# April 09' Civil PE Exam - How did it go?



## SPSUEngineer

Bringing back an old thread for April 09' Civil PE Exam.

1. Was this your first time taking the exam?

2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam?

3. What did you think of the morning?

4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty?

5. Do you think you passed?

My answers:

1. First Time

2. I started studying mid January. Studied an average of 2 nights during the week for about 2 hours per session and studied 10-12 hours average every weekend up until the exam. I took off the last week to organize my notes and thoughts.

3. I thought it had some curve balls thrown in with it. It was more difficult that I thought it would be. Thought a couple of the questions were a little unfair because of the references required to answer them.

4. Construction Depth. I thought it was very difficult. It was time consuming and very in depth. The questions were a lot more difficult that I thought they would be or prepared for. We need some good study books on the market to reflect the difficulty of the afternoon construction exam.

5. If I was a betting man I would bet I failed it. Its going to be a long 8 weeks. I should have taken the transportation PM module (I guess). Construction PM kicked my tail!


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## Adrock

1. Was this your first time taking the exam?

Yes

2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam?

9 months

3. What did you think of the morning?

Moderate to hard. Few of the structural questions were confusing and transportation question required a reference I did not have.

4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty?

Construction. Pretty complex and difficult.

5. Do you think you passed?

Probably not unless I made correct educated guesses.


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## EnvEngineer

1. Was this your first time taking the exam?yes

2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam?alot

3. What did you think of the morning? I think I did well, I was finished in two hours and spent another hour going over the answeres

4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty?I took construction, it was pretty basic, the questions were routine but did require quite a bit of calculation.

5. Do you think you passed? I am sure I did


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## mattsffrd

i thought the morning was pretty easy and straightforward, i finished over an hour early and spent the rest of the time going back through all my answers multiple times (good thing i did, i found a few stupid mistakes). i took the transportation afternoon session, it was definitely more difficult than the morning session but nothing too crazy...i think i got most of them right. you definitely needed all of the transportation reference material for it, it drew from all of them for the correct answers. i'm 99.9% sure i passed. i HIGHLY recommend the Chen civil book if you need to take it again:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0849309581

i answered probably 5-6 questions with it that i couldn't have solved otherwise.


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## ARLORD

1. Was this your first time taking the exam? Yes first time taking Civil-Str Depth. Passed SE I and SE II in the past.

2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam? Not at all, relied on my knowledge from school for the non-structural questions, and did not have to review structural after studying and taking the SE II in October.

3. What did you think of the morning?

Did well on Struct. and Constr., found a few equations for Water Res. and Transp. in CERM, had no clue on the surveying questions, guessed on the rest. I answered more non-structural questions than I thought I would. There was that one Transp question that required the blue book? What is that and was it even on the reference list?

4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty?

Structural depth, very easy for me. Guessed on the bridge questions and did not have the PCI book. I think the second to last concrete question was invalid, maybe had a typo? I wasted a lot of time looking through ACI for the answer but it wasn't there. I should have gone back to do the brigde questions, but ran out of time.

5. Do you think you passed?

I think I passed, but it all depends on the morning. Can you pass with a 20/40 score in the morning?


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## matayo

1. Was this your first time taking the exam? Yes

2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam? Started in February - took refresher course on weekend, tried to study about 6 hours each week after work - not very efficiently.

3. What did you think of the morning? Straight forward, but a few curve balls.

4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty? Water and Environment - water was easy, environment kicked my butt, just as I expected.

5. Do you think you passed? Couldn't tell, I could be one point from 70 or one point over...that is about how close I think it will be.


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## Daisy

1. Was this your first time taking the exam? NO

2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam? I spent I would say close to 200 hours

3. What did you think of the morning? What I expected, and I did well

4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty? I took Geotech, and I felt totally blindsighted.

