G
gipper
Anybody out there take the Stuctural PM? Any advice for this April's test - words of wisdom, do's, don'ts, etc. - would be appreciated. Thanks! bump
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GCracker
Well-known member
Yep!
You need to know the required code books well! IBC chapter 16, ACI, etc.
If you're not familiar with wood design, brush up on it.
It's difficult, but not impossible!
I was more worried about the morning session than the afternoon going into the test. I hadn't worked hydro, enviro, or transpo problems since graduating. But, the morning questions we fairly straight forward. Take time to read the questions and understand what they are asking for and don't get confused by the terms that you're not used to hearing. After leaving the test, I was more concerned with the afternoon.
Let me know if you have any questions. GOOD LUCK!
You need to know the required code books well! IBC chapter 16, ACI, etc.
If you're not familiar with wood design, brush up on it.
It's difficult, but not impossible!
I was more worried about the morning session than the afternoon going into the test. I hadn't worked hydro, enviro, or transpo problems since graduating. But, the morning questions we fairly straight forward. Take time to read the questions and understand what they are asking for and don't get confused by the terms that you're not used to hearing. After leaving the test, I was more concerned with the afternoon.
Let me know if you have any questions. GOOD LUCK!
I'll be taking the structural PM too.
I was wondering about wood design. The CERM doesn't have a single chapter on it. That's weird. Luckily I design with timber every day, so that shouldn't be too big of a problem. I'm more worried about other stuff, like reinforced concrete.
Looking thru sample exams I get the feeling they place a lot of emphasis on finding the right loads. Am I right ?
I was wondering about wood design. The CERM doesn't have a single chapter on it. That's weird. Luckily I design with timber every day, so that shouldn't be too big of a problem. I'm more worried about other stuff, like reinforced concrete.
Looking thru sample exams I get the feeling they place a lot of emphasis on finding the right loads. Am I right ?
GCracker
Well-known member
That is correct. Remember the average time is 6 minutes per problem. It is almost impossible to work in a complete
design problem in 6-minutes. But, code load to be applied, tributary area, etc...etc... can be determined pretty quickly.
The SERM has some basic wood design.
If you design with timber daily, it will be a breeze! I have only designed a few wood decks for family using timber so the questions on the PE were a little difficult for me.
I design falsework among other things. So I know how to calc stresses etc. But I bet it will be difficult for me to figure out the correct loads for applications other than bridges.
C
Chris_TX
I am preparing for the civil pe (structural pm) and would like to know how the actual test questions in the pm compare to those found in the CERM practice problems book. They are all pretty straight forward to me and I was wondering if maybe I am underestimating the difficulty in concentrating on the CERM. I have been studying roughly 10-15 hours a week for the past 5 weeks. About 75% of that time has been working through the text in the CERM and the corresponding questions in the practice problem book.
Am I on the right track in getting ready for this bad boy or should I take a look at some more difficult problems? I cracked the 6 minute solution book and those problems were a touch more difficult and on alot of them I had trouble finishing in 6 minutes even when I worked through them once before.
Any advice is surely welcome and appreciated...
Am I on the right track in getting ready for this bad boy or should I take a look at some more difficult problems? I cracked the 6 minute solution book and those problems were a touch more difficult and on alot of them I had trouble finishing in 6 minutes even when I worked through them once before.
Any advice is surely welcome and appreciated...
Chris, my best advice is to focus on the 6-minute solutions with the CERM/SERM as your references. They will be a hair more difficult, but just keep pounding away at it. You might not get it in 6-minutes, but if you do, then you'll ace the exam - I promise you that!
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GCracker
Well-known member
Sounds like you're on the right track to me. I would also suggest going through the codes, especially IBC.
Grateful73
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The CERM has almost nothing to do with the questions on the structural pm. It does not cover most of the questions on the pm exam. If you want to pass the structural pm, you have to work in the field for several years, and to be REAL familiar with ALL the references published on the NCEES website.
It has a lot of questions on wood, steel, concrete. Very specific questions, the kind that if you only learned in school, and didn’t work with that after, you have no chance of passing.
It has a lot of questions on wood, steel, concrete. Very specific questions, the kind that if you only learned in school, and didn’t work with that after, you have no chance of passing.
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IlliniASU
Engineers don't only drive trains.
I don't think I used the SERM once during the pm section, but I also had the 3rd edition, rather than the fourth. The 4th may be of some use to you. The problems go into much more depth than the exam questions. I think if you can get through the problems in the 4th, you'll be fine.
Is there a site where you can get support for the SERM if you don't understand the material or solutions?
Ble_PE
I need a beer.
I'm going to be taking the structural afternoon exam in October and I was wondering how everyone studied for this exam? I've currently been working whatever problems I can get my hands on, but what else should I be doing? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
OCballer
Active member
Well, you can do Static problems from Lindeburg and it will help maximize your percentage. However, the key is knowing your reference materials really well. Masonry manual, ACIs, AISC 13th, ACSE, and all the others that are mentioned by NCEES. I remembered, they had a lot of look up questions, all you needed to know is where to find it. Structural PM is by far the toughest. I know a lot of people who put there ego aside and took a different path. I didn't know better.
Eventhough I passed the exam the first time, I wouldn't take the structural depth again. Instead, I would have taken Geo'l. and not have that feeling of failure for 3 months until the results are mailed out. The morning AM is really easy and the afternoon is just the opposite. Good luck.
Ble_PE
I need a beer.
I'm definitely going to be taking the structural afternoon, so thanks for the info. I've been working through the 6-minute solutions and the NCEES sample exam. Are you refering to the Practice Problems from Lindeburg? If so, I'm working through it as well. I'm just trying to see what the best plan of action is. So you recommend studying the reference materials and then working problems? Thanks for the help!
6 minute solutions, ncees practice problems, read through CERM, read through all the codes.
if you know your way around the codes, this exam is brutally easy.
sab35263
Well-known member
Do you think its a good idea to have the NCEES Structural I examples to study for the Structural afternoon of the Civil PE? Is is way harder and in depth than what is required for the Civil PE with Structural Depth? What do you guys think?
I am a little worried in terms of taking Structural for my depth. I took Structural as my emphasis in college and even my line of work has always been focused on Structural design. Yet I am debating whether I should take a different specialization just to pass the PE. I just finished taking a my first sample exam (Structural PM) and failed miserably. This a tough one...considering that it's barely two weeks till the dreaded exam.
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