Seeking

MRPE Apprenticeship Partners

MRPE is looking for partners to help cultivate civil engineers, land surveyors and technicians through apprenticeship. You can support this effort and help your organization at the same time by utilizing MRPE for basic civil engineering tasks that apprentices can perform and…

Qualifying MRPE apprenticeship and related certifications for work/ education experience

Hiring MRPE Apprentices

Apply for Grants to help fund utilization of Apprentices

On the Job Training (OJT)

What makes our program different is how we train entry-level engineering staff. Instead of a lengthy and expensive degree leading directly to a regular job, MRPE apprentices need no training or experience to start, and they get paid to learn at competitive wages toward the same end goal, professional licensure.

This program is like established land surveying apprenticeship programs except it is not affiliated with a union, does not require payment of dues and does not obligate our partners or apprentices in any way.

Our programs can take an apprentice from no training or experience to professional licensure in as little as 6 years, approximately the same as a bachelor’s degree plus two years of experience (based on abilities).

Training can electively include college or other outside courses. However, apprentices will receive most training while completing projects for our partners including application of the mathematics and science required for an in-depth understanding of the work.

The cost to our partners can be less than half of typical consultants due to apprenticeship grant subsidies. These include grants awarded to MRPE, our apprentices and our work and training partners together and individually.

Apprenticeship graduates will have extensive real-world experience on your projects, coupled with industry standard CADD, engineering and land surveying certification and licensure including Autodesk (AutoCAD, Civil 3D etc.) and NCEES (FE, FS, PE etc.).

Reconsider Bachelor’s Degree Requirements

Seldom are bachelor’s degree requirements entirely mandated by outside forces. Sometimes they are just a simple way to cull out a large pool of applicants. There is almost always room for discretion in qualifying prior experience and education. Accepting certifications from qualified apprenticeships is a good place to start.

Outside apprentice credentials can also be incorporated into minimum requirements. The FE (AKA EIT) and PE licenses are good examples already widely employed, but technician credentials could include Autodesk and other accepted industry certifications that can be acquired without a degree such as QSD/P, CFM and PMP.

There are no fees, agreements or other limitations to hiring MRPE apprentices. You can begin coordinating with apprentices at any point during their training and help guide their training with the work you provide. You can assess their work for years before hiring.

After the 1st year into the MRPE Civil Drafter Apprenticeship Program, apprentices are ready to productively get to work…

AutoCAD Drafter (Year 1): The basics of AutoCAD and Office for surveying and civil engineering, including surveying topo and boundary mapping, layout, plan sheet generation, annotation and plotting. Graduate should be ready to pass the AutoCAD for Design & Drafting exam and begin work as an entry level Computer Aided Drafting (CAD) technician or survey assistant

 Civil 3D Designer (Year 2): The basics of Civil 3D use including Year 1 tasks + generating and labeling points, surfaces, alignments, sections, profiles, assemblies and corridors. Graduate should be ready to pass the Civil 3D for Infrastructure Design exam and begin work as an entry level Surveying, CAD and Design (CADD) technician.

 Civil Engineering or Land Surveyor in Training (Year 3): The basics of applied math and science applying Year 1 & 2 skills to better understand road, utility and site grading design, hydraulics, and application of standards, title reports, maps and legal descriptions. Graduate should be qualified to sit for the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) or Surveying (FS) exam and begin work as an intermediate level CADD or surveying technician or professional intern. Outside math and science training may be required to pass exams.

 Civil Drafter Graduate (Year 4 to 5): Completion of Program 1 tasks. Graduate of our current federal apprenticeship program should have qualifying experience equivalent to an accredited bachelor’s degree.

 Junior Civil Engineer or Land Surveyor (Year 5 to 6): Further advancement of Year 3 tasks. Graduate should be ready to lead a survey crew or the design of typical civil improvements and begin work as an assistant engineer or party-chief. This year of experience is not currently part of a registered apprenticeship program.

