educator
The board has revised the rules for licensure of Engineering Educators via a waiver of both the FE and the PE examinations. An engineering educator must meet the requirements of §133.25. Board rule §133.25 defines an engineering educator as a person whose current, primary employment is as an engineering educator instructing engineering courses in a recognized institution of higher education in Texas. The following is a summary of the minimum requirements set forth in the Board Rules. Please refer to Board Rules §133.25 and §133.69 for the most up to date information.
1. An applicant who has earned a doctoral degree in engineering from a recognized college or university that offer an EAC/ABET approved undergraduate or master's degree program in a related branch of engineering must have six (6) years of:
a. teaching experience
in an EAC/ABET program, OR
b. other acceptable, creditable engineering experience, OR
c. combination of teaching and acceptable experience.
2. An applicant who has earned a doctoral degree in engineering (non-ABET) or other related field of science or mathematics assessed and approved by the Board must have eight (8) years of:
a. teaching experience
in an EAC/ABET program, OR
b. other acceptable, creditable engineering experience, OR
c. combination of teaching and acceptable experience.
3. Applicants who meet the educational requirements of either (1) or (2) above (see Board Rule §133.25) and who are requesting a waiver of the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam ONLY, and who are requesting permission to take the Principles and Practice (PE) exam may be granted a waiver of the FE exam with no minimum experience requirement.
A formal application under this policy consists of the following:
1. Abbreviated application form;
2. For the faculty approved for promotion or tenure through the Dean of Engineering office level, submit a dossier (comprehensive résumé or vita) prepared for tenure and/or promotion consideration, OR, for tenured faculty, current résumé containing educational experience, engineering courses taught, and description of research and scholarly activities in lieu of the Supplementary Experience Record;
3. Reference statements or letters from currently licensed professional engineers (per the notes below). Three (3) reference letters are needed for a standard application. Five (5) reference letters are needed for a request for a waiver of examinations;
4. College/ university transcripts (can be part of information in dossier);
5. Answer sheet for Texas Ethics of Engineering Examination.
6. The application fee is $75.
7. Request for waiver of the Fundamentals of Engineering and/or Principles and Practices examination(s) (on the application form) if applicable.
8. Effective January 1, 2014, an applicant for professional engineer licensure in Texas must submit a legible set of fingerprints to the Texas Department of Public Safety (TXDPS) for the purpose of obtaining criminal history record information from the TXDPS and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. See more information at https://pels.texas.gov/recordcheck.html.
The policy statement does not prohibit an engineering educator from applying for licensure under the standard application process.
The Board assumes that those educators recommended for licensure are proficient in the English language since they are approved to teach ABET accredited institutions. The Board will automatically waive any Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or other proof of proficiency requirements.
The Board does not presume to judge the academic qualifications of engineering educators and relies on the deans of the engineering colleges to assess qualifications to teach engineering subjects. If any questions concerning qualifications of an applicant arise, the Board will request the assistance of the respective dean and the references to clarify the application.
Per the Act, applicants must supply 3 references from licensed professional engineers. These P.E.s do not necessarily have worked with or supervised the engineering educator but need to be familiar with the applicant's character and engineering abilities. For exam waivers, 5 licensed professional engineer references are required. The reference should be familiar with the submitted dossier and fill out the reference statement based on review of the dossier. A reference may also submit a letter of recommendation that, at a minimum, testifies to the credentials and abilities of the educator. The reference statements can be from colleagues within the department, college, or university; from colleagues from another university; or professional engineers from outside academia.
An application form has been drafted to apply to be a Licensed Engineering Educator. Click Here to Go to Forms
For more information regarding this program or to be notified as the program progresses, email our agency at: info@engineers.texas.gov