How much does a P.E. license increase your pay normally?

[SeductivePig]

I started an entry level electrical engineering position in the power industry, working as an analyst for arc flash/protective device coordination/short circuit studies, and an all around power engineer. I get 61k right now + a bonus (not sure how much at all), and plan to get my P.E. license within 4-5 years. How much of a bump do people normally get for that? Is it small, like 2-3k, or something big like 10-15k?

I was talking to an accountant friend and he got a 14k raise for getting his CPA certification.. would be nice if P.E's gave that.

I'm well aware of the extra responsibility a P.E. has, btw. I'm determined to get it.

 

[deadlyapp]

It depends on whether or not you actually need it. The useful thing about a PE license is that you can go into consulting and make very good money. A lot of companies though don't care much about it because they only really need a single PE to approve drawings and such forth.

For a rough number I'd say around 10k is what other PE's I know have said.

 

[SeductivePig]

It depends on whether or not you actually need it. The useful thing about a PE license is that you can go into consulting and make very good money. A lot of companies though don't care much about it because they only really need a single PE to approve drawings and such forth.

For a rough number I'd say around 10k is what other PE's I know have said.

P.E. is really useful in my field because there's a lot of drawings that get made for electrical schematics and there's only a couple people that have a P.E. in my division.

I already work for a small consulting firm but I don't get paid as much as a consultant. I get paid about 1/3 of what I'm billable for.

 

[rcpratt]

My company doesn't care...no raise just for having your PE.

 

[gorcorps]

Will vary wildly. Some companies will pay you extra even if they don't need a PE because they know you can get a nice bump by going elsewhere. That's assuming you're actually worth keeping of course.

 

[3chordcharlie]

P.E. is really useful in my field because there's a lot of drawings that get made for electrical schematics and there's only a couple people that have a P.E. in my division.

I already work for a small consulting firm but I don't get paid as much as a consultant. I get paid about 1/3 of what I'm billable for.

1/3-1/2 is kinda the range for consulting work, and you need to be pretty marketable, at a fairly high rate to get towards 1/2.

 

[MayorOfAmerica]

I have a colleague who recently got his PE. From what he said, it doesn't factor into pay where we work, but he knew that going in. He did it for the "prestige" I guess. He is an aerospace engineer, for what it is worth.

 

[edro]

My company doesn't care, but they are a manufacturer.
The companies who care are those who do work for the government or utilities.

If you happen to work for one of those, it is more of a requirement than a pay increaser.

 

[SeductivePig]

My company doesn't care, but they are a manufacturer.
The companies who care are those who do work for the government or utilities.

If you happen to work for one of those, it is more of a requirement than a pay increaser.

We do work for pretty much any company, whether thats the navy, utility, or some college or other company

 

[nanobreath]

I got around 6000 (8%) for my P.E. This is in addition to my yearly increase which will come later this year.

How much you get depends primarily on how valuable it is to your field. CPA is basically a necessity in that line of work so the increase is substantial.

The true value of a P.E. is in the employ-ability. You will always be able to find work. On top of that, with a lot of experience consulting can make a lot of money. You have to have the P.E. in order to open your own engineering consulting firm.

 

[CountZero]

Little off topic but in my field (VLSI) I don't know of anyone that is a PE. Is there any field related to VLSI that actually requires a PE? I can imagine medical devices or aeronautics maybe but no idea.

 

[ShawnD1]

Depends if your company needs one or not. If they already have a PE, then they probably won't pay you any more, or the difference would be marginal. You could hunt around a bit and find a company that needs a PE and is willing to pay top dollar.

 

[Ninjahedge]

PE in CE here.

It did not help my pay much, but it did help in getting and keeping a job.

Also, the COMPANY finds it valuable when they can list "X people" as PE's on their corporate resume.

Smaller companies it matters more because you might be the only one that can sign off on a design.

So I say it is definitely worth pursuing.

 

[JEDI]

I started an entry level electrical engineering position in the power industry, working as an analyst for arc flash/protective device coordination/short circuit studies, and an all around power engineer. I get 61k right now + a bonus (not sure how much at all), and plan to get my P.E. license within 4-5 years. How much of a bump do people normally get for that? Is it small, like 2-3k, or something big like 10-15k?

I was talking to an accountant friend and he got a 14k raise for getting his CPA certification.. would be nice if P.E's gave that.

I'm well aware of the extra responsibility a P.E. has, btw. I'm determined to get it.

Paging Engineer.

is he still around?

 

[Imp]

About 20% with the guberment I'm with. I'm in civil though where I hear that a PE is valued more. On the otherhand, most people don't need to design, let alone stamp anything here.

It's not that hard to get in my province (pass an ethics/law test and report experience, bend over, pay fees), so maybe it's less unique.

I'm studying for the ethics/law test now, and should be officially licensed within a year or two. No shit chance in hell I'll stamp anything though since most of my experience qualifies, but is actually shit and didn't help me learn or gain confidence in designing things.

 

[lupi]

None unless required for the position then built into the salary.

 

[supastar1568]

None. I'm a mechanical. I had just finished passing the EIT test my senior year and mentioned it on my job interview.

I got blank stares...

Like mentioned before, it seems as a civil engineer there is definitely value. I only took it cause the test site was at my school and therefore we got full reimbursement.

 

[xBiffx]

Zero more for a PE for ChE. Partially because the test is about 40 years out of date or at least it was back when I took it. PE really is worthless for many a job out there.

 

[Dr. Zaus]

Even if you are not directly rewarded, if others in the market reward it then it will increase your value and income over time (provided a few other fundamental assumptions)

 

[gorcorps]

None. I'm a mechanical. I had just finished passing the EIT test my senior year and mentioned it on my job interview.

I got blank stares...

Like mentioned before, it seems as a civil engineer there is definitely value. I only took it cause the test site was at my school and therefore we got full reimbursement.

A lot of places call it the FE exam, and even then only engineers usually know what you mean. If you were interviewed by HR folks I'm not surprised.

 

[Ninjahedge]

EIT means little.

To those that know it, it only means that you know your basic sciences and that you will be able to take your PE in X years.

It is not something to look at as if it will grant you cash for simply having. As others have said, some are worth more than others (CE > ChE), but having it has NEVER been a bad thing.

Just like people who do not get their degrees and keep calling it "that piece of paper", certification for something more important than knitting usually is a boon.

 

[ShawnD1]

A lot of places call it the FE exam, and even then only engineers usually know what you mean. If you were interviewed by HR folks I'm not surprised.

The 2008 market crash is caused by HR people. Swear to god. Candidate for jobs at major banks walk out of the interview and the HR people look at each other, "what the hell is an amortization period??"

 

[Imp]

The 2008 market crash is caused by HR people. Swear to god. Candidate for jobs at major banks walk out of the interview and the HR people look at each other, "what the hell is an amortization period??"

But at least they have MBAs?

 

[brianmanahan]

no certifications in software because we programmers realize that certifications are pointless

 

[KillerCharlie]

I have a colleague who recently got his PE. From what he said, it doesn't factor into pay where we work, but he knew that going in. He did it for the "prestige" I guess. He is an aerospace engineer, for what it is worth.

I work for Boeing and there is not a single engineer that has a PE. They are completely worthless to us. I don't understand why the stupid thing exists. Shouldn't your degree cover that? Aerospace engineers can design rockets and airplanes without any stupid title, yet civil engineers need one to build a bridge out of concrete and rebar?