 Assistant Civil Engineer or Land Surveyor (Year 6 to 7): The final year of apprenticeship and fine tuning of everything learned. Graduate should be ready to sit for the Professional Surveying or Engineering (PS or PE) exam. This year of experience is not currently part of a registered apprenticeship program.

Hire MRPE Apprentices

Apply for Grants

Examples…

  • Research in the formation of engineers

  • Workforce Innovation & Opportunity Act

  • American Apprentice Initiative

  • Jobs for the Future

  • Provision of Federal Student Aid

  • Federal Work Study

  • Federal Student Aid program including Grants, Work Study and Loans

  • Veteran benefit under the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)

  • Veterans Readiness and Employment program administered by VA

  • Special Employer Incentive Program administered by VA

  • Transition Assistance Program administered by US military

  • California Competes Tax Credit administered by the CA Go-Biz office

  • Related Supplemental Instructions administered by California Community Colleges

  • Employment Training Panel administered by State of California

  • CA Opportunity Youth Apprenticeship Grant administered by CA Department of Industrial Relations

  • CA Apprenticeship Council Training Funds administered by CA Department of Industrial Relations

  • Equal Representative in Construction Apprenticeships administered by CA Department of Industrial Relations

  • State Apprenticeship Expansion, Equity and Innovation Grants administered by CA Department of Industrial Relations

  • Women in Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Occupations administered by US Department of Labor

  • State Apprenticeship Expansion Formula administered by US Department of Labor

  • Pathway Home administered by US Department of Labor

  • Next Level Now administered by US Department of Labor

  • Strong Workforce Program administered by California Community Colleges

  • Learning Aligned Employment Program administered by California Student Aid Program

  • Federal Highway Administration On the Job Training & Supportive Services

  • Housing & Urban Development funds under 24 CFR Part 75

  • Apprenticeship Innovation Funding administered by CA Department of Industrial Relations

  • CA Apprenticeship Initiative administered by California Community Colleges

  • Federal Student Aid program including Grants, Work Study and Loans

  • Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Employment and Training program administered by US Department of Agriculture

  • High Road Training Partnerships administered by California Workforce Development Board

  • Local Workforce Development Boards administered by California Workforce Development Board

  • Corrections Workforce Partnerships administered by California Workforce Development Board

Why MRPE

MRPE is uniquely qualified to sponsor this program. First, we excel with the applicable skills and experience:

  • CADD: MRPE has been providing expert level CADD services for more than 25 years, including CAD system development, programming and custom interfaces. The owner and primary trainer, Matt Rodgers, is an Autodesk certified Civil 3D Infrastructure Design Professional.

  • Surveying: MRPE has been providing expert level Surveying services for more than 20 years, including UAV capture and photogrammetry, boundaries, maps and legal descriptions. The owner and primary trainer, Matt Rodgers, is a Licensed Professional Surveyor in California and has two US patents for survey tools.

  • Civil Engineering: MRPE has completed hundreds of projects and the owner and primary trainer, is a licensed Civil Engineer in California, has personally lead the design of more than $2B in civil infrastructure. We provide software expertise in not just CAD but Microsoft Office, hydraulics and more.

On a deeper level, Matt Rodgers is committed to this cause because he gained his professional engineering and surveying licenses through informal apprenticeship. Matt lived in poverty for several years when he:

  • Left high-school without graduating in 1989 and started an informal apprenticeship with JTS Engineering.

  • He was hired by the City of Sacramento in 1991, passed the EIT in 1994, and

  • Passed the PE in 1997, making him one of the youngest PEs in California without a bachelor’s degree.

  • He opened MRPE in 1998 and passed the LS exam in 2007 after filing patents for surveying tools.

  • Matt passed all exams on the first attempt and still has no degree.

We strongly support and encourage formal education for those who can afford it. MRPE provides an alternative intended for those who possess the natural ability but are otherwise less likely to make it into this industry.