Professional Engineering

Get Licensed in Minnesota

Seeking initial licensure as a professional engineer?
Find below information on the education, examination, experience requirements, as well as application details and forms.

Already licensed in another state?
See the sidebar "Licensure by Comity/EEE (Reciprocal Licensure)."

For general application information relevant to all professions, see Get Licensed.

Initial Licensure

What's My Path to an EIT Certificate?

Board rules allow those who

  • hold an EAC-ABET accredited bachelors degree (or who are within 32 semester credits of holding such a degree), OR
  • hold an EAC-ABET accredited graduate degree (or have earned 24 semester credits toward such a degree)

to directly register with NCEES to sit for the FE (no need to first apply to the Board for authorization to sit).

Since not everyone fits that description—and as a resource to all applicants—the Board has created a visual representation of the paths to the FE and through to EIT certification.

EIT Paths graphic

Click the graphic to view it enlarged or to download it as a PDF. Be sure to also read the "Education Overview" and "Examination Overview" sections below for more specifics.

 

Education Overview

In general, applicants for the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) Exam or the Principles and Practice of Engineering (PE) Exam must hold an EAC-ABET accredited engineering degree or its equivalent. Those attending but not yet graduated from an EAC-ABET accredited engineering program may sit early for the FE Exam when the requirements in MN Rule 1800.2500 Subp. 2 are met.

Find an EAC-ABET-Accredited Degree Program

If your degree is not EAC-ABET accredited, you will need to have your education evaluated. You must use one of the two evaluation companies listed below. Request a Subject Analysis Evaluation. This evaluation type is required; other evaluation types will not be accepted. The original evaluation report must be sent directly from the evaluation service to the Minnesota Board, either by US mail or electronically.

Foreign or US transcripts:
NCEES Credentials Evaluation
Foreign transcripts only:
Educational Credential Evaluators (ECE)

For details on the education requirements, see MN Rule 1800.2500.

 

Examination Overview

In most instances, applicants must first pass the FE Exam and then the PE Exam in order to be considered for licensure (although the FE Exam can be waived under certain conditions—see MN Rule 1800.2800). Both exams are administered by the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES).

Fundamentals of ENGINEERING Exam

Application Process

To determine how to sit for the FE, read the education description below that matches your situation. (If you have not already read the Education Overview section above, please do so first.)

Situation 1:

  • EAC-ABET accredited bachelors degree (or within 32 semester credits of graduation with such a degree) or EAC-ABET accredited graduate degree (or have earned 24 semester credits towards such a degree): Register directly with NCEES.
    Start with NCEES: Register for FE
    Once you successfully pass the exam and complete your degree, return to the Minnesota Board if you want to apply for an Engineer-in-Training (EIT) Certificate. Only those who specified Minnesota as their jurisdiction when they sat for the exam are eligible. Note that the EIT designation is not in itself a requirement for licensure.
    Engineer-in-Training (EIT) ONLINE Application

Situation 2:

  • Non-EAC-ABET accredited degree (including graduate degree in a discipline where the bachelors degree in same discipline is EAC-ABET accredited) or foreign degree: You must first apply to the Board for approval to register with NCEES for the FE as a Minnesota candidate. Use the FE application packet (button below).
     Start with Board: Apply for FE
    (Exam Application Form)

    Once the Board receives both confirmation of your having passed the FE exam and a copy of your final official transcript—as long as it arrives within one year of the date of your application to the Board to sit for the FE—the Board will issue your EIT Certificate. No other action or application is required. However, if your transcripts are not received as indicated, then you will need to apply for your EIT (see link to the online application above), if you wish to hold this optional (not a requirement of licensure) EIT designation.

Appli­cation Deadlines

The FE Exam is administered year-round.

  • For those who must first apply to the Board before registering for the exam: You may apply at any time. Once approved, if you do not take the exam within three years of your application date or you fail the exam, you must reapply to the Board.
  • NCEES exam registration: You may register at any time. Once registered, you have one year to schedule your exam before your authorization by NCEES to sit for the exam is forfeited. Testing day/site reservations through NCEES are on a first-come, first-served basis and are restricted by seat availability at each test center.

Appli­cation/Examination Costs

Board:

  • FE Application: $25. This fee includes issuance of your EIT certificate, once earned, if  transcripts are provided before application expiration.
  • EIT Certificate Application (for those who registered for the FE directly with NCEES or whose FE application expired after passing but before submitting final transcripts): $25

NCEES: With each exam registration, you pay an examination fee. This fee is set by and paid to NCEES.

 

Principles and Practice of Engineering (PE) Exam

Application Process

If you wish to sit for any discipline of the PE exam as a Minnesota candidate, you must first meet the Board's education and examination requirements, then apply to the Board and obtain approval to sit before you register with NCEES (MN Rule 1800.2900 Subp. 5). PE exam applicants may simultaneously submit evidence of meeting the experience requirements that are necessary for eventual licensure or submit that evidence later. See the Experience section below for more details.