5. Do you think you passed? I think it will be really, really close. I was pretty disappointed with the PM section, it was waaaaaayyyyy far off from what I expected and the type of exam I've seen in the past. I used the NCEES practice exam, Lindeberg practice exam and the NCEES outline to prepare, and I felt the test was pretty different from that content. I'm continuing to say a lot of prayers. I didn't like the 2 problems per page format...a girl needs her space to write (that's new from when I last took it, I should have realized it would be that way based on the NCEES practice exam).

Holding out hope for all of us...it is nice to have my life back, that's for sure!


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## soonerce

1. Was this your first time taking the exam? Yes

2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam? About 120 hours

3. What did you think of the morning? Pretty easy, got done in an hour and a half and spent another hour going over my calculations.

4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty? Transportation - difficult because it wasn't like anything I'd practiced for. If I fail I won't make the mistake of not bringing every recommended transportation reference in with me. Very disappointing that it was so different from every practice test I had taken.

5. Do you think you passed? I think it's a coin flip at this point.


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## petobe

soonerce said:


> 1. Was this your first time taking the exam? Yes
> 2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam? About 120 hours
> 
> 3. What did you think of the morning? Pretty easy, got done in an hour and a half and spent another hour going over my calculations.
> 
> 4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty? Transportation - difficult because it wasn't like anything I'd practiced for. If I fail I won't make the mistake of not bringing every recommended transportation reference in with me. Very disappointing that it was so different from every practice test I had taken.
> 
> 5. Do you think you passed? I think it's a coin flip at this point.


you could have written my response... basically the same for me, except i probably spent closer to 160 hours studying.

i was pretty surprised with the transportation section. I took the Lindeburg practice exam and got one wrong... i also did the 6 minute solutions book (120 questions) and got 2 wrong. did multiple other practice problems, read the entire HCM and still felt like i was unprepared for a lot the test. i dont think the outline was very well prepared by NCEES.


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## soonerce

petobe said:


> you could have written my response... basically the same for me, except i probably spent closer to 160 hours studying.
> i was pretty surprised with the transportation section. I took the Lindeburg practice exam and got one wrong... i also did the 6 minute solutions book (120 questions) and got 2 wrong. did multiple other practice problems and felt like i was unprepared for a lot the test. i thought the subject matter (percentage-wise) was not representative of the outline.


Yep, we pretty much studied the same way. I could solve all horizontal/vertical curve, LOS, PHF, stopping/skidding problems in my sleep. I couldn't believe my eyes in the afternoon. About halfway into the depth module I flipped through the whole book expecting to see when the easy stuff (or should I say, the stuff I studied for) would be coming along...and it didn't.

I guess it boils down to the fact that I took a gamble. In the ~300 practice problems I solved before the test, there were about 3 that referenced the material I didn't take in with me. The test was nothing like that...so I took a gamble and lost.


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## jmdennis

Yes, it was my first time, but the test was gentle and went slow…

~60-70 hours over the course of a month. I got a late start on studying, but I managed to read the CERM cover to cover (skipping a chapter here and there) and I did all the questions in the NCEES sample exam at least twice.

The morning seemed pretty straightforward for the most part, and was similar to the practice exam. There were some questions that I was surprised to see, but, thankfully, they were few and far between. It seemed like 90% of the answers could be found in the CERM if you knew where to look. I’m glad I went through it (and the HCM and Green Book) on Thursday night and tabbed anything I thought I might need.

I took the transportation part in the afternoon. Again, it seemed pretty similar to the practice exam but there were a few that I didn’t know how to answer. At least one should answer have been an easy lookup, but I was missing the reference needed. Familiarity with the Green Book paid off, for sure.

I’m about 90-95% sure I passed (knock on wood). There just didn’t seem to be enough “tricky” questions to slip me up, unless they were so tricky that I didn’t recognize them. I only hope I didn’t make any mistakes filling in the circles. I checked every answer in the afternoon, but only spot checked in the morning


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## mattsffrd

about the afternoon transportation session...i agree with you guys, there was VERY little stuff on their that we're actually "told" to study (capacity, surveying/curves, accident analysis, etc), but there weren't any on their that i felt blindsided by...there wasn't a single question that i couldn't find an answer to or didn't know how to solve. some of them were difficult and i'm sure i got them wrong, but the process or answer to all of them could be found in common reference materials. it was very odd that they chose to barely focus on the common stuff though.


