Most U.S. licensing boards require professional engineers to complete continuing education before each license renewal. The hours are usually counted in professional development hours, or PDHs. NCEES publishes a model framework, called continuing professional competency, that many boards draw on, but each board writes its own rule. This guide explains the model and then shows how two state boards apply it.

The NCEES model: 15 PDHs per year

Section 240.30 of the NCEES Model Rules sets out the model requirement. The version NCEES posts on its website, dated August 2016, calls for 15 PDHs per annual renewal period, 30 per two-year period or 45 per three-year period. At least 1 PDH in every 15 has to cover professional engineering or surveying ethics, or topics that improve business practice or otherwise advance professional skills.

The Model Rules define one PDH as one nominal contact hour of instruction or presentation. They convert other units this way:

  • One college semester hour equals 45 PDHs, and one quarter hour equals 30 PDHs.
  • One continuing education unit (CEU) equals 10 PDHs.
  • Teaching a qualifying course earns twice the PDHs, but only for the first time it is offered, and full-time faculty cannot claim credit for their regular duties.
  • A peer-reviewed paper or book in the licensee's area of practice earns 10 PDHs, and other published papers or articles earn 5.
  • Each patent earns 10 PDHs.
  • Active participation in a professional or technical society earns 2 PDHs per organization, counted only after each year of service as an officer or committee member.
  • Outreach to K-12 or college students about licensure or the profession earns 1 PDH per hour, up to 3.

Qualifying formats include college courses, short courses, webinars, self-study and distance programs, seminars and conference sessions. Regular job duties do not count.

Carryover, records and exemptions

Under the Model Rules, a licensee who earns more than the annual requirement may carry up to 15 PDHs into the next renewal period. Licensees keep their own records: a log listing each activity, the sponsor, location, duration, instructor or speaker and PDHs earned, plus completion certificates or other proof of attendance. The model also exempts new licensees from their first renewal period and exempts licensees on extended active military duty, and it allows boards to grant extensions for illness or other hardship.

NCEES also maintains a separate CPC Standard, updated in August 2024, that it encourages boards to accept as an alternative. It requires 15 PDHs per calendar year with no carryover, including at least 1 PDH in ethics. The point is mobility: an engineer licensed in several states can meet one uniform calendar-year standard where boards allow it.

Texas: annual hours and a Texas-specific topic

The Texas Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors requires 15 hours of continuing education by each annual renewal date. At least 1 hour has to cover the Texas Engineering Practice Act and Board rules or ethics, and that hour has to be earned each year. Up to 14 hours of other approved continuing education may be carried over from the previous year. Up to five hours of self-directed study on a practice-related topic can count, with documentation. After renewal, the board audits a percentage of licensees, who then provide certificates and logs.

Florida: 18 hours every two years, no carryover

The Florida Board of Professional Engineers requires 18 hours of continuing education every two years. The breakdown is fixed: 1 hour on Florida laws and rules from a board-approved provider, 1 hour on professional ethics, 4 hours related to the licensee's area of practice and 12 hours on other engineering topics. Hours earned for another state's license can count toward the total, except the Florida laws and rules hour. Florida allows no carryover between periods. Licensees report through the NCEES CPC Tracking system and keep records for four years from the completion date.

Practical steps for every renewal

  • Read the rule of each board where you hold a license. The two examples above differ on period length, required topics and carryover.
  • Keep a running log and certificates as you go, since boards audit after renewal.
  • Check whether a board accepts the NCEES CPC Standard before relying on it.
  • Count ethics or state-specific hours first, because they usually cannot be carried forward.

Continuing education rules change through board rulemaking, so the board's own page is the reference to check before each renewal.

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