Club of people who failed April 2015

[NJmike PE 3,745]

Any one have any sudgestion of where i can get example exams to practice from?

amazon sells older NCEES practice exam books

[wirelessengineer21 4]

well i failed pretty spectacularly. I probably put in 10-12 hours a week for 3 months (~144 hours). This was for Electrical Electronics. Im an RF engineer who majored in Computer Engineering and am 33 years old. I passed the FE two years ago, on two attempts. I spent about 250 hours 1st attempt barely failing, but on the 2nd attempt scaled back the studying the above 10-12 hours for 3 months and passed.

I thought with the FE info still being relatively fresh I could continue with the above schedule. Well that obviously wasnt the case. Diagnostic report clearly indicates what I need to focus in. I'll be ready next time. Really sucks that there are VERY limited resources for this exam. Just have to redo practice problems and keep up with the camara book. Good luck to all. Sucks, but dont give up. Kinda bummed today, but i'll get over it.

[usbrwaterdog 1]

I passed the PE transportation on first attempt. I recommend school of PE for the morning exam, it's is lacking for the afternoon exam. For the afternoon exam I studied example problems from the HCM manual, Tabbed the Green book. For the HCM manual I only studied one volume, dealing with capacity (heavy vehicle factor, FFS, volume on lanes etc etc) . I think I only used 2 or 3 chapters from the CERM book for the afternoon exam. I also became proficient with Geometric curves (horizontal curves, vertical curves). I had to proficient in Geometric curves because these problems show up on the California Special exam surveying test. Hope this helps.

[gigabit 1]

John...I was very familiar with the outline but my weakness's were in areas that we almost never experience in Florida in the real world. I felt like I studied this areas enough to turn out a few questions right but this was not the case. The problem I have is that this is a national test but geologic conditions are highly variable across the states. Still not an excuse but I think the geotech should be more region specific and focus less on areas that are less likely to be encountered in that region.

The positives out of all this is that I know what to expect on test day and I know what areas to focus on. I think maybe taking a class for the afternoon section would be beneficial this time around...

Second Time taking the Civil Geotech. First time I studied maybe 40 hours but stopped due to lack of motivation and took the test. Ended up with a 53 on the first test. It clearly showed that I needed to work on geotech as the morning I got a 33. What really put me at a disadvantage was the references I took. The questions they asked were not in my references, I took the Codudo general geotechnical book and the CERM. The CERM was absolutely no help in the afternoon for geotech.

This second time around I was really seeking a better book to both study from that would enhance what Codudo was explaining. I found a book called Geotechnical Engineers Portable Handbook, Second Edition written by Robert Day. I found that while studying this was my go to book. I would also reference Codudo but the information was much better in the Handbook.

My study regimen was I worked through the 6 min solutions twice. Once to learn, the second was for speed. Then I had two different copies of the NCEES sample tests and used that to study from I didn't use them as a practice test. I took 1 week to study the morning section since you have a lot of time in the morning to look everything up in the CERM. I started Studying in February and studied all the way up to the exam with a week off in the middle to re-center. Right before the test I felt unprepared and I needed to study more but I left from the test confident in my answers. There was a lot I studied that they did not even test on. There were maybe 3-4 questions that I had to guess on such as the <edited> question etc...

Edited June 2, 2015 by ptatohed

[omegaman 0]

CA Water Resources

first time taker

failed 8 hr

48/80 = 60%

anyone else?

[steve1226 0]

Failed the civil/WR with a lousy 48/80. Took SoPE and relied on their WR depth review but it felt too short and almost too easy. I'm taking the review course again, free for repeats, but I'm going to add more review material from other sources. Any recommendations?

[John QPE 198]

EET

[caley89 10]

Failed the civil/WR with a lousy 48/80. Took SoPE and relied on their WR depth review but it felt too short and almost too easy. I'm taking the review course again, free for repeats, but I'm going to add more review material from other sources. Any recommendations?

