Onward and Upward

Since completing his Masters in Sustainable Energy Engineering Dave has been focused more than ever on the path that will lead him to having a rewarding and meaningful career.  Part of that has been preparing for and taking some critical credentialing exams.  In Febrary of 2012 he passed his Leadership in Energy Engineering Accredited Professional (LEED AP) exam.  Here is a little blurb from Engineering Daily about what that means:

A LEED AP is looked upon as an engineer with a high level of knowledge in integrated design. Many companies look up to LEED AP to facilitate the LEED certification process.

The LEED accreditation is the highest valued environmental accreditation and its importance cannot be undervalued in the coming years. Today most companies are audited for compliance to green initiatives. There are stringent rules to comply with the green regulations and any failure can lead to huge fines. With more and more companies resorting to go green, the LEED accreditation will only gain further importance.

Most recently at the end of October (less than 2 weeks before Adella was born) Dave took the Professional Engineer exam.  He'd been preparing for it by studying for months almost every moment he wasn't at work or sleeping.  When I'd glance at the problems he'd be working on from his textbooks I'd be intimidated within seconds.  There wasn't anything simple or easy about it.  Lots of dedication, time, fasting and prayer helped to guide Dave in the best way to study and prepare for the exam.  This is what the National Society of Professional Engineers has to say about the it:

To a client, it means you've got the credentials to earn their trust. To an employer, it signals your ability to take on a higher level of responsibility.  Among your colleagues, it demands respect. To yourself, it's a symbol pride and measure of your own hard-won achievement. 

To become licensed, engineers must complete a four-year college degree, work under a Professional Engineer for at least four years, pass two intensive competency exams and earn a license from their state's licensure board. Then, to retain their licenses, PEs must continually maintain and improve their skills throughout their careers.

 Yet the results are well worth the effort. By combining their specialized skills with their high standards for ethics and quality assurance, PEs help make us healthier, keep us safer and allow all of us to live better lives than ever before.

When explaining it to my family and friends I'd always equate it to someone who went to law school, but never took the bar and how that would limit what they could achieve and how far they could go in their career.  So the PE exam to engineers is like what the bar is to lawyers = it's a BIG deal!  Dave had been running into a glass ceiling of sorts with just his Masters and not being a PE.  The test is only offered 2 times a year and if Dave didn't pass in October it'd mean more studying and paying the not-so-small fee to take it again in April.  Not to mention we'd have a newborn on our hands and study time would be limited.  So the day before he took the exam he left work early, drove to the city where the test was being administered and checked into a hotel.  No distractions, plenty of sleep and some last minute study time would set him up well to be as focused as possible on passing the test.  As for me, I just kept my fingers crossed I didn't go into early labor while he was gone.

After the 8 hour exam was over Dave called me on his way home and said, "I feel good about it."  I was glad to hear that, but knowing my husband is always optimistic (not by nature, but by choice) I had a feeling he'd say that.  Official confirmation came just a few days before Christmas, DAVE PASSED!!!

Only a licensed engineer may prepare, sign and seal, and submit engineering plans and drawings to a public authority for approval, or seal engineering work for public and private clients.

Dave's Christmas present to himself was ordering the stamp he'll use on drawings that he approves.   

To say I'm incredibly proud would be an understatement.