Gather Your Materials: Time
The first step in studying is to gather your materials. There are four main items that you need. You should budget roughly 1 hour to download the first three products and to order the fourth product. You can immediately start studying after downloading the first three items, while you wait for the fourth product to be shipped to you.
Do I Have To Get My Degree Re
To fulfill the licensure process and obtain your PE License, you must meet requirements in three areas:
If you earned a degree from a non-EAC/ABET accreditation board, which includes programs outside the states and engineering technology programs, then you will likely be required to have a NCEES Credentials Evaluation on that degree to confirm that your engineering courses meet the NCEES Engineering Education Standard.
This evaluation process helps ensure that you are qualified academically for licensure.
However, since you have already attempted the FE Exam with a degree from a non-EAC/ABET accreditation board , then you have likely already completed this process and will not have to do so again.
If you need a copy of your NCEES Credentials Evaluation, log in to your myNCEES account or contact your state board of Professional Engineers who can point you in the right direction.
What’s A Passing Score On The Fe
NCEES does not officially state how many questions must be right to pass. Instead, NCEES claims that a passing score is based on psychometric statistical methods without revealing what the actual passing score is. What we can say empirically is that a third of people come out of the test room thinking they did well on the FE. Usually, those people tend to pass. About a third of test takers come out thinking they are on the fence of passing e.g. they got many questions right but they also guessed quite a bit. In this second group, the majority seem to still pass but a few do fail. And the last third is those who do not think they passed because they ran out of time and/or guessed on the majority of the questions, and those tend to fail the exam.
It’s often unofficially claimed you can pass if you score above approximately 50% on the exam, but we have not verified this.
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Why Should An Engineering Student Take The Fundamentals Of Engineering Exam
Principles & Practice Of Engineering Exam
The second NCEES-administered exam on your path to licensure is the Principles & Practice of Engineering exam.
Like the FE exam, the PE exam is developed and administered by NCEES. In Florida, you must have earned an ABET-accredited degree and passed the FE exam before you can take the PE exam. You apply directly with NCEES to take the PE exam.
The PE exam goes beyond testing academic knowledge and tests expertise gained in the practice of engineering. While no engineering experience is required to sit for the PE exam, NCEES statistics show that first-time examinees are more likely to pass the exam with at least four years of engineering experience.
PE exams are offered in a variety of disciplines and sub-disciplines. Because the PE exam is based on the practice of engineering, you should take the exam for the discipline that you are most knowledgeable in .
Almost all PE exams are now computer-based tests and administered at NCEES-approved Pearson VUE test centers either during four testing windows during the year or as a single-day administration in October. The length of and the number of questions in the PE exams vary depending on discipline.
The only PE exam that remains a pencil-and-paper exam is the structural engineering discipline. The structural exam, which is offered only in April and October each year, is a two-day, 16-hour exam. The first day focuses on vertical forces, while the second day is lateral forces.
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Whats The Passing Rate Like For The Fe Exam
We’ve seen some of the challenges the FE exam presents. Let’s take a look at the bigger picture, the passing rates.
The NCEES posts passing rates bi-annually here.The most recent reported pass rates are:
70%+ pass rates. But in this table, the NCEES is strictly reporting examinees who fit three criteria: first time exam taker, attended an accredited school, and took the exam within 12 months of graduation.
To see the pass rates that includes all examinees , you can look at the NCEES’s annual publication called Squared, dating back to 2014. At PrepFE, we’ve looked through them and have some findings for you. Let’s compare NCEES’s posted pass rates with the actual pass rates for 2021.
| Exam | |
|---|---|
| 51% | 3,691 |
The FE Civil exam, for example, has the highest volume of any exam. And there are about double the number of annual exam takers if you count all examinees . Additionally, you can see the actual pass rate is 54% and not the 62% you might find posted prominently on the NCEES website. A 54% pass rate is a hard exam, the hardest among the FE exams. The FE Mechanical and FE Environmental exams now have the highest pass rate at 66% , and a 34% failure rate is something we consider very demanding. It is realistic to say you can pass the FE regardless of you are fresh out of school or you have been out of school for several years. However, the pass rates are definitely favorable for those who haven’t been out of school very long when they take the FE.
What Is The Fe Exam And Why You Should Take It
In this article, we take a high level look of what is the NCEES Fundamentals of Engineering Exam, sometimes referred to as the EIT exam. We go over what are the steps to become a licensed professional engineer in the United States and how each step to licensure works. Additionally, we touch on why you should take the FE exam and what it means for your career to become an engineer-in-training and later on a licensed professional engineer .