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## RockyMtnHigh

1. Was this your first time taking the exam? Yes

2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam? ~200 hours

3. What did you think of the morning? more random than I expected

4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty? Water and Environment, I thought is was very mellow, I had time to double check my work and leave early and get a well deserved beer.

5. Do you think you passed? I hope so!


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## SPSUEngineer

ARLORD said:


> 1. Was this your first time taking the exam? Yes first time taking Civil-Str Depth. Passed SE I and SE II in the past.
> 2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam? Not at all, relied on my knowledge from school for the non-structural questions, and did not have to review structural after studying and taking the SE II in October.
> 
> 3. What did you think of the morning?
> 
> Did well on Struct. and Constr., found a few equations for Water Res. and Transp. in CERM, had no clue on the surveying questions, guessed on the rest. I answered more non-structural questions than I thought I would. There was that one Transp question that required the blue book? What is that and was it even on the reference list?
> 
> 4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty?
> 
> Structural depth, very easy for me. Guessed on the bridge questions and did not have the PCI book. I think the second to last concrete question was invalid, maybe had a typo? I wasted a lot of time looking through ACI for the answer but it wasn't there. I should have gone back to do the brigde questions, but ran out of time.
> 
> 5. Do you think you passed?
> 
> I think I passed, but it all depends on the morning. Can you pass with a 20/40 score in the morning?


Yes you can definitely pass with 20/40 in the morning if you did well in the afternoon. It is overall score that matters...How many correct out of 80 questions.


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## LDV

1. Was this your first time taking the exam? Yes

2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam? ~150hrs total (started in Feb, includes a weekend review course)

3. What did you think of the morning? hmmm, a bit different than expected. Finished 1.5 hrs early, went back to check, caught a few mistakes. Expected to score 35/40, think I was closer to 28/40, not as much cushion as I'd hoped for going into the depth.

4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty? water/env depth. not insanely difficult. some curves. some tricky wording/questions.

5. Do you think you passed? cautiously optimistic. could go either way. I think I was right in the pocket (just failed or just passed). dammit.


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## mkc

This is my first time. I think, I made 24/40 in the morning and 26/40 in the afternoon. Will I pass the PE exam?

Thanks in advance for comments!


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## Santiagj

1. Was this your first time taking the exam?

Yup

2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam?

About 160-170 hours including a prep course.

3. What did you think of the morning?

I thought it was very straight forward. I used the CERM for most of the questions. There was only a couple questions that blindsided me. One question required the green book which I did not have. The CERM did not go into detail on that topic. I was able to finish with about 20 minutes left over. I think I scored about 36-37/40.

4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty?

Geotechnical. I also thought it was fair. I had difficulty with a hand full of problems. Got finished 1 hour ahead of schedule. I think I scored around 34-35/40.

5. Do you think you passed? Yup (knock on wood)


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## BPE07

1. Was this your first time taking the exam? No, Second

2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam? Close to 60 to 70 hours for this go around. First time in October studied for over 200 hours.

3. What did you think of the morning? Strait forward and used the CERM for the whole thing. 30/40 most likely.

4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty?

Structural. Literally felt like a midget was under my desk punching me in the nuts the entire time. I kept turning the pages looking for a question I could answer. Nope.

5. Do you think you passed? No. Most likely will go again in October but will change my afternoon module to Geotechnical.


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## charliemr80

1) Yes

2) 150-200 hrs including review course

3) As expected, think I did OK.

4) Transportation - As others have said felt blindsided, I did all of the practice probs/exams for NCEES &amp; PPI and it was not what I was expecting, really disappointed having put a lot of effort into studying.

