text: can i get a professional engineering license in california working for only two years? i will graduate in civil engineering in a year.  i live in utah but would like to become a pe as soon as possible.  could i go to california and take the test two years after i graduate? possibly.  my understanding is that ca requires six years of experience to be licensed as a pe.  four years of experience may come from an undergrad degree in a board approved program.  the remaining two years would come from work experience.  note that if you wanted to become licensed as a structural engineer you would need an additional three years of experience after being licensed as a pe.