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Determine How Many Study Blocks You Have Available Until The Fe Exam Set A Study Plan
For the sake of uniformity, we will assume you are able to study for two hours per FE exam prep study block i.e. 2 hrs Monday, 2 hrs Tuesday, 6 hrs Saturday etc.
~3 months until the FE exam .
~1 month until the FE exam .
- Regardless of whether you graduated from school fewer or more than two years ago, there’s not a lot of time available to set up an elaborate study plan. In this case, we recommend you evenly distribute your time among all the different FE exam topics and study said topics in this order: weaker topics w/ more questions > weaker topics w/ fewer questions > topics I’m good at > topics I never saw in school > remainder of topics
When Is The Fe Exam Offered
Depending when you last took the FE Exam, you may have experienced an NCEES exam that was offered twice a year.This is no longer then case.
Now that this is a CBT exam, its offered year-round at a local Pearson-Vue testing center in four different testing windows.
Each testing window is:
Though it would never be ideal, examinees are allowed to take the FE Exam once per testing window, but not more than 3 times in a 12-month period from the date of the first attempt.
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What Is The Best Way To Prepare For The Fe Exam
The best way to prepare for any engineering exam is by doing tons of practice problems that resemble that engineering exam. PrepFE focuses on just that. We provide users hundreds of FE practice problems, with detailed solutions, similar to the problems they would see in the actual FE exam
I found prepFE to be the superior resource. The interface is user friendly, it is more flexible with how you’d want to study, and I found the questions on prepFE to replicate the real exam questions much better than PPE HQ… –
Learn more about FE exam prep >
When To Take The 2022 Fe Exam
Essentially, this test will be available to you at any time during or after your senior year. Hence, youll want to take it as early as possible so your knowledge on the subjects will still be fresh. Try to shoot for taking the FE exam near the end of your senior year or shortly after you graduate. Waiting any longer will be a detriment to you youll start to forget some of the knowledge that is required on the exam!
Although that is the best option, not everyone agrees with it. Heres an alternative option:
You might think that gaining some experience in the field first might help with taking the test. That may be right, but while you learn more about your specialization, youll forget more general knowledge you learned in school. Again, this is largely up to the individual but I strongly recommend taking the test early.
Try to shoot for taking the FE exam near the end of your senior year or shortly after you graduate. Waiting any longer will be a detriment to you youll start to forget some of the knowledge that is required on the exam!
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What To Do After You Pass Your Fe Exam
After you pass the FE Exam you will generally go one of two ways.
However, since you have already attempted the FE Exam, my guess would be that you have already, or are close to, achieved that second requirement of acquiring work experience.
Now licensing requirements are not set uniformly across the board by the NCEES, but rather, by each states engineering board.
With that being said, most states have an Engineer Intern program.
If your state is one that does, then after you pass your engineering FE exam, you will move to submit an application to receive your EIT Certification.
Though having the EI designation does not give you any additional legal benefits, it does bode well for your marketability as employers are often seeking to employ individuals that show initiative in their development as professional engineers.
As an Engineer Intern, you are also able to use the initials EIT at the end of your signature which is kind of a cool milestone for one to reach.
If you live in a state that does not have an Engineer Intern program, like Michigan, then you will move to the next step in the licensing process which is to continue gaining the progressive engineering experience as required by your state to become eligible to take the PE Exam.
Read Technical Study Guide & Complete Practice Problems: Time
Go through the technical study guide to either re-learn or get a refresher on the below topics. If you only need a refresher, then the amount of time spent on that topic should be near the lower range. If you need to re-learn the topic, then the amount of time spent will be at the higher range. You should read the chapter, understand the diagrams and then complete the practice problems in that section. When you complete the practice problems, dont just look at the solutions. You should seek to understand the underlying concept and visualize how the problem could be different if there were different variables given.