5) 50/50 right now after the afternoon session, felt really good at lunch!!


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## Parks and Rec

1. Was this your first time taking the exam?

Yes, Civil- Transportation

2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam?

300 hours, including ITRE review course in the fall.

3. What did you think of the morning?

Pretty simple, not very tricky

4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty?

Civil- Transportation- Pleasantly surprised with the difficulty. Plenty of look-up type questions, not many excessively in-depth calculations

5. Do you think you passed?

Hopefuly, I felt good leaving the test. We'll see in 10-12 weeks.


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## socalcivil

I didn't see this thread last time ... here's how I would have answered after taking it in October 2008:

1. Was this your first time taking the exam?

Yes.

2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam?

~80 hours over about three months, plus a (mostly useless) 20-hour class.

3. What did you think of the morning?

Surprisingly easy. EIT-level difficulty.

4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty?

Enviro/WR. I thought it wasn't difficult, but fortunately, I work in enviro/WR and just recently completed a Master's in civil/enviro. If I had gone in with just work experience and my Bachelor's from ten years ago, it would have been difficult.

5. Do you think you passed

Yes.

Result: I did pass. However, I'm in California, and only passed two of the three required parts (8-hour &amp; surveying), so I still have to pass the seismic test.


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## SPSUEngineer

mkc said:


> This is my first time. I think, I made 24/40 in the morning and 26/40 in the afternoon. Will I pass the PE exam?Thanks in advance for comments!


Nobody will know the true answer to your question. The cut score is determined by NCEES for each exam. One time the cut score may be 50/80 next time it may be 55/80. From what I've read it is usaully safe to assume you will pass if you get 56/80 correct. If you get less than that you may still pass, it just depends on what the cut score will be determined to be by NCEES for your particular exam.


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## steve_p

1. Was this your first time taking the exam?

Yes

2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam?

Atleast 300 hrs

3. What did you think of the morning?

Good 32/40

4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty?

Geotech. Very difficult. Prepared a lot. The PM section was completely different than what i expected. Hoping 22/40

5. Do you think you passed?

I hope so...


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## Diogo

1. Was this your first time taking the exam?

Yes

2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam?

About 150 hrs (70 hr review course and 80 hrs own time)

3. What did you think of the morning?

I think it was farely straight forward. Tested you on concepts. I think I got 35/40.

4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty?

Water/Environmental. The water questions were straight forward, however since I am not an environmental engineer the environmental portion was a bit tougher, but all in all if you had some basic concepts you would be able to answer at least 10/20. I'm hoping for 30/40 in afternoon.

5. Do you think you passed?

I think I passed.


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## T2D4

1. Was this your first time taking the exam?

Yes.

2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam?

~250 hours

3. What did you think of the morning?

Almost embarrassingly easy.

4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty?

Structural. Again, much easier than anticipated.

5. Do you think you passed?

Yes.


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## EL CID

1. Was this your first time taking the exam?

Yes

2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam?

About 100 hrs - 6-8 hrs per week for 4 months

3. What did you think of the morning?

I think straightforward for the most part.

4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty?

Transportation. I was disappointed in the break down of the problems. I don't think the NCEES outline was accurate. There was one particular reference on the recommended list that I though I should have used at least twice and I didn't crack it once.

5. Do you think you passed?

It will be close.


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## January123

Bringing back an old thread for April 09' Civil PE Exam.

1. Was this your first time taking the exam?

YES

2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam?

ABOUT 20HRS A WEEK SINCE JAN. 1ST

3. What did you think of the morning?

COUPLE "TRICKY" QUESTIONS, BUT NOTHING I WOULD CONSIDER "DIFFICULT"

4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty?

TRANSPORTATION, I STUDIED AND WORKED THROUGH ALL 80+ PROBLEMS IN THE SIX-MINUTE SOLUTIONS AND ALOT OF THE BIG AREAS THEY FOCUSED ON WERE NOT ON THE EXAM ANYWHERE, YET OTHER AREAS WERE ALL OVER THE EXAM BUT NOWHERE TO BE FOUND IN THE 6-MINUTE SOLUTIONS MANUAL.

