According to ASPE, "One overall difficulty in with the current C.I.P.E. designation is the name itself. In order to meet the goal of establishing a nationally recognized certification program, it would be best to not have an expectation or give an indication of a program that could be construed to be in conflict with or adjunct to the Professional Engineer (P.E.) registration. Simply the use of the term 'engineer' has already raised a number of questions and objections to the use of C.I.P.E. In many areas, it is not permitted without running afoul of some state registration laws."
To alleviate the problem, beginning with its April 29, 2000, certification examination, ASPE will assign the C.P.D designation in addition to the C.I.P.E. designation. Current C.I.P.E. holders will be able to convert from the C.I.P.E. designation to the C.P.D. certification under guidelines established by APSE. For more information, contact ASPE by phone at 805-495-7120, fax 805-495-4861, or e-mail aspehq@aol.com. The organization's website is located at www.aspe.org.