- 0.0 Introduction: Learn the basics of the Mechanical FE Exam: 1 hour
- 1.0 Mathematics : 1-3 hours
- 2.0 Probability & Statistics : 1-3 hours
- 3.0 Computational Tools : 1-2 hours
- 4.0 Ethics & Professional Practice : 1-2 hours
- 5.0 Engineering Economics : 1-3 hours
- 6.0 Electricity & Magnetism : 1-3 hours
- 7.0 Statics: 2-10 hours
- 8.0 Dynamics, Kinematics & Vibrations : 3-10 hours
- 9.0 Mechanics of Materials : 310 hours
- 10.0 Material Properties & Processing : 3-10 hours
- 11.0 Fluid Mechanics : 3-10 hours
- 12.0 Thermodynamics : 5-15 hours
- 13.0 Heat Transfer : 3-10 hours
- 14.0 Measurements, Instrumentation & Controls : 1-3 hours
- 15.0 Mechanical Design & Analysis : 3-10 hours
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Keeping A Pulse On Where You Are Spending Your Time Ensures That You Are Always Taking Accountability For Where You Are
In this guide, we walk you through a process we have used for over a decade to help our students who once thought they had no time realize that they actually did have the time after all.
We have seen this very process take students from a position of defeat to one of clarity and hope, and we believe it will do the same for you.
What Is The Fundamentals Of Engineering Exam
The NCEES Fundamentals of Engineering exam is the first of the two exams engineers must pass in order to become licensed professional engineers in the United States.
Engineering college seniors or working engineers must pass the FE exam and then gain four years of engineering work experience before becoming eligible to take the PE exam. Upon passing the PE exam, the examinee becomes a licensed professional engineer . A licensed professional engineer is someone who has the legal right to stamp and seal engineering documents that go out to the public.
The NCEES FE exam is a ~5.5-hour, 110-question long, multiple-choice test that covers the majority of the courses seen in an engineering undergraduate curriculum. The exam is taken on a computer at a Pearson Vue test center location. You are only allowed to bring an approved calculator, and you are provided a PDF of equations and tables that you will refer to during the exam. No cheat sheets or notes are allowed.
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Final Thoughts On Where To Start After A Failed Fe Exam
I hope that this resource has brought you clarity on what the FE Exam is all about, what it can do for you and why you need to get back u, dust yourself off and give it another go.
But I know, just as many answers as I have given, there may have been just as many new questions in how you can get it done.
But whether you are taking the FE Electrical or FE Civil Engineer, passing the FE Exam shouldnt be a mystery.
Sadly though, many will doubt that they can get it done, and in turn, give up on themselves and their careers.
I dont want that to be you.
If I offered to show you a system that has worked for thousands in your same shoes pass the FE, would you take it?
The FE Exam is massive and intimidating, but if I can give you some advice, start with Prepineer, it will get you to where you need to succeed.
Michael DeVuono, PE | Senior Water Engineer, Arcadis
How Is The Test Structured
The FE Exam is 6 hours long, with 5 hours 20 minutes of testing, one 25-minute break, and introduction and survey portions. There are 110 questions separated into two sections, most of them being multiple choice with some alternative questions using different formats The exam is computer-based, and you will have access to a digital version of the FE Reference Handbook with a search feature, a calculator, and laminate sheets for work.
After completing the first section, which is about half the exam and focuses more on basics and fundamentals of engineering, you will submit your answers and will be unable to return to them. You will then have a 25 minute break before returning to the second section, which focuses more on specific questions to your respective field.
More details about each of the seven FE Exams can be found using the following links:
Review the NCEES Examinee Guide for more details about testing procedures and reporting results. Also review the NCEES Calculator Policy for more information about calculators allowed during the exam.
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How Do I Effectively Use The Fe Exam Practice Test
A solid FE Exam practice test will be a vital part of any complete course to achieve your best exam results and passing scores.
There are many ways that you can approach this one.
In my experience, the best way to get the most out of your practice test is to use them at strategic points during your FE exam prep.
When I was studying for the engineering FE Exam, I utilized a practice exam at two strategic points.
The first practice exam came right at the onset of my studies, before I even flipped to the first page in my reference material.
Using only the FE reference handbook and NCEES approved calculator for examinees, I went at the whole practice exam in one shot.
I bombed it.
I was far from prepared, but looking back, I now understand how necessary this was because it helped me establish a baseline for what I needed to focus on when I got in to my course material.
How else would I have known that I needed a heavy dose of Engineering Economics and Statics?
After making it through all my course material and a week before sitting for the exam, I took the same exact NCEES practice exam as I had at the onset.
My exam results on this go were much better, but were still a bit sketchy and I struggled mightily on things such as time management and problem comprehension.
This should be expected though, as most all engineering courses or any amount of practice problems can dial you in on test taking skills.
And thats what we are all after.