5. Do you think you passed?

FUCK IF I KNOW, DEPENDS ON HOW MANY QUESTIONS THEY DECIDE TO "THROW OUT" BECAUSE THEY WERE NOT ON THE TOPIC OUTLINE.


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## Mike in Gastonia

January123 said:


> 5. Do you think you passed?FUCK IF I KNOW, DEPENDS ON HOW MANY QUESTIONS THEY DECIDE TO "THROW OUT" BECAUSE THEY WERE NOT ON THE TOPIC OUTLINE.



This is the note that's on the bottom of the Transportation specification on the NCEES website:



> 2. The knowledge areas specified as examples of kinds of knowledge are not exclusive or exhaustive categories.


So why would they "throw out" questions not on the outline - apparently the outline is not all inclusive of every topic that can be covered?


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## mattsffrd

you cant just rely on the outline and six minute solution problems. anything in the reference material is fair game. studying your reference material is MUCH more important than doing six the minute solutions. there wasn't a single problem on that afternoon portion that couldn't be solved somewhere in the reference material. they're testing you on whether you're a knowledgeable and competent engineer, not whether or not you studied a certain book of problems.


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## T2D4

Six Minute Solutions were more complex than anything I saw on the exam. The sample questions NCEES puts out were spot on.


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## GoLucky

I felt the afternoon Transportation was fair. If you had the AASHTO you would pass. Most of the problems had 2 or at the most 3 step solutions. Some of the solutions were directly off of AASHTO tables. The HCM stuff were straight forward as well. Coming to the water and Geotech portions in the pm transportation, they were ok.


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## Ajay

1. Was this your first time taking the exam?

No (Second). First time I took Water/Env. Water was OK but Env sucked. Managed only 20% in Env.

2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam?

About 2.5hrs during weekdays and 5 hrs during weekends, from Feb 10th (soon after I received the results letter)

3. What did you think of the morning?

Few tricky questions, but was not prepared for Structural and Construction questions.

4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty?

Transportation. I studied and worked through all NCEES practice test problems &amp; problems in CERM. I had also glanced through the AASHTO Green Book and HCM to familiarize tables and formulas. It did help me quite a bit answering the PM questions. Water and Geotech problems were easy and straight forward...

5. Do you think you passed?

I'm expecting 22/40 for the AM portion and 30/40 for PM portions. Hope I pass this time...What do you guys think???


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## SPSUEngineer

Ajay said:


> 1. Was this your first time taking the exam?No (Second). First time I took Water/Env. Water was OK but Env sucked. Managed only 20% in Env.
> 
> 2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam?
> 
> About 2.5hrs during weekdays and 5 hrs during weekends, from Feb 10th (soon after I received the results letter)
> 
> 3. What did you think of the morning?
> 
> Few tricky questions, but was not prepared for Structural and Construction questions.
> 
> 4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty?
> 
> Transportation. I studied and worked through all NCEES practice test problems &amp; problems in CERM. I had also glanced through the AASHTO Green Book and HCM to familiarize tables and formulas. It did help me quite a bit answering the PM questions. Water and Geotech problems were easy and straight forward...
> 
> 5. Do you think you passed?
> 
> I'm expecting 22/40 for the AM portion and 30/40 for PM portions. Hope I pass this time...What do you guys think???


Nobody knows what the passing score will be. Does your 52/80 include your guesses and everything? The CERM states 56/80 should usually be a rough passing score just as a rule of thumb but the cut score is determined for each particular exam. Good luck to you and all of us waiting on scores. Just 6 more weeks to go (I hope)!


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## Ajay

SPSUEngineer said:


> Nobody knows what the passing score will be. Does your 52/80 include your guesses and everything? The CERM states 56/80 should usually be a rough passing score just as a rule of thumb but the cut score is determined for each particular exam. Good luck to you and all of us waiting on scores. Just 6 more weeks to go (I hope)!




