Illinois

Professional Development Hours (PDH) Requirements
Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation

Section 1380.325 Professional Development


 Illinois - Continuing Educational Requirements:
Hours Required:
30 hours biennially (1 PDH unit = 1 CPC unit = 1 CPD unit)
Renewal Date:
  • November 30 (odd-numbered years for Professional Engineers)
  • November 30 (even-numbered years for Structural Engineers)
Board Approved Course Providers? The Illinois board does not pre-approve course providers or specific courses. Each engineer must determine whether a course satisfies their state board’s CPC requirements.
Approved Subject Matter:
  • Professional Engineers: the course must “contribute to the advancement, extension or enhancement of the professional skills and/or scientific knowledge of the licensee in practice of professional engineering” and “foster the enhancement of general or specialized practice and values of professional engineering, related sciences and engineering ethics.”
  • Structural Engineers: the course must “contribute to the advancement, extension or enhancement of the professional skills and scientific knowledge of the licensee in practice of structural engineering” and “foster the enhancement of general or specialized practice and values of structural engineering.”
Are Online Courses Allowed?
  • Professional engineers: online, web-based courses are specifically listed as an approved activity, with no limit on the amount of hours received through online continuing education.
  • Structural engineers: a maximum of 10 of the 30 hours required, may be earned through online courses.
PDH Carryover:
Zero (0) hours can be carried forward into the next renewal period.
Other Specific Requirements:
  1. Self-study courses: are acceptable only if an examination has been completed by the licensee and graded by the sponsor.
  2. Effective on Jan. 1st, 2020, all Illinois PEs and SEs are required to complete a 1 PDH Sexual Harassment Prevention Training Course as a part of the continuing education requirement. Online-PDH has a course specifically designed to meet the state standards for "Sexual Harassment Training for Illinois Structural and Professional Engineers".
  3. Unacceptable credits: The board specifically states that equipment demonstrations will not be accepted for PDH credit.
  4. Recordkeeping for Audit Purposes: PDH completion records must be maintained for a minimum of 6 years for Professional Engineers and 4 years for Structural Engineers.

Last updated on 4/19/16

Last modified: Tuesday, 30 November 2021, 7:58 PM