Professional Engineering & Land Surveying

Continuing Education Sponsor Approval

New York State Education Department Approval as a Sponsor of Engineering and/or Land Surveying Continuing Education Programs

This page explains the requirements for becoming an approved sponsor of continuing education for engineering and/or land surveying in New York State. Once you have read the "Standards" below, please complete the application, Form 1-SB PE/LS (pe-ls1sb.pdf, 121K, 3 pages), and send it to the address at the end of the application form along with the supporting materials requested. You must also enclose a check made out to the "NYS Education Department" in the amount of $900. Sponsors are approved for a period of three years. Sponsors are required to keep records on the continuing education programs that they offer. The details concerning the record keeping requirements are included in the "Standards" document.

An organization must comply with the applicable requirements of Section 68.11 and/or 68.12 of the Commissioner's Regulations to obtain State Education Department approval as a sponsor of continuing education for professional engineers and/or land surveyors. Sponsors are expected to meet or exceed the standards detailed in this document. Approvals are valid for a period of three years and can be renewed.

Should you have questions concerning the requirements, please contact the State Board for Engineering and Land Surveying.

Standard 1 - Organization

Sections 68.11(i)(3)(ii)(b) and 68.12(i)(3)(ii)(b) of the Regulations of the Commissioner of Education require organizations to document that they are an organized educational entity, or an entity that has expertise in the professional area that will be taught, including but not limited to a post-secondary institutions, engineering and/or land surveying firms, national, state, or local engineering and/or land surveying associations.

Standard 2 - Courses/Activities

Courses/activities are offered in appropriate subject areas.

Sections 7211 and 7212 of the Education Law limit the educational programs a professional engineer and/or land surveyor may use to meet the continuing education to "courses of learning" and "educational activities" which contribute to the practice in professional engineering and/or land surveying. Sponsors must offer courses/activities in one of the subject areas listed below:

1. Practice areas for engineers are defined as aerospace, agricultural, architectural, bio, ceramic, chemical, civil, construction, control systems, electrical/computer, environmental, fire protection, geological, industrial, manufacturing, mechanical, materials/metallurgical, mining/mineral, naval architecture/marine, nuclear/radiological, ocean, petroleum, structural, systems, engineering, architecture, land surveying, or other matters of law and/or ethics which contribute to the practice in professional engineering and the health safety, and/or welfare of the public.
2. Practice areas for land surveyors are defined as land surveying methods and techniques; or other matters of law and/or ethics, which contribute to the practice of land surveying and the health, safety, and/or welfare of the public.

General Management courses and activities related to business rather than the professional aspects (e.g., marketing, accounting, financial planning, investments,) are not acceptable subject areas.

In addition, sponsors must:

1. maintain and use written procedures to identify, design, and evaluate prospective courses /activities before offering or sponsoring them; and
2. maintain and use written procedures to evaluate the effectiveness and overall quality of courses/activities. The procedures shall specify how course/activity attendees participate in evaluation and ways the evaluations are used to update or modify courses/activities. Procedures may include, but need not be limited to, written post-course evaluations by participants. Use of course/activity monitors to attend and assess the quality of courses/activities can be an especially effective evaluation tool.

Standard 3 - Instructors

Instructors are qualified to teach the courses/activities which will be offered.

Sections 68.11(i)(3)(ii)(c) and 68.12 (i)(3)(ii)(c) requires sponsors to provide course/activity instructors who are qualified to teach the courses/activities which will be offered, including but not limited to, faculty of a college of engineering or land surveying accredited by an acceptable accrediting agency, or instructors who are specifically qualified authorities in engineering and/or land surveying, as determined by the Department with assistance from the State Board for Engineering and Land Surveying, to conduct such courses.

Sponsors must assure that instructors meet this standard and must:

1. maintain and use written criteria and procedures to select instructors, including job descriptions, intended to assure that every instructor is qualified by training and/or experience to teach the course/activity; and
2. maintain and use written procedures to evaluate instructors' performance. Both attendees' written evaluations and assessments by course/activity monitors may appropriately be part of the evaluation of instructors' performance.

Standard 4 - Assessment of Learning

Sponsor has a method of assessing the learning of participants.

Sections 68.11(i)(3)(ii)(d) and 68.12 (i)(3)(ii)(d) require sponsors to have "a method of assessing the learning of participants."

Sponsors must maintain assessment methods that (1) are appropriate to the course/activity objectives and educational methods, and (2) measure the extent to which the objectives were accomplished. These methods may include, but need not be limited to, post-tests, questionnaires, and attendees' evaluations. Course/activity monitors may also be effective components of a method of assessing learning.

Standard 5 - Records

Sponsor will maintain records for at least six years from the date of completion of coursework/activity.

Sections 68.11(i)(3)(ii)(e) and 68.12 (i)(3)(ii)(e) require that sponsors "maintain records for at least six years from the date of completion of coursework or educational activities, which should include, but not be limited to, the name and curriculum vitae of the faculty, a record of attendance/participation of the licensed professional engineer and/or land surveyor in such course work or educational activity, and the number of contact hours for completion of the course work or educational activity."

Sponsors must create and maintain for at least six years the following records for each course or educational activity:

1. the date and location of the course/activity;
2. the name and curriculum vitae of the instructor/presenter;
3. the objectives and learning methods of the course/activity;
4. the outline of the course/activity, the assessment methods used, and the number of contact hours of the course/activity;
5. a summary of any evaluation of the course/activity;
6. copies of all promotional materials used in a course/activity;
7. any evaluation of the need for the course/activity; and
8. the list of licensed practitioners in attendance, including the profession(s) in which each is licensed.

Inquiries and applications to become an approved sponsor of continuing education can be obtained from the: New York State Education Department State Board for Engineering and Land Surveying 89 Washington Avenue, 2nd Floor Mezzanine, East Wing Albany, NY 12234-1000 Phone: (518) 474-3817 x140 E-mail: enginbd@mail.nysed.gov E-mail: lsurvbd@mail.nysed.gov