Yup! my prediction of 52/80 includes guesses...but I am sure of 45/80.....

I am just hoping and keeping my fingers crossed...

Damn...6 weeks is a looooonngg wait....


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## livingwaterman

1. Was this your first time taking the exam?

Yes

2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam?

165 hours (Note I just took FE in fall and studied 285 hours - passed first time). If I had not just taken the FE would have studied more.

3. What did you think of the morning?

Much easier than I expected. I think I got at least 29/40. 6 minute sol. much harder than exam problems. NCEES more indicative of problem types.

4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty?

Water - A few hard problems but about what I expected NCEES depth indicative of problem types. 6 minute were not. I think I got at least 32/40

5. Do you think you passed?

If 61/80 is passing then I pass.....


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## livingwaterman

livingwaterman said:


> 1. Was this your first time taking the exam?Yes
> 
> 2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam?
> 
> 165 hours (Note I just took FE in fall and studied 285 hours - passed first time). If I had not just taken the FE would have studied more.
> 
> 3. What did you think of the morning?
> 
> Much easier than I expected. I think I got at least 29/40. 6 minute sol. much harder than exam problems. NCEES more indicative of problem types.
> 
> 4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty?
> 
> Water - A few hard problems but about what I expected NCEES depth indicative of problem types. 6 minute were not. I think I got at least 32/40
> 
> 5. Do you think you passed?
> 
> If 61/80 is passing then I pass.....


Please note that regarding PPI's sample test and 6 minute solutions - I am not saying studying them is not useful, it is just that if you are taking them as trial tests and are stressed for time or did not do well it does not mean you will flunk the test. I gave feedback to PPI and suggested they change the name of 6 min. solutions to 12 minute solutions and that their sample test should be dumbed down to the same level as the actual test. Overall PPI CERM and sample problems for CERM along with 6 min solutions were key resources I used in studying. Save the NCESS and use them as your trail test... You can also get the 2000 version if doing water and get some other problems for practice. CERM + Practice problems, Metcalf and Eddy, and Gupta book on Hydro systems was all I studied. In addition I found having a Env. Engineering Dictionary, a text book on transporation engineering, and a text book on Geotechnical engineering very useful during the exam. I studied the Practice Problems so much the binding is failing... Just wanted to add this because I am not dissing PPI.


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## SPSUEngineer

Some of the test is pure luck in my opinion. The majority of the problems I encountered in the afternoon were much different than the NCEES sample test. If they would have been close or I had the same types of problems, I would be saying the test was easy because I could do those problems in my sleep I studied them so much. A lot of it just has to do with getting the same material on the test that you actually studied. If you took the construction pm you will know exactly what I'm saying. Its not that the problems were that much more complex, they were just different so it required a lot of thought and that takes more time than a problem you are familiar with.


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## Diogo

I took the water resources in the afternoon, but at the end had some time to look over the transportation and construction. I think the best way to prepare for the exam is to pick a concentration and study everything that the NCEES says will be on the exam. The sample exams will only cover 15-20% of the stuff that may show up on the test. So you shouldn't use it to study off of, you should use it to get a feel for the exam.

And as far as the 6-min solutions, I bought those books but didn't even bother going through them, only because the problems are too hard and it takes 60 minutes to answer each question. Instead, I used the time to review and study other topics and questions that would show up on the exam.


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## simmons797

1. Was this your first time taking the exam?

Yes

2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam?

Started about 2 weeks before the exam, 20-30 hours total including getting books together buying a calculator buying CERM etc.

3. What did you think of the morning?

Pretty straight forward, haven't done any structural stuff since college and I've never done any transportation stuff so I wish I would have studied it a little more.

4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty?

