Geotechnical Engineer (GE) applicants must use BPELSG Connect to submit an application for licensure.
For BPELSG Connect related questions view the Application and Licensing BPELSG Connect Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).
How to submit a Geotechnical Engineer (GE) application in BPELSG Connect:
1) If you do not already have a BPELSG Connect account, create a user profile using an email address as your username. Once registered, you will receive an email with a temporary password to log in and create a personalized password. If during the registration process you did not opt out of receiving SMS (text) messages, you will also receive a SMS message alerting you that you have received a new email from BPELSG Connect.
2) Upon confirming registration with a new password, you will be asked if you have a current license/certification with BPELSG (if your license is not already linked within your account). Answer “Yes” and link your California Civil Engineer license; if you do not link your Civil Engineer license at this step, you will be required to use the “Link Existing” button on the dashboard. You will not be able to start your application for licensure until you have linked your Civil Engineer license. Geotechnical Engineer applicants must hold an unexpired, valid California Civil Engineer license prior to submitting a Geotechnical Engineer application.
3) From the dashboard click on “Profile” to enter your preferred address of record or confirm that what is currently shown, is accurate.
4) From the dashboard, click on the “New Application” button to start your application. When prompted, use the dropdown box to choose the application type.
5) When the application loads, application tabs will appear to the left side of the screen. As you progress through the tabs, the tabs will change color based on the status. A green check mark indicates that the tab is complete; a red “X” indicates that the tab has been started but is not complete. You will be required to complete all tabs before you submit the application.
- Instructions: Read the instructions carefully.
- General Information: Verify and/or enter all required personal information.
- Qualifications: You will be asked if you are currently licensed as a Professional Engineer in another state. If “yes”, you will be asked to provide your current license information. You will also be asked if you have previously filed an application for licensure as a Professional Engineer (other than Civil), Land Surveyor, Geologist or Geophysicist with this Board.
- Education: One (1) year of qualifying experience credit for postgraduate degree(s) from a Board-approved school of engineering with major studies in geotechnical engineering may be accepted in accordance with Title 16, California Code of Regulations section 426.50, if the degree was not used for experience credit to obtain your Civil Engineer license. If you wish to claim qualifying experience credit for your post graduate degree(s) you will enter in your applicable degree information and confirm that you have submitted your transcripts to the Board. If you are claiming educational credit, you must request official transcripts. If your university/college provides electronic transcripts they must be sent directly from the university/college via email to BPELSG.Transcripts@dca.ca.gov. If your university/college provides paper transcripts they must be mailed to the Board. Unsealed transcripts are not accepted. Foreign transcripts that are not in English do not need to be sealed, but you must submit the original transcripts along with a notarized English translation. Foreign transcripts are sent back to the applicant after they are scanned and uploaded to the application. Degree evaluations are not accepted. It is recommended that you submit the request for transcripts to the relevant university/college at least two (2) weeks before the anticipated date of application submittal to the Board.
- Experience: You will complete Part A of the Work Experience Engagements/References within BPELSG Connect. For each Part A of the Work Experience Engagement/Reference submitted, contact information for the professional reference will be required. After you submit your application in BPELSG Connect, each of your professional references will be emailed a link that will allow them to review Part A of the Work Experience Engagement/Reference and instruct them to complete Part B. You are required to provide a minimum of four (4) completed Work Experience Engagements/References, demonstrating a sufficient number of months of qualifying engineering experience. For detailed information view the Work Experience Engagement/Reference Instructions for Geotechnical Engineer Applicants and Professional References. If your professional references have not responded within two (2) weeks, it is recommended you contact them because your application will not be reviewed until the minimum number of Work Experience Engagements/References have received responses.
- Special Considerations: You will be asked to answer questions to determine if you are eligible for an expedited application review process in accordance with Business and Professions Code Section 115.4, Business and Professions Code Section 115.5 or Business and Professions Code section 135.4. If you are eligible and wish for your application to be expedited, you will be required to upload the appropriate documents.
