Action | Develop regulations for a mandatory continuing education requirement for architect, professional engineer, and land surveyor licenses. |
Stage | NOIRA |
Comment Period | Ended on 3/21/2007 |
7 comments
Having been a Professional Engineeer for some 45 years I comment only with regard to the practice of engineering. As a professional I feel it is my responsibility to maintain a current awareness of engineering tools and techniques and I have endeavored to do so. However, I realize there are those who speak of "finishing my education" when they get a bachelors degree in engineering. Thus a mandatory program is necessary. Such a program is likely to be resisted by engineers who have been in practice for many years, but we are the ones who need it most. With regard to the cost, 16 hours of continuing education every two years is only one day a year. That is a minimum effort to stay abreast of changes and advances in engineering. Even a small practice should be able to make such an investment in order to stay competitive. My biggest concern about the proposed regulation is who offers the training, is the content relevant and timely and who certifies the value of the training to the practicing engineer. Some groups see a business opportunity to offer "continuing education" that is of limited value. I do not believe that faculty of engineering colleges are necessarily the best to offer continuing education.
I have been a licensed professional engineer in the
A military career requires frequent moves, often to sites remote from universities or professional training centers. While I am in
Prior to coming on active duty, I worked as a chemical engineer for a major defense contractor in
Given the large number of military, Federal, and Federal contractor engineers working and registered in
The Notice Summary of Significant Changes in Virginia Board for Architects, Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors, Certified Interior Designers and Landscape Architects Regulations clearly states it is the responsibility of the regulant of the board to be up to date with the latest changes to DPOR regulations. It appears by the amount of responses nearing the end of the comment period this is not the case. Certainly more than four professional engineers, including myself, in the state of
With respect to
Jan Harris, PE
It is a given that the board must adopt some continuing education regulations. I have been meeting continuing education requirements in several states and have found only one of these states to have requirements that are difficult to meet:
Jan Harris, PE
Virginia Beach, VA
I estimate the direct annual cost of a business providing continuing education to
I urge the board to adopt regulations along the lines of North
The
Jan Harris, PE
Virginea Beach, VA