NCEES practice exams

[khusaibi_PE 2]

Thanks for the words of wisdom

Can anyone rate EET against SoPE?

I did take the SoPE and I will be happy to invest in EET this time around if it's worth it to supplement my SoPE study material

I only took EET but my coworker took SoPE and said she felt the afternoon was lacking in material. I don't know how much this well help you as we're both transportation.

For those who recommend taking the EET Review Course, I am sitting the structural depth for the PM Portion of the exam, and EET doesnt seem to provide a structural depth prep

From your testimonials I feel like I would benefit from their AM review course, but can anyone recommend an alternative to SoPE for a PM Course and your thoughts on the material and topics covered

Thanks

[sanrellp 0]

I had similar issues. I got 26/40 in morning and 25/50 in afternoon.. Sucks..

[sanrellp 0]

I also have few study materials and if anyone is interested in sharing or discussing problems, it will be good. I am planning to take Geotechnical depth.

[Wezre 2]

I also have few study materials and if anyone is interested in sharing or discussing problems, it will be good. I am planning to take Geotechnical depth.

I took and passed the Geotech depth on my first try. I took a night class (~16 sessions, 2 hours per session) that was put on by my local ASCE branch. I then did four practice exams, and took the NCEES practice exam the weekend before the test. I'm assuming most people study more, and I'm lucky in that I'm exposed to a wide range of practical experience in my job. I brought the following references:

CERM

Das, 6th edition

Holtz and Kovacs

NCMA Segmental Retaining Wall Manual

NCEES Practice Exam

Lecture notes from my class (covered all topics, including depth notes on Geotech)

The lecture notes, CERM, and practice exam had most of what I needed, and the NCMA manual was actually helpful (don't ask me what prompted me to bring it - lucky I guess)

[sunny777 4]

I got 22/40 in AM and 19/40 in PM. I took Structural PM. I took TestMaster's review class but did not study much and I think I need to practice lot of problems now. Any thoughts @ construction AM prep and Structural PM prep?

[dmichiels 1]

Joining the club. Took the Environmental Exam in WI. Not sure if I'll be taking it again in Fall or waiting til spring. Father of 2 young ones and scheduled for much field work this summer leads me to think time will be limited.

[vinumr 0]

Joining this club..

Got 32 in the morn and 20 in the noon. May have fallen short with 8 points.

I did take SoPE and it really helped me for morning. You get 24hrs of review for afternoon (I took structural PM) and I feel more materials required for practice and studying for the depth portion.

Any advice on Testmaster's PM material for Depth?

[vinumr 0]

I got 22/40 in AM and 19/40 in PM. I took Structural PM. I took TestMaster's review class but did not study much and I think I need to practice lot of problems now. Any thoughts @ construction AM prep and Structural PM prep?

Does testmaster review course includes materials for structural PM too?

[sunny777 4]

@vinumr - Yes Testmasters have Structural PM material too.

[COE Civil 1]

CA Water Resources

first time taker

failed 8 hr

48/80 = 60%

anyone else?

same score for me.

[SgtDilbert 0]

1st time taker, Mechanical: Mech Systems & Materials: 52.5%, AM Score 22/40, PM Score 20/40. Retaking in October.

I took a prep class at Penn State and did fairly well (>70%) on NCESS practice exam, plus, put in a lot of hours (300+) but, in the end, I needed more. I will do a lot more of the Mike Lindeburg problems this time around as well as take the Lindeburg practice exam.

Who else is retaking mechanical mechanisms and materials? What was your score?

-D

[mcordivari 1]

Failed here too, first time....37/80. I had less than 2 months from exam approval to study, and put waaaay too much faith in School of PE. If School of PE was worth it's salt (and the $1,000 spent), I think I'd have scored better. I did every practice problem and troubleshooted wrong answers, attended every class, and failed. I think if I try this again next April (getting married in Sept), I'm going to begin doing timed NCEES practice problems right after Christmas. The issue I'm having is I am discouraged by such a poor grade first time around, will I even have a remote shot at getting it next time? I've failed a few standardized tests recently, and just may hang my hat and accept where I am in my career and stop wasting my time.

