[TheRealVille]

I am not saying that they are lying. Unless things have changed in recent years (and they probably have), UK, Louisville, and Western KY are the only schools that have accredited engineering programs. And even if a person earns a degree, it is not a given that they will ever become registered professional engineers. Many people are never able to pass the tests. Others are hired into first line management positions (such as a section foreman) by companies who plan to promote them through the ranks of production. In my case, I worked in more than a half dozen supervisory and engineering positions before I became registered after four years.

I decided to pursue an engineering path instead of going into production, so I needed to become registered. Many engineering graduates who want to pursue management careers never bother to become registered. Technically, they can never become "engineers" without getting their licenses and they are prohibited by law from claiming to be engineers. That is why I doubt that the two guys that you mentioned were ever licensed engineers. If they earned engineering degrees, the company may be grooming them for management positions by having them work in various departments to learn the business from the ground up. Or they may have been washouts as engineers who took the only jobs that they could find - but registered engineers with more than 4 years experience would not likely be operating a dozer for $15/hr.

I can agree with all of this. All I can go by is what they tell me.