Licensure

After being awarded a degree, Engineers may seek licensure by a state or national government. The purpose of this process is to ensure that engineers possess the necessary technical knowledge and real-world experience to engineer safely. Once certified, the engineer is given the title of Professional Engineer (in the United States, Canada, Japan, South Korea and South Africa), Chartered Engineer (in the UK, Ireland, India and Zimbabwe), Chartered Professional Engineer (in Australia and New Zealand) or European Engineer (much of the European Union). Not all mechanical engineers choose to become licensed; those that do can be distinguished as Chartered/Professional Engineers by the post-nominal title PE or CEng, as in: Ryan Jones, PE.
In the U.S., to become a licensed Professional Engineer, an Engineer must
pass the comprehensive FE (Fundamentals of Engineering) exam,
work a given number of years as an Engineering Intern (EI) or Engineer-in-Training (EIT),
pass the Principles and Practice or PE (Practicing Engineer or Professional Engineer) exam.
In the United States, the requirements and steps of this process are set forth by the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES), website, a national non-profit representing all states. In the UK, current graduates require a MSc, MEng or BEng (Hons) in order to become chartered through the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.
"In most modern countries, certain engineering tasks, such as the design of bridges, electric power plants, and chemical plants, must be approved by a Professional Engineer or a Chartered Engineer."[7] In the USA and Canada, only a licensed engineer may seal engineering work for public and private clients.".[8] This requirement is written into state and provincial legislation, such as Quebec's Engineer Act.[9] In other countries, such as Australia, no such legislation exists; however, practically all certifying bodies maintain a code of ethics independent of legislation that they expect all members to abide by or risk expulsion.[10]