EIT and EI Certification: What It Means and How to Apply

EIT (engineer in training) and EI (engineer intern) are titles your state licensing board grants after you pass the FE exam and meet its education rules. You apply to the board, not to NCEES. The title does not authorize practice as a professional engineer. The form, any fee, and when you may sit for the PE come from the board that will license you.

What EIT and EI mean

EIT stands for engineer in training, and EI stands for engineer intern. Boards use one label or the other for the same stage: you met that board’s education rule and passed the FE. Texas certifies an EIT, Florida certifies an engineer intern (EI), and California certifies an engineer-in-training (EIT).

The title is the board’s record of that stage. NCEES describes licensure as education, experience, and exams together, so the intern title leaves the rest of that path open. The difference between the FE and PE exams matches this split: the FE supports the intern record, and the PE supports the license.

Match any public use of EIT or EI to your board’s rule, whether on a resume line, a proposal, or an offer of engineering services.

Which board grants the title

Your state licensing board grants engineer intern certification. Applications go to that board, and so do questions about whether you qualify. NCEES is where you register for the FE and where the result is posted.

Texas, Florida, and California publish different sequences. If one of them will license you, start with that board’s page and with the PE license basics in Texas, California, Florida, and New York. If another state will license you, use that board’s packet.

If your Texas degree has not yet been conferred when you pass the FE, wait for conferral before you send the EIT form and fee. Florida and California both let you register for the FE exam with NCEES without a prior board application, and the intern filing in each state follows after you pass.

How the title fits the path to the PE

The most common path NCEES describes is an EAC/ABET bachelor’s degree, the FE exam, about four years of acceptable progressive experience, and the PE exam. Many states keep additional paths. In the three states above, the intern filing follows the education step that board names and a passed FE, but the license still depends on experience and the PE. How much experience you need before the PE exam is decided by your board’s definition of acceptable progressive experience.

Texas lets EITs move the exam ahead of that experience. Since May 2, 2016, a Texas EIT may take the PE exam before earning the four years of experience required for licensure. That decoupling changes the exam date only: an EIT who has not taken a PE exam before is approved automatically, and the four years remain in place before Texas grants the license.

Florida ties both the intern title and PE eligibility to a bachelor’s degree and a passed FE. After those two are done, you can apply for EI certification, and you are also eligible to apply for the PE exam.

The California step covered here is the EIT application after you pass.

What to do the week you pass

Expect the outcome of a computer-based exam in roughly 7 to 10 days, when an email notice arrives and the same result shows in MyNCEES. Use that wait to line up the board filing so you can send it when the pass appears. The timing of the notice is covered under when FE exam results come out.

Save the email notice and check the result in MyNCEES.
Open your board’s intern instructions and use its form.
In Texas, file after the degree is conferred, on the EIT form, with the $15 fee.
In Florida, apply for EI certification after the bachelor’s degree and the pass. That is also when you are eligible to take the PE.
In California, apply to the board for EIT certification after you pass.
If the PE is next, use your board’s timing. Texas EITs may sit before the experience required for licensure, with automatic approval when they have not taken a PE exam before.

A pass lets you request the title. The board’s acceptance of the application is what grants it.

Frequently asked questions

Is EIT the same as passing the FE?

Passing the FE meets the exam requirement only. EIT or EI is the title your state board grants after you also meet its education rule and it accepts your application. In Texas that means a conferred degree from a board-approved engineering or related science program and the EIT form with a $15 fee. Florida and California each require their own application after you pass.

Does the EIT certificate expire?

The board that issues the certificate sets any expiration or renewal rule, not NCEES. NCEES describes licensure through education, experience, and exams together, and that description does not set a national end date for EIT or EI status.

Can I call myself an engineer with an EIT?

You may use the intern title your board grants, either engineer in training (EIT) or engineer intern (EI). Only the professional engineer license authorizes practice as a professional engineer. Boards also limit how the word engineer appears in a job title or on public materials.

Can I take the PE exam as soon as I am an EIT?

Texas EITs can sit before they finish the experience required for the license. Since May 2, 2016, they may take the PE exam early, and the board approves them automatically if they have not taken a PE exam before. The four years of experience are still required for licensure. Florida treats a bachelor’s degree and a passed FE as eligibility both to apply for EI certification and to take the PE. Every other state sets its own PE timing rule.

Sources

Texas board: Certification of Engineer in Training (EIT). Retrieved October 3, 2026.
Florida board: Engineering exams. Retrieved October 3, 2026.
NCEES: FE exam. Retrieved October 3, 2026.
NCEES Examinee Guide, May 2026 (PDF). Retrieved October 3, 2026.

What is EIT or EI certification, and how do you get it?