References and Study Materials for new Exam

Hey guys,

Been a while and I hope everyone is doing well. I think my last post on this site was 12/17/14, when I mentioned I was having twins in a month and a half and would have very little time to study...sure enough, my wife ended up in the hospital the next day, and our kids were finally born on Jan 2. Everyone's doing great and daddy finally gets a chance to sit down and study for the October lateral exam after passing vertical a year ago.

My concern is that I'm not going to be able to get enough studying time in, but I don't think I was too far off last time, so hopefully it won't take an incredible amount. If I have to take it again, then so be it.

As of right now, I'm planning on updating most of the references and even the study guides and problems to the latest. My question is, is this mostly a waste of money?

AASHTO hasn't changed so I'm good there. And I accidentally ordered the wrong (newer) Seismic Design Manual last time, so now I'm up to speed with the correct one. I have IBC 2012 and ASCE 7-10 (though not familiar with them yet).

But things I don't have: ACI 318-11 (I have 318-08), the latest TMS 402/602-11 (I have 08), AISC Steel 14th (I have 13th), AISI (I have it, but not with the 2010 supplement), and I have an older NDS (whatever the last test was).

My guess is I should upgrade these and then just sell any materials that I don't need (in NJ, we're behind the times and these are all irrelevant at the moment, and may never be relevant if new publications are made).

I'm more concerned with the study materials. Can I study my old stuff and be okay? Or am I going to screw myself over? I have SEAOC Vol 1 for 2009. If I use that, am I screwing myself for the test because I don't have 2012? Should I get updated study guides and practice questions? I don't want to get a new SERM just for the lateral portion of that book, seems like a waste. But updated, practice tests and practice questions?

Guess I'm just looking for a little direction. Should I just buy all new and deal with the expense? It's just a lot of money to put out.

Thanks, guys, and hope you are all doing well. Best of luck to anyone taking the test this year. I'm hoping to be done with it, but I have a suspicion I'm going to need to go to Round 3 with the lateral haha. I feel like I wasn't far off last time, so hoping I can keep my studying light for the next 2 months.

Just as a follow-up, I am only taking the lateral exam, so the more I think about it, the more I think I'm going to avoid updating some of my references (concrete, masonry, etc.). I think the key ones are IBC, ASCE 7, and SDM, which I already am up to date with. Then I'm probably going to upgrade my SEAOC Vol. 1. Thoughts on the practice problems and all? Think those are worth updating? Thanks for your thoughts, guys. And believe me, I totally understand the logic of "you want to have everything up to date" but there's a financial burden associated with doing so that I'm looking to avoid haha.

I would say that it is totally worth it.

Get it done once, and you'll never have to worry about it ever again.

If you try to cheap out, you'll be at a disadvantage. (Not saying that you won't pass though.)

kevo_55 said:

I would say that it is totally worth it.

Get it done once, and you'll never have to worry about it ever again.

If you try to cheap out, you'll be at a disadvantage. (Not saying that you won't pass though.)

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Thanks, kevo! My biggest thought with it was I don't remember using the concrete, masonry, etc. references a ton during the lateral exam. I felt the lateral exam was much more straight forward and more IBC/ASCE/SDM related than anything else, so I didn't think the lateral portions of the material codes would have changed at all.

No problem.

Unfortunately, they did change with respect to lateral (seismic) design.

With respect to the exam, you'll find that it really is a crap shoot on what they would ask you on exam day. On one exam they might ask A, B and C. On the next they may ask B, D, and E.

You just never know. It is always better to be safe just in case.

I took the exam first under the 2010 IBC and then again this past April under the 2012 IBC (which I passed) so I was in a similar situation. I got the latest version of all the major design standards, which I would recommend. I think you can get away with older versions of the minor ones like PCI and AISI though. As for study materials I did not update any of them. You just have to be aware when doing them that some things will be incorrect due to changes in the code so sometimes answers on practice problems or exams will be wrong or not listed. It does add the occasional extra step of comparing the relevant sections of the code to see if something changed causing my answer to be wrong but to me that was worth it when compared to updating all of the practice materials to the correct editions which can be expensive.

Thanks guys, I appreciate it!

CT, you took it back in October in CT the first time? I'm sure I took it with you if that's the case!

