Section 64. Whoever desires to act as an engineer or fireman shall apply for a license to the department. The applicant shall be examined by the inspector assigned to the district in which the applicant resides or is employed. The examinations shall be uniform throughout the commonwealth in a form approved by the state fire marshal, in consultation with the chief, and shall be given in two parts, the first part of which shall be written and the second of which shall be oral; provided, however, that any applicant may be given only an oral examination if he so requests in writing, stating the reasons for such request and if such reasons are deemed valid by the chief or his designee. A mark of seventy percent shall be considered passing on any such written examination and such passing mark shall remain valid for a period of one year. The failure of any applicant taking a written examination to achieve such a passing mark shall result in the removal of his application from any further consideration. The time allotted for the written examination shall be four hours. An oral examination shall be recorded on tape and such tape shall remain on file with the department through the expiration of the time allowed for appeal.

Upon the successful completion of the examination process, the applicant if found competent and trustworthy, shall receive a license graded in accordance with the merits of his examination. An applicant for a first or second class engineer's license shall be examined by a board consisting of three district engineering inspectors of the department, or two such inspectors and the chief, if such chief is a qualified examiner, and, if the applicant is employed, one member of said board shall be the department inspector of boilers assigned to the area where the applicant is so employed, and the decision of said board shall be final. An applicant for a license as an engineer of any other class or as a fireman, or for a special license, shall be examined by one inspector of the division, from whose decision there shall be an appeal as provided in section sixty-six.