Environmental/Water Resources-much easier than I was anticipating, there wasn't a single problem that I couldn't work (I'm sure I still missed a few though)

5. Do you think you passed?

Not sure-I wasn't very confident after the morning session but the afternoon was a breeze, I'd say 50-50, but after taking it this time I know that I should be no problem to pass if I have to take it again (with a little more effort on my part).


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## petobe

Diogo said:


> I took the water resources in the afternoon, but at the end had some time to look over the transportation and construction. I think the best way to prepare for the exam is to pick a concentration and study everything that the NCEES says will be on the exam. The sample exams will only cover 15-20% of the stuff that may show up on the test. So you shouldn't use it to study off of, you should use it to get a feel for the exam.
> *And as far as the 6-min solutions, I bought those books but didn't even bother going through them, only because the problems are too hard and it takes 60 minutes to answer each question*. Instead, I used the time to review and study other topics and questions that would show up on the exam.



that is just not true... at all.


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## mattsffrd

yeah, not even close lol. if you know what you're doing then most of them shouldn't take more than 10 minutes.


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## SPSUEngineer

yep, they don't take that long if you know the procedure. I thought they were helpful. They might be a little more difficult than the typical morning question but they get your mind prepared for the curve balls they like to throw on the exam.


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## livingwaterman

SPSUEngineer said:


> yep, they don't take that long if you know the procedure. I thought they were helpful. They might be a little more difficult than the typical morning question but they get your mind prepared for the curve balls they like to throw on the exam.



I used the 6 minutes a lot for practice and trying to understand the logic of how things worked. What I did not do though is use them as a measure of whether I was prepared for the exam. I thought the NCEES was a much better gage for that (based on what other people were saying) and my experience with the test seems to back that up. The practice problems for the CERM were even more complex and I by far did more of them than anything but once again did not use them as a gage. One person stated that the questions on the test can come from all over the place and that simply studying the NCEEs and thinking you have it covered is dumb. I agree with that but I still think that in terms of complexity and the time it took to do the questions the NCEES was much closer to what I saw on the actual test. One thing said I strongly agree with - covering the CERM (along with Wastewater Engineering and Gupta hydrologic systems in my case) and getting an idea of the breath of issues and where questions may come from is way more important than focusing on the NCEES and hoping the test was just NCEES sample questions with a slight twist because for the most part they were not.


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## mattsffrd

^^^ you hit the nail right on the head, people put WAY to much emphasis on memorizing how to do problems instead of actually learning the theory behind the problems and why they're solving the problem in the first place. you cant just memorize how to solve a bunch of problems and expect to go in and pass this thing, you need to know your resources and the theories behind the types of problems you might see. they're not testing you on whether you bought a book of problems and memorized how to do them, they're testing you on whether or not you know how to competently solve problems using the skills you learned while studying.


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## Ajay

Do any of you guys know who decides the passing score. Is it the NCEES or each individual state boards?

My understanding is that the NCEES evaluates our papers and provides the score, but the state board decide what the cut-off score should be...and the passing cut-off score may vary from state to state...

Also, few of my friends have told me that California has a history of having the highest cut-off score! meaning....is this true??


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## EnvEngineer

Interesting question, I assumed NCEES decided who passed and failed. I did notice that the pass percent for all CA exams (seismic and survery) are about the same. Here is the pass rates for the October 2008 exam. Anyone in another state have their pass rates.

Principles &amp; Practices

Tested1991

Pass744

Pass %37.37%

Fail1247

Fail %62.63%

Pass/Fail Only


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## livingwaterman

I was told by my state board that they use the NCEES/ELES cut score. It is a liability - legal issue because they need to do due dilegence and not be aribtrary in setting the score or they will be open to lawsuit. If any state tried to do it on their own it might be California because of the survey and sizmic issues they add on etc...


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## SPSUEngineer

Each state board can either accept the NCEES cut score or adopt their own cut score for the exam. It is said in the Lindeburg books that most boards simply use the NCEES cut score.


