Follow the step-by-step instructions in our CBA Applicant Guide to ensure your application meets the specified criteria and avoid unnecessary delays. For more information, refer to our Experience Requirement page.
You can switch your validator if they have not completed the validation process. This will enable you to update the email address. Follow these steps for any validator that you either no longer wish to use or for which you would like to change the email address:
- Click the “Decline” button next to the validator’s name and information (represented by a small circle with an “X” inside it).
- To use the same validator, re-add them by clicking the “Add Validator” button.
- Reassign the competencies to the re-added validator and update their email address (or assign the competencies to a different validator, if you are changing validators).
- Resend the email.
If you submitted your application before May 15, 2023, please email [email protected].
Continuing education or professional development can include post-grad courses, online courses, seminars, industry events or similar planned activities.
You do not need to disclose the names of clients who have an NDA to demonstrate your competency and meet the criteria for all categories of your CBA application. If necessary, you can provide generic names, such as ABC Company, instead of actual names.
No. Our Qualification Assessment team will determine experience eligibility after receiving an application.
Enter your validator’s current job title, or their most recent job title if they are retired.
For engineering work experience gained in Canada, the validator must be a professional engineer (P.Eng.) registered with a Canadian engineering regulator during the work period they are validating. For experience gained outside of Canada, the validator is expected to be a senior engineering practitioner licensed as an engineer in their jurisdiction. During the assessment process, PEO may request information to support a validator’s engineering qualifications, including proof of academic and engineering credentials and professional designation.
Yes. All applicants must demonstrate the necessary academic and experience requirements before applying. All applicants must have a minimum of 48 months of professional engineering experience, which must be shown when applying through PEO’s competency-based assessment (CBA).
The minimum number of validators required is one. There is no maximum number of validators.
A validator assesses and rates the applicant’s work experience. Ideally, a validator should have direct, first-hand knowledge of the applicant’s work, have provided suitable professional supervision throughout the validated work period, and taken technical responsibility for the applicant’s work. The validator may have a title other than supervisor and can be a manager, mentor, client or colleague.
Validation assists PEO in assessing whether the licensing requirements set out in the Professional Engineers Act and the regulations have been satisfied. Validation does not constitute an assessment of the applicant’s work experience in Canada or internationally—it simply confirms that it was acquired.
Yes, validators sufficiently familiar with the candidate’s work and can confidently rate the competencies are eligible.
Although it is ideal, validators can be from different places of employment. It should suffice if validators are sufficiently familiar with the candidate’s engineering work experience and can confidently rate the assigned competencies.
No, PEO no longer requires Canadian experience. However, any Canadian experience submitted to satisfy the experience requirements must have a P.Eng. validator. This applies to all applicants, regardless of when they applied.
Candidates must assign a new validator for the competencies assigned to the validator who declined.
The competency-based assessment (CBA) framework does not credit post-graduate studies toward work experience. However, applicants can include post-graduate or industry-sponsored research work experience under the CBA if they think it addresses one or more competencies and have a qualified validator to validate that work.
Candidates can use up to 12 months of pre-graduation experience towards the minimum 48-month requirement. This experience may be acquired after the candidate has completed the first half of the classroom component of the degree or equivalent educational qualifications and does not pre-date the halfway mark. Candidates can include this pre-graduation experience in the experience summary but must select the pre-graduation option. NOTE: The experience summary information helps determine if you have the minimum quantitative requirement of 48 months of engineering experience for licensure.
Visit https://peo.on.ca/apply/become-professional-engineer to see the CBA application process steps and get started.
Canadian environment competencies can be demonstrated by experience obtained abroad. For example, a candidate working for Shell Oil in Nigeria might use the same American Petroleum Institute (API) engineering standards used in Norway, the United States or Windsor, Ontario.
You can start working on your CBA at any time in the online application portal; however, you won’t be able to submit your application until you can show at least 48 months of engineering experience and have completed the experience entries for all competencies.
If you applied before May 15, 2023, you can submit your experience using or your CBA form at any time after you pass the National Professional Practice Exam.
No. Candidate self-assessments and validator ratings are submitted to PEO independently. Validators should rate competencies and submit the ratings in confidence to PEO.
Acceptability of the validator is at the discretion of PEO. Family members and relatives are normally not acceptable as validators and will be assessed on a case by case basis.
You are required to validate only the work examples assigned to the 34 competencies. You may choose which place of employment to use for these work examples when addressing the competencies.
Ideally, yes. However, they may be eligible if they can attest to your competencies and are familiar with your work. PEO reserves the right to determine the eligibility of validators.