[mcordivari 1]

Also, I may try and get a full refund from School of PE, the material was way off and my class notes were essentially useless.

[BLG923PE 19]

Failed here too, first time....37/80. I had less than 2 months from exam approval to study, and put waaaay too much faith in School of PE. If School of PE was worth it's salt (and the $1,000 spent), I think I'd have scored better. I did every practice problem and troubleshooted wrong answers, attended every class, and failed. I think if I try this again next April (getting married in Sept), I'm going to begin doing timed NCEES practice problems right after Christmas. The issue I'm having is I am discouraged by such a poor grade first time around, will I even have a remote shot at getting it next time? I've failed a few standardized tests recently, and just may hang my hat and accept where I am in my career and stop wasting my time.

I'll speak to this a bit and hopefully you don't take any insult from it (while also avoiding violating the NCEES agreement). I used the SoPE notes almost exclusively for the morning session (I'd say 90%). There were only a handful of problems, primarily lookup, that another reference was needed for. I also used my transportation specific references (Greek Book) for the AM when needed but could have easily just used the SoPE notes on the topic. IMO, it is not enough to just attend class and complete the practice problems but to fully understand all of the material and how it may be used to answer a problem. Even though SoPE attempted to diversify the practice problems to anticipate what may be on the exam, you couldn't reasonably expect that you would be able to just pull answers from the notes without any effort. Unless you fully understand how to use the notes to your advantage and move away from expecting them to magically give you answers, I suspect you'll have difficulty using any set of references. (and when I say "you", I'm speaking in general)

Keep in mind my intention of this post is only to give another opinion so that any future test takers do not shy away from what I considered a very valuable course.

My suggestion to you is to keep your head up, go at it again and crush it. You've come this far and while a 37/80 may seem way off, you're about 2/3 of the way to passing. Maybe taking the free repeat would be to your benefit for the areas you had difficulty with. I don't recall what the policy is on the free retake but I'm sure they'd work with you to let you skip a cycle.

Edited June 10, 2015 by BLG923PE

[mcordivari 1]

Thanks for the advice BLG, no offense at all. I thought the notes would help me, but it wasn't even worth bringing them.

[Blue 8 17]

Thanks for the advice BLG, no offense at all. I thought the notes would help me, but it wasn't even worth bringing them.

Which exam did you take? I did SOPE env and thought it was well worth the money. Some instructors were stronger than others but it helped me to narrow the scope of such a broad exam.

[Kovz 63]

Failed here too, first time....37/80. I had less than 2 months from exam approval to study, and put waaaay too much faith in School of PE. If School of PE was worth it's salt (and the $1,000 spent), I think I'd have scored better. I did every practice problem and troubleshooted wrong answers, attended every class, and failed. I think if I try this again next April (getting married in Sept), I'm going to begin doing timed NCEES practice problems right after Christmas. The issue I'm having is I am discouraged by such a poor grade first time around, will I even have a remote shot at getting it next time? I've failed a few standardized tests recently, and just may hang my hat and accept where I am in my career and stop wasting my time.

I'm sorry if this comes off harsh... but sometimes a kick in the ass is what it takes to motivate someone. Are you really thinking about giving up after one time? I mean, how bad do you really want this? It takes desire and dedication... If it was easy, everyone would do it. So what if you failed a few standardized tests and you failed the PE after trying it once. Pick yourself up and get back to work. The only true failures are those who quit. How about this famous quote, "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again".

And this message is coming from a guy who took the FE 4 damn times... and studied 9 months for the PE with a 2 year old at home and wife in grad school.

Don't give up! You got this. You will eventually pass. Just try a different study technique and maybe dedicate more time than 2 months.

Edited June 11, 2015 by Kovz