MERM Practice Problems

I need a little advice on how to address the MERM Practice Problems in my studies.    

Some of these problems I am doing okay, but many of them I have to look at the solutions. It's taking me forever to get through just the fluids section.  Looking at the amount of material I need to cover from fluids to basic machine design, it may take me until exam to finish.  I feel like I'm losing time from reworking the NCEES and SMS.  

Is it a good approach to go through the problems and look at the solution when needed and use the PPI practice problems as a guide on things to highlight and Tab in the MERM?

Or should I go back to the NCEES and SMS until I'm close to 100%, then use the last few weeks to work as many of the MERM prac. problems I can?

I would keep working the MERM practice practice problems.  There are a wide array of problems in MERM Practice problems book that are not in the NCEES or SMS.

I think it depends on whether you think you can finish the practice problems.

I took the MS&M depth exam in Ocotber 2015, and I used the MERM13 and companion problems exclusively for my preparation. This approach was incredibly time consuming (~400hrs), but I did enter the exam very confident and I left feeling like I dominated it.

Background: I started in May, at Chapter 1, and I committed to working every problem without reviewing the answer first. Quite often I would find that I approached the problem wrong after thinking and working at it for a while - only to have to start over again after reading through the solution. This is normal, and you shouldn't be discouraged by this. Struggling through these problems is the point. If you follow this approach you should understand the material very well. 

But... If you won't have time to finish all the problems (and by now you should be able to project out how much time you'll need) you will have to weigh the benefit of continuing on and understanding some material very well OR taking a different watered-down approach that's faster and understanding all the material so-so. Only you can determine which approach suits you better.

Others may argue to just work exam type problems ad nauseum, using a rotating combination of the NCEES practice exams and the SMS. Personally that approach did not fit well with my objective for taking the exam, but it may very well work for you and others.

Good luck!

I'd continue plugging thru the MERM companion problems.   Get through them now, you don't want to be working on these come the week of the exam, believe me.  They will just frustrate the heck out of you.   Use the solutions to aide you, don't feel bad about that!   And to make you feel better, the Fluids problems are by far the hardest in that book (at least for me they were, with heat transfer being second).   The fluids and heat transfer problems take forever!   They are also the ones with the famed 'iterative solutions' that everyone complains about in this book.  

Which exam are you taking?

Ignore any problems that require iterative solutions.

Thanks everyone for the help!  I am taking the Mechanical Thermal Fluids again for the second time.  

I only worked the SMS TFL and NCEES 2011 TFL twice last time but never got to the point were I could work the problem "in my sleep". This time around, I've worked the SMS TFL(completely), SMS MM (breadth), SMS HVAC (breadth), NCEES TFL (2011 and 2001) completely through once and wanted to add the MERM practice problems to hopefully expose me to some "curve balls" or "tweaks" that the PE exam tends to do.  Those tripped me up last test cycle, on top of nerves and being a bad test taker to start with.  

I did pretty good on my first run of the NCEES 2001 so I thought I would do the practice problems so expose me to  more and help me tab my MERM with additional relevant material not covered in the SMS TFL and NCEES TFL 2011 & 2001.  

Based off of the "How I passed the Thermal/Fluids PE Exam" thread, maybe I should stop working the MERM problems once I finish the fluids section and rework the SMS TFL and NCEES TFL 2011 & 2001 atleast 3 more times before returning to the MERM practice problems.  

Question:

Once I've worked the SMS and NCEES should I work the MERM practice problems or the example problems in the MERM?  Do I miss anything just working the MERM instead of the practice problem book?   

Only work them by using the solutions, if you are actually taking the time to learn why the solution IS the solution.

Here is what worked for me (quoted from a thread of mine earlier in the year in preparation for the April 16 exam).  

About half way thru the thermo/hvac sections of the MERM, I figured out a process that really helps me.   Upon starting a new chapter;  I look over the MERM chapter for a few minutes, then I read every PP problem and go directly to the solutions, I skim over the solutions and compare the approach to the equations in the MERM chapter.   Then I start on the first problem trying to solve it without the aide of the solution.    When I complete a chapter, or in same cases a certain key problem, I update my notes recording any key formulas and tricks/tips that helped with the problem.    This process takes more time but I feel that I actually retained some knowledge in the end and have good notes.   Sometimes I choose to 'skip' a problem based on the complexity (at least in areas not in my depth).   I'd rather really understand and be able to compute 50% of the problems than power thru 90-100% without retention.  

Click to expand...

I started this approach AFTER the fluids section. I had similar feelings as you as I was trying to grind away thru fluids.  Once I started this tactic, it went much smoother.  I'd love to say that it went 'faster', for I doubt it, but I had much more retention. 

Thank again and  I value everyone's suggestions.  If I fail this test cycle, I want to be able to say that there was not much more I could have done as far a preparation.