- Fingerprint: All applicants are required to submit a full set of fingerprints prior to certification/licensure. Applicants residing in California must use the electronic Live Scan fingerprinting process and will be asked to upload a copy of their completed Live Scan Form in the Fingerprint Tab. Out-of-state applicants may either submit the traditional fingerprint cards or travel to California to use the Live Scan process. Out-of-state applicants will be mailed two (2) FD-258 fingerprint cards after submitting an application and fees in BPELSG Connect. Both completed fingerprint cards need to be mailed to the Board along with the BPELSG Connect payment receipt received after application submittal. There is a separate fee for submitting fingerprint cards. If you have submitted fingerprints to this Board within the last 24 months, you will not be required to supply any fingerprinting documents or information. For more information regarding fingerprinting please visit the Board's Fingerprinting Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).
- Action By Another State: You will be asked if you have ever had an engineering, land surveying, geologist, or geophysicist related certificate or license denied, disciplined, suspended, surrendered, or revoked in any state (other than for lack of minimum qualification or failure of examination). If you answer “Yes”, you will be asked to explain and upload any applicable documents.
- Exam: This tab contains information about the Geotechnical Engineer exam. The exam is administered once a year during a two-week window at Prometric testing centers. Information about payment and scheduling the exam will be provided following application approval. See Examination Candidate Information for test plans and recommended references.
- Affidavit: You will be asked to sign and date the application declaration.
- Fee and Payment: You will have the option to make the payment for the application fee and fingerprint card fee (if applicable) by credit card, debit card, personal check, money order, or cash. If you choose to pay by check, money order, or cash, BPELSG Connect will provide you with a confirmation document that you will need to print and mail to the Board along with the payment. Please be aware that choosing the check, money order, or cash option will significantly delay the processing of your application, since application review will not start until payment is received and processed.
6) After application payment and submittal, you will be returned to your dashboard, where you can view the status of your application. If you click on the application number, you can download and print or save a PDF version of your application for your records. If you pay by credit card or debit card, you will receive a payment confirmation receipt via email. You can also view and print your payment receipt by clicking on the “Profile” link on your dashboard and finding the view/print link under the “Payment Detail” section.
Application Deficiencies:
If your application is determined to be deficient, Board staff will send you an email. An application goes through two (2) reviews by Board staff: evaluator initial review and technical review. A deficiency can be issued during one (1) or both review stages. To correct the deficiency, log in to BPELSG Connect, from the dashboard click on “Resolve Deficiency”, and follow all directions within the email and within BPELSG Connect. It is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure that all identified deficiencies are resolved within BPELSG Connect.
How to check the status of your application:
Once you have submitted your application through BPELSG Connect, you will be able to monitor the status of your application and address any deficiencies by logging into your BPELSG Connect user profile. Do not contact the Board for status updates; log in to your BPELSG Connect account and refer to your dashboard for status updates. View the Application Status Definitions for detailed information.
You can also check to see if your professional references have filled out Part B of the Work Experience Engagements/References (although you will not be able to see how they responded). From your dashboard click the link under the “Status” column. Next, select the “Reference” tab. If they have not responded in a timely manner, you can resend the references to them by clicking “Resend".
Request to take the Geotechnical Engineer exam:
Once your application is exam eligible you will need to log in to BPELSG Connect to pay for and request to take the Geotechnical Engineer exam. If you have not scheduled and paid your exam fee by September 2nd, you will be required to take the exam in a subsequent exam window.
After payment, you will receive an Authorization to Test (ATT) notice via email with instructions on how and when to schedule your exam with Prometric. Please be aware that you will not be able to schedule your exam with Prometric until 120 days before the start of the exam window. Contact the Exam Unit at (916) 999-3644 or BOEXAM@dca.ca.gov if you have questions about scheduling your exam or if you do not receive your ATT after payment is made.
