Encourage someone studying for October

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I'm so burnt out it's not even funny.....i burned out a few weeks too early.
Take a deep breath and keep going. I know it feels like you're going to die, but you're not. You're so close and it will be worth it if you do it right. Don't let it slip away. You can do this! If you need to, take a day or two off, then get back to it. As Granny Florence used to say, "Hitch up your breeches and keep going." I think that sort of meant to suck it up and be tough.

 
I actually think a brief break from studies would be good if you are really feeling that toasted. Truth of the matter, why add pain and suffering onto misery if it is only going to frustrate your efforts and eventually become counter-productive?

I am not studying for an exam but I am churning out a graduate project so I can FINALLY graduate. I am working under an aggressive schedule so I can finish, but tomorrow evening (Friday) I am going to take a brief breather to go to the local Greek Food Festival. It's an INVESTMENT of a few hours for some good food, a little entertainment, and time to catch up with some old friends. It will be enough to say I got away for a little while without undermining my schedule or efforts.

If you can find some time to the same I would HIGHLY recommend it so you don't feel burnt to a crisp :)

Two more weeks! Good luck!

JR

 
That will be my Saturday. Good Luck! Let us know how you did.
10-4, will do. I'll probably check the results Saturday, as I bet I'll be tired and disgusted after I take it. That's the way I felt after the EIT, but did pretty well on it.

And I feel a lot better working 80 questions rather than 180!

 
10-4, will do. I'll probably check the results Saturday, as I bet I'll be tired and disgusted after I take it. That's the way I felt after the EIT, but did pretty well on it.
And I feel a lot better working 80 questions rather than 180!

I've taken the past 2 nights off, and I'm feeling a little recharged. thanks to all for the encoruagement. I guess part of the catch is that i'm not sure i'll ever feel 100% ready. I may be, but my personality is such that I will never feel content and readied.

Good luck to everyone taking the exam, and I look forward to hearing everyone passed!

 
My advice: this Saturday take the NCEES practice test in your discipline. Take it like it were the real thing under as close to exam conditions as possible. If you don't have a reference you need with you, don't go downstairs and grab it. Don't peak at the answers. Follow the time limits.
I hated blowing a weekend day by doing this but it was worth it.

After you do this, go back and review the earliest stuff your studied months ago. Brush up on it. And you probably didn't find your best study technique at this point so it may be some of your weaker areas.
I couldn't agree more. This is the weekend for the practice exams

 
^ Yeah, it's kinda like training for the big race. You gotta taper down the last couple weeks.

Another thing to do is one of those evenings in the next couple weeks, spend your 'study' time that night getting your stuff together and prepped for exam day.

Make sure your calculator has batteries, figure out how you are gonna pack your books, figure out where the exam site is (and drive by if convenient), etc...

PS - I will spend this practice exam Saturday making beer. If you pass, you can have your weekends back too.

 
I believe the best advice is to relax and don't stress out. I know it's easy to say It's only a test, you can always retake it, but there is a lot of truth to it. I studied my butt off for the test but during the whole process I told meself I'd take the test to see how bad it was and that I'd probably need to take it again. People thought I was nuts thinking that way, but the undue stress was not there.

Don't get worked up about not knowing everything...you might just surprise yourself on how much you know. Read the questions completely and pay attention to the units they are asking for. Units, units, units...probably one of the most important things to keep track of as the problem statements and given information are a mix of units and the answer is usually in some other unit.

 
My advice for the final two weeks is, number one, take a timed practice exam if you haven't yet. After that, I would work on maybe one to two hours a day of going back through practice problems that you have previously solved, just work through them again with the basic governing theories and equations in mind, like JR and IlPadrino said. Try to start thinking "big picture" - like what are they really testing me on here. It all boils down to a few basic principles that they are trying to make sure you understand, such as ideal gas law, energy balance, etc. (speaking as an enviro now). If you can think that way, you can save a lot of time on the exam by knowing exactly where to go for the equations.

The second thing I would do is read as much as possible. Some may disagree, but I say the best way to treat these final two weeks is to eat, drink and breathe engineering. Read the actual chapters of the textbooks surrounding the problems you have worked, but in more of a relaxed, not-working-problems mode. Again, start trying to "see" those overriding principles. Every day.

Final day before exam: spend about 3-4 hours going through the NCEES practice exam again. You've done it before, so it won't take more than that amount of time. Don't do anything else, except maybe some more reading. I thought that was an excellent way to "visualize" the day prior to the exam.

 
My advice for the final two weeks is, number one, take a timed practice exam if you haven't yet. After that, I would work on maybe one to two hours a day of going back through practice problems that you have previously solved, just work through them again with the basic governing theories and equations in mind, like JR and IlPadrino said. Try to start thinking "big picture" - like what are they really testing me on here. It all boils down to a few basic principles that they are trying to make sure you understand, such as ideal gas law, energy balance, etc. (speaking as an enviro now). If you can think that way, you can save a lot of time on the exam by knowing exactly where to go for the equations.
The second thing I would do is read as much as possible. Some may disagree, but I say the best way to treat these final two weeks is to eat, drink and breathe engineering. Read the actual chapters of the textbooks surrounding the problems you have worked, but in more of a relaxed, not-working-problems mode. Again, start trying to "see" those overriding principles. Every day.

Final day before exam: spend about 3-4 hours going through the NCEES practice exam again. You've done it before, so it won't take more than that amount of time. Don't do anything else, except maybe some more reading. I thought that was an excellent way to "visualize" the day prior to the exam.

Thanks for the advice. Keep them coming.

Got my Confirmation in the mail today, Phoenix Baptist Church on N Central ave. Any one going there? Like a Manning eq. i's coming together.

 
I know the task ahead of you is daunting, but you all have prepared so much for this point, it is time to make sure you keep your focus and your confidence up. Everyone has butteflies in their stomach walking into this test, it is only natural to feel this way, but with all of your prepping, all of those solved problems, all of those references you have tabbed and retabbed, you ARE ready to do this! You will attack this exam and show it no mercy. There will be a few questions where you say "where in the hell did they come that one", but do not despair, there will be a share of softballs in there for you too!

Relax, recharge, spend an evening with your friends and family.... then go kick some ass!

Good luck all!

-Ray

 
"If you believe in yourself and have dedication and pride - and never quit, you'll be a winner. The price of victory is high, but so are the rewards."

~ Paul "Bear" Bryant

 
Here's something I picked up from doing the practice exam. If you get hung up on a problem and decide to come back to it later, note what pages of your reference materials you were using before moving on. It makes it a lot quicker to pick back up when you get back to that problem.

I learned this the hard way, but luckily it was just on the practice test.

 
Another important part of the last couple of weeks is to take care of yourself physically at a basic level. Try to eat a reasonably healthy diet and get a reasonable amount of sleep. Take care of yourself. You're going to need your strength.

 
^^And stay away from sick people. I caught a cold five days before the exam last year, and just pumped myself full of echinacea (?). It didn't kill the cold, but I think it made it less severe than it could have been. At any rate, it sucked to be kind of sick the week before the exam. Watch out.

 
For reasons out of my control I am not taking the October test. I failed last April. But will go after this April test and hell oh yeah I will pass this time. Good luck to y'all. :p10940623: Keep up the good work and :beerchug:

 
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