# I failed PE 3 times and passed on the 4th



## DVINNY (Mar 17, 2008)

The first three times, I just worked a few problems out of the C.E.R.M. and tried to familarize myself with the various sections.

It did not work out for me.

The forth time, starting 3 weeks out, I sat down and read the chapters of the CERM that are involved in my test.

I read it like it was a book, trying to comprehend every subject, and relating each item to a work or life experience. I read about 15-20 chapters of it and injested it all.

When I took the exam the 4th time, there were so many questions that I had an immediate understanding of what they were asking me because I had just read it in the CERM. I'm sure those questions are covered in various other resources, but to me, it is what made the difference.

There were several "GIMME" questions that I knew without even looking in the CERM (although I did anyway to double check) because I had just read them.

I suggest, at this point, picking the 12 most pertinent chapters, and reading them word for word like it was a book. Not skimming, but really reading and thinking of practical situations that you've been in that relates to the subject matter. It will make it sink in.

That's my advice, wish I had done it the first time instead of the 4th.


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## maryannette (Mar 17, 2008)

Great advice. I did a lot of that when I studied. I also highlighted. That helps my memory.


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## wilheldp_PE (Mar 17, 2008)

I actually started my studying by reading several chapters of the EERM in the order suggested by "the other board". My buddy signed up for their study guide service and forwarded me the schedule that they sent him. Instead of working the companion problems, I just read the chapters in that order. Then I started working through some sample problems, then moved on to sample exams. Reading the EERM like a book definitely does help you to quickly use it as a reference. There were several questions that I knew how to find the answer because I remembered seeing a chart or sample in the book.

We'll see how well my strategy worked out in about 24 days.


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## NCcarguy (Mar 17, 2008)

Hey....I can post here too, since I was a 4-timer myself.

The thing that helped me the most on my forth attempt was slowing down during the test. I absolutely took my time on EACH question. Of course I kept an eye on my watch, kinda, but for the most part I just took my time.

I CAREFULLY read each question, I made sure of exactly what was being asked. I also was VERY careful not to miss the units that the answer was in.

I truly believe that ALL of you that graduated from a 4 year college that are taking this test are capable of passing it on the first attempt, and many of you that don't only miss it by a point or two, and PROBABLY missed a gimme or two by not paying attention.

Don't let that be the reason you didn't pass!


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## ccollet (Apr 3, 2008)

thanks for the tip,

this will be my 4th try too.

last time i was short of passing by only 1 or 2 questions so maybe reading through the CERM will do the trick.


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## DVINNY (Oct 8, 2008)

DVINNY said:


> The first three times, I just worked a few problems out of the C.E.R.M. and tried to familarize myself with the various sections.It did not work out for me.
> 
> The forth time, starting 3 weeks out, I sat down and read the chapters of the CERM that are involved in my test.
> 
> ...


bump

cause it's time for October test takers to READ!!


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## BPCW (Oct 8, 2008)

Good advice DVINNY. I'll be a first timer in a little over 2 weeks but I can echo your comments. I was really struggling with some of the practice problems. I was just blindly searching around looking for a formula to plug the givens into. Over the past few days I have taken the time to sit down and read the CERM and I wish I would have done so much earlier.

For me, it really helps to know what the reoxygenation constant IS and MEANS...not just that it is Kr in a formula.


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## csb (Oct 8, 2008)

Here's hoping third time is a charm...


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## sehad (Oct 8, 2008)

csb said:


> Here's hoping third time is a charm...


I'm sure it will be. I passed first time, but I pretty much did what DVINNY is saying he did for the first time so it works!


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## snickerd3 (Oct 8, 2008)

sehad said:


> I'm sure it will be. I passed first time, but I pretty much did what DVINNY is saying he did for the first time so it works!


Amen to that! (oops wrong thread  )

Reading it like a book worked for me too.


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## Dexman1349 (Oct 8, 2008)

When I prepared for the exam I followed this study pattern:

I took the NCEES sample problems as if it was an exam. I used that to gage what I needed to study (just about all of it, lol).

I then read the CERM. Started at chaper 1, read all the way through it. I paid no attention to the NCEES outline. I just read it. If something didn't sink in or if there was any confusion, I read it again. I think I read some of the transportation chapers 2-3 times each.

I re-took the NCEES sample problems about 2 days before the exam.

Took the day off before the exam and did nothing. I actually think I went out and test drove sports cars (at least the ones they let me into).

I personally didn't work alot of practice problems, but my studying techniques in college didn't utilize them either. I was one of those guys who could read the chapter and understand it without the practice. The only reason I would need to practice would be for memorization reasons, but since we could bring in references I didn't memorize anything other than where to find stuff (and didn't memorize much there either as I just used the index).

Obviously this wouldn't work for everyone, but in any case I would still highly recommend reading the CERM. I wouldn't recommend picking and choosing specific chapters, as alot of the information may not be grouped together the way you would do it. I see alot of people complaing on how little it covers as far as the construction part. These people obviously didn't read the CERM, because most of the construction stuff is in there (at least in the 10th edition).


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## ccollet (Jan 12, 2009)

i did too.

4th time was a charm.


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## Willmar (Jan 12, 2009)

I'm a 4th timer as well!


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## csb (Jan 12, 2009)

I guess I should update this...third time was a charm- I passed. And I read the CERM like it was a book. A big, long, boring book. However, it meant that things were fresh when I got to the exam and all the gimmie questions were easy to find.


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## buick455 (Jan 12, 2009)

I will be on my second time in April 2009. I got a 65 on the first try. The one major change is that I am reading the MERM front to back (or nearly). I have already found a few things on the last exam that I had not covered. The first time I did allot of problems but they did not cover 100% of every topic in MERM. I then plan to go back a do some problems from each topic as a re-review and take an pre-exam. The most I can spend about 20 hours a week which I hope is enough time.


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## ktulu (Jan 12, 2009)

Here's my testimony. I am a 5th timer. Failed 4 times - passed on #5. A few pieces of advice from me that I think was the sole reasons behind my passing:

#1: Take a review course. For me, it was the School of PE. Did 2 things for me; made me look at the material for at least 80 hours. And it cut out all the non-essential materials that have a low % of showing up on the test. Worked like a charm (without getting into specifics) Trust me.

#2: Dedicate yourself. For me, it was like this. My ultimate goal is to, Lord willing, open up my own office for the company I work for now down along the Gulf Coast where I grew up. For that to occur, I needed the PE. And I dedicated this time for my little girl, for I did not want to keep taking time away from her b/c I had to study. It was easy this time b/c I had to actually be out of town a good bit for work, so there were no distractions to take me away from studying.

Now, why it took me failing 4 times and costing me a bunch of money for this to sink in? I have no clue, but it was probably due to laziness on my part. But, the end result is that now I am a PE!!

Good luck, and I hope this helps.

ktulu


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## dastuff (Jan 12, 2009)

After work I had to go to the library to study some.

If i tried to go home I'd go online, or watch tv, go to the gym..

So I'd lock myself into the library and although frequent walks did occur, I was 100% more effective there than when I tried to study at home.


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## maryannette (Jan 12, 2009)

I hope that this thread will be encouragement to those who did not pass on 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, or even Xth attempt. I passed on #4. Many of us did. If you want it, try again. We're here for you, cheering you on, just like others did for us.


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## 3sACharm (Jan 12, 2009)

mary:) said:


> I hope that this thread will be encouragement to those who did not pass on 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, or even Xth attempt. I passed on #4. Many of us