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## Ajay

livingwaterman said:


> I was told by my state board that they use the NCEES/ELES cut score. It is a liability - legal issue because they need to do due dilegence and not be aribtrary in setting the score or they will be open to lawsuit. If any state tried to do it on their own it might be California because of the survey and sizmic issues they add on etc...


Typically, California gives out results approximately a month after all other states...So, if California uses NCEES cut-scores, then CA examinees will know if they have passed or not, based on results from other states...does it work that way??


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## SPSUEngineer

Ajay said:


> Typically, California gives out results approximately a month after all other states...So, if California uses NCEES cut-scores, then CA examinees will know if they have passed or not, based on results from other states...does it work that way??


I don't think so. They don't give out the cut score to anyone. All you know is if you pass or fail. If you fail you simply get a breakdown of how you scored. If you pass all you get is a letter stating you passed. I believe one or two states give the score you received (maybe Virginia or West Virginia I forget) but you still wouldn't know what the cut score was. They keep that secret.


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## mattsffrd

i think its usually around 70%, but i'm pretty sure they change it every time based on the test results


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## civil4799

1. Was this your first time taking the exam? Yes

2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam? In a way not much, but I was taking two online engineering classes and they sure refreshed my memory for some hydraulics, and Geotech stuff.

3. What did you think of the morning? I ran out of time I got stuck on a hydraulic question that I thought I know how to answer but I used too much time on it, so I feel badly about the morning part.

4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty? I took the construction, I thought the questions were straight forward but time consuming, I finished early though as I have lots of experience with estimating questions, and cut/fill calcs.

5. Do you think you passed? 85% sure I passed but the doubt keeps growing the longer I wait for the results.

I have already decided that if I did not pass I will wait and take again next April and not rush to get ready this October.

arty-smiley-048:


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## mkc

Michael Miller said:


> Nobody will know the true answer to your question. The cut score is determined by NCEES for each exam. One time the cut score may be 50/80 next time it may be 55/80. From what I've read it is usaully safe to assume you will pass if you get 56/80 correct. If you get less than that you may still pass, it just depends on what the cut score will be determined to be by NCEES for your particular exam.



Thanks!


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## Tacodriver

1. Was this your first time taking the exam? Yes

2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam? ±200 hrs total starting in Feb

3. What did you think of the morning? Not bad. Easier then I thought it would be.

4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty? Water and Environment. Water was easy. Environmental harder. But I don't do any environmental in the real world so I studied my ass off.

5. Do you think you passed? No idea. Hope to find out soon so I can hit the books again if the news is bad.


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## majk

Bringing back an old thread for April 09' Civil PE Exam.

1. Was this your first time taking the exam?

2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam?

3. What did you think of the morning?

4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty?

5. Do you think you passed?

My answers:

1. First Time hoping it's the Last Time

2. I started studying toward the end of February. 30-40 hours per week from then until the test.

3. Answered 27 confidently (as confidently as they can be answered, anyway) before 10am and used the rest of the time to squeak out 10 or so more. Threw down a 'B' for 3 or 4 hoping to get just one.

4. Transportation. I was prepared for worse but different, and I would have been better off if the test followed the practice problem sets that I practiced...but who wouldn't?

5. Feeling good...but who knows...75/25 perhaps.


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## trees

1. Was this your first time taking the exam? Yes

2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam? Not much

3. What did you think of the morning? OK, but I am a structure guy, the hydraulic and environment really killed me.

4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty? Structure......almost used all the design codes. I am a bridge engineer. AASHTO is not a problem but the questions for AASHTO were really limited.

5. Do you think you passed? Hope so...


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## ElCid03

trees said:


> 1. Was this your first time taking the exam? Yes
> 2. How much did you study or prepare for the exam? A bajillion hours, the more the better.
> 
> 3. What did you think of the morning? Not too bad, hated the structural stuff though
> 
> 4. What depth did you take and how would you judge the difficulty? Construction baby! Just like the FE, I enjoyed afternoon more than the morning.
> 
> 5. Do you think you passed? I did, good luck to everyone taking it in October!


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