Currently, many PE disciplines are paper-based exams, but NCEES is transitioning each year more exams from paper based to computer based (CBT). Some CBT exams are administered year round. Others are offered one day in October each year. See the NCEES website for details.

See the Instructions Overview for more information on how to apply online.

 Principles & Practice of Engineering (PE) Exam Online Application

NOTE: Minnesota is not a discipline-specific state. Those applying to sit for any discipline of the PE Exam, including Structural, should use this online application.


Appli­cation Deadlines
  • For single-day exams (paper-based or CBT), your application is for the specific exam administration that is open at the time of your application (see deadlines below) and expires with that exam administration.
  • For year-round CBT exams, once the Board approves your application, you have three years in which to register with NCEES and take the exam before your application to the Board expires. (Note, however, that NCEES registrations expire after one year.) If your application expires or you fail the exam or are a "no show," you must reapply to the Board before you can re-register for another exam administration.

IMPORTANT! If you do not submit your experience references along with your PE application, note that you have just three years from your application date to do so, or your application will expire and you will need to reapply. If you fail the PE exam, you will also need to reapply.

CBT exam seats and locations are first-come, first-served. You are advised to apply to the Board as early as possible so that you can then register through NCEES for your preferred test date and location.

See the table below for general deadlines.

PE Exam Date MN Board PE Appli­cation Dead­line NCEES PE Exam Regis­tration Dead­line
October 2024 (Single-Date Exams)July 29, 20241 business day before exam date

Appli­cation/Examination Costs

Board Application Fee: $75. This fee is to determine if you meet the requirements to sit for the exam (and, once you pass the exam and submit your experience, are eligible for licensure). Note: If applying for paper-based or CBT single-day exams, the fee covers only the particular exam administration that is open at the time of your application (see deadlines above).

NCEES Examination Fee: This fee is set by and paid to NCEES with each exam registration.

 

Experience Overview

When you apply for the PE Exam, you may provide evidence that you meet the qualifying experience requirements or defer providing that information until later in your application process.

IMPORTANT! If the Board approves you to sit early (prior to providing your experience) for the PE exam, keep in mind you have just three years from your original application date to submit evidence of meeting the experience requirements, or your application will expire and you will need to reapply to be considered for licensure.

Qualifying experience consists of varied, progressive, nonrepetitive, practical experience at engineering work, developing the ability to apply the theoretical knowledge gained during academic training in making sound judgments in solving engineering problems. See MN Rule 1800.2500, Subp. 4 and MN Rule 1800.2805 for full details.

How much experience you need depends upon the type of education you earned. See MN Rule 1800.2500 Subp. 4 for details. Your supervisor does not need to be a licensed engineer in order to sign off on your experience.

Complete the “Experience” Section of the online application.

  • If selecting the NCEES "PE/PS Exam Docs" option for providing your experience, be sure to request via your MyNCEES account that "PE/PS Exam Docs" be sent to Minnesota.
  • If not using the MyNCEES option, you must download the customized Experience References Forms created in the "Documents" section of the online application and send the relevant copy to the appropriate supervisor (be sure to include the instructions page). The supervisor must complete the "Supervisor" portion of the form and send it directly to the Board (it cannot be sent by the applicant). An example of a completed Experience Reference Form is in the Additional Resources section.

If you applied using a paper application and still need blank copies of the Experience Reference Forms, see the Legacy Copy: PE Experience in the Additional Resources section.

 

Next Steps After the Exams

Need to Retake an Exam?

FE applicants with an EAC-ABET accredited degree: Simply re-register with NCEES for the FE (even if you originally applied through the Board).

All other FE and all PE applicants: See the relevant exam application  for how to reapply.

 

After Passing the FE Exam

To receive an EIT certificate, the Board must receive:

To determine how to provide that information to the Board, refer back to the "Application Process" under "Fundamentals Exam" in the Examination Overview section above.

Once you pass the FE, you can begin gaining the experience required for licensure and/or apply to sit for the PE Exam.

 

After Passing the PE Exam

The Board will notify you by mail once you pass the PE Exam. If you have not already done so, submit your experience by one of the two means described above. You have just three years from your original application date to submit them or you will need to reapply as an EEE applicant. See MN Rule 1800.2900 Subp. 7.

Once you have submitted your experience and the Board has determined that you met the requirements, you will be instructed by mail on how to apply for your license. The license fee is $120.

Note: You are not licensed and cannot practice or hold out as licensed until the Board issues your license.

Regardless of when obtained, your license expires June 30th of every even-numbered year.

 

Additional Resources

 

Stay Connected

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