How the PE Can Take You Way Beyond Engineering With Lorri Zella

How the PE Can Take You Way Beyond Engineering With Lorri Zella

From The Civil Engineering Academy Podcast by Isaac Oakeson

April 16, 2026 · 27 min · Episode 334

About this episode

Lorri Zella discusses her unconventional career journey from engineering to real estate investing and forensic analysis, highlighting the versatility of a PE license.

Most people think an engineering career locks you into one path. Design, build, repeat. Endlessly. But what if it could actually open doors you never knew were there — even totally unrelated to engineering? 🤔 This week, we chat with Lorri Zella. She’s a licensed PE who took her career in a totally different direction, going from engineering to full-time real estate investing with a stop in forensic analysis today. In this episode, Lorri dives deep into this awesome journey. She details how her education, work experience in engineering, and PE license helped her prep for the non-engineering stuff she’s done…all the way to how to come back into engineering if you leave it to try something new. (🚨Spoiler alert: it’s easier than you trick yourself to think it is!) If you’re feeling boxed in by your degree or current job and wondering what else is out there beyond the typical path, this episode might just flip a switch for you. There’s more you can do as a civil engineer than designing and constructing buildings. And the good news? Your education and experience preps you really well for that already. 😉 So, go give this episode a listen to see how the PE can take you way beyond…

People in this episode

Host: Isaac Oakeson

Guest: Lorri Zella

Topics covered

  • career paths
  • real estate investing
  • forensic analysis
  • professional engineering
  • credential maintenance
  • engineering education

Keywords

  • engineering career
  • PE license
  • real estate
  • forensic analysis
  • credential maintenance
  • career transition
  • engineering education

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