After the initial application, did you have to do anything the 2nd time around other than just register for the test again on NCEES? Seems like that's all I have to do as a repeat taker.

Congrats on the babies! Mine just turned 5 months and I know how demanding they could get ha.

Anyhow, your question is difficult to answer because for obvious reasons, no one (at least not me) can tell you that you'll be absolutely OK without the latest codes... (e.g. if you end up passing, the person who told you that would be the good guy that saved you money; on the other hand, if you don't, he would be the bad guy that screwed you over).

That said, have you looked at your other options? To name a few on top of my head:

• Borrow from co-workers
• Ask the company you work for to buy the latest references and you borrow from them (should be tax deductible for them)
• If they are cheap, tell them you'll pitch in
• Check with your company to see if they have some kind of "educational fund" for individual employees that you can use
• Borrow from your colleagues or friends from other offices
• Buy them yourself but plan to sell them at a discount later (amazon.com or half.com ...etc.)

SEHQ said:

Congrats on the babies! Mine just turned 5 months and I know how demanding they could get ha.

Anyhow, your question is difficult to answer because for obvious reasons, no one (at least not me) can tell you that you'll be absolutely OK without the latest codes... (e.g. if you end up passing, the person who told you that would be the good guy that saved you money; on the other hand, if you don't, he would be the bad guy that screwed you over).

That said, have you looked at your other options? To name a few on top of my head:

• Borrow from co-workers

Ask the company you work for to buy the latest references and you borrow from them (should be tax deductible for them)
If they are cheap, tell them you'll pitch in
Check with your company to see if they have some kind of "educational fund" for individual employees that you can use
Borrow from your colleagues or friends from other offices
Buy them yourself but plan to sell them at a discount later (amazon.com or half.com ...etc.)

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Thank you! Congratulations to you as well! And as always, thank you for the helpful tips.

My office is a bit complicated. They've been absolutely awesome financially with it, so I almost feel bad that I'm taking the lateral a 2nd time. They agreed to pay for the exam, which was awesome, but I'm not looking to step on any toes. The frustrating aspect is that I feel like they were a little surprised that I failed the lateral....everyone in NJ thinks this test is similar to the PE, which I could have passed in my sleep.

The biggest thing is that I think they saw a lot of potential for us for significant out of state work if I got it, as my company (NJ doesn't need SEs, and I don't think it's on the horizon either here) doesn't have any SEs. But now, they may be hiring a kid 4 years out of school who passed both on the first shot coming into another office, so the need for me to get it has been kind of pushed aside, which makes me feel even worse about asking for them to pay for anything at this point haha.

I'm leaning towards your last suggestion. I'll spend the money, and then just try to get back whatever I can by selling after the fact. Though, I'll probably wait for the results, because I've started this studying thing way too late, but life and work really get in the way! haha

Yeah I see what you mean about the company - sorry to hear that.

But once you pass, you can probably still try to ask them if they would reimburse you though.

Oh and one more option:

See if you know of any engineering students (Bachelors, Masters or PhDs) or faculties. Universities usually have some of these books in the book store and they usually sell them at a huge discount for students and faculties. In that case, you can ask the person to buy them for you.

It'll still be good to have regardless, so I do want to do it anyway. I'll have to look into that. That sounds like a pretty good option. Thanks, Andy! And thanks everyone for the advice!

I wish these **** codes didn't change all the time.

mikesltj23 said:

Thanks guys, I appreciate it!

CT, you took it back in October in CT the first time? I'm sure I took it with you if that's the case!

After the initial application, did you have to do anything the 2nd time around other than just register for the test again on NCEES? Seems like that's all I have to do as a repeat taker.

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I actually took it 3 times but I was there last October for round 2. When I registered to retake it all I did was sign up on NCEES. The state didn't require anything new on their end.

CTstructure said:

mikesltj23 said:

Thanks guys, I appreciate it!

CT, you took it back in October in CT the first time? I'm sure I took it with you if that's the case!

After the initial application, did you have to do anything the 2nd time around other than just register for the test again on NCEES? Seems like that's all I have to do as a repeat taker.

Click to expand...

I actually took it 3 times but I was there last October for round 2. When I registered to retake it all I did was sign up on NCEES. The state didn't require anything new on their end.

Click to expand...

Great. Thank you! And congrats on being done!