News / Insights

The issue of higher education requirements for engineering licensure candidates continues to be the focus of the Council's deliberations as we move toward this spring's zone meetings. The Engineering Education Task Force has completed an analysis of the impacts of the master's or equivalent requirement and will be distributing this document to attendees of the zone meetings.

This document is a response to the resolution passed by the Council at last year's Annual Meeting which asks the task force to analyze the professional, economic, educational, and regulatory impacts of the master's or equivalent requirement set to go into effect in 2020. It also provides a list of several alternatives to the requirement that do not involve raising the minimum level of academic coursework.

The Council's decision to introduce stricter education requirements has a long history of deliberation. Various committees and task forces have been involved in the consideration of the education requirements for licensure going back to 2001. In 2006, NCEES delegates passed a motion to draft Model Law language requiring candidates to complete 30 academic credits beyond an accredited bachelor's degree (or earn a master's degree) as a prerequisite for engineering licensure. Since then, members of the Council have wrestled with the specifics involved in implementing this requirement at the state level; they concluded that a stronger emphasis on requiring a master's degree or its equivalent would be more practical for licensure candidates and the licensing boards.

While the Council is nearly unanimous in its desire to strengthen the education requirements for engineering licensure, many within the organization and throughout the engineering profession have expressed concern with the specifics of the master's or equivalent requirement. The Engineering Education Task Force exists to address these concerns through consensus-building and consideration of many opinions from across the engineering community. I encourage everyone with a stake in these decisions to remain aware of the ongoing developments regarding this requirement.


Jerry T. Carter
NCEES Executive Director

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