# What PE Exam Includes



## yoni (Aug 15, 2010)

Hello community.

I am a little confused about the structure of the PE Exam.

I understood that there is the AM and the PM parts, in addition there should also be seismic part and surveying? How exactly is it organized?

Also, is it like the FE exam where the AM part is the same for everybody and for the PM part each one can choose a specific topic?

Any clarification is highly appreciated.

Thanks,

Jonathan


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## outatime2002 (Aug 15, 2010)

yoni said:


> Hello community. I am a little confused about the structure of the PE Exam.
> 
> I understood that there is the AM and the PM parts, in addition there should also be seismic part and surveying? How exactly is it organized?
> 
> ...


First of all, if you are not taking the exam in California, you do not have to be concerned with the Seismic &amp; Surveying Exams. If you are taking it in CA, then yes, you are required to pass both seismic and surveying. The make up in a nutshell is as follows:

Friday AM: 4 hour general civil exam (40 questions)

Friday PM: 4 hour exam focusing on a subdiscipline of your choice: structural, geotechnical, transportation, water resources or construction (40 questions)

Saturday AM: 2.5 hour seismic exam (50 questions)

Saturday PM: 2.5 hour surveying exam (50 questions)

Also, you must complete a 25 question ethics take-home exam.


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## MikeHansen (Aug 16, 2010)

To further break it down:

The morning session is 40 problems.

8 Problems: Hydrology

8 Problems: Geotech

8 Problems: Structures

8 Problems: Construction

8 Problems: Transportation

There are 8 problems per section. 1 of every 8 questions is a "Theory" question. It requires no calculations usually but is either a quick definition or just a test of your engineering knowledge.

The afternoon session is specific to the topic you choose. I went hydrology/environmental and there were 20 hydrology / 20 environmental problems.

If you need some examples of good morning session problems and detailed solutions I wrote a guide with 40 practice problems relative to what you will see on the actual exam.

Mike's Civil PE Exam Guide. Find me at my website or on Amazon.com.

www.PEexamguides.com

Enter code 9EVBAXM6 for $5 off the book.


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## chess5329 (Aug 16, 2010)

MikeHansen said:


> To further break it down:
> The morning session is 40 problems.
> 
> 8 Problems: Hydrology
> ...


Hi there Mike.

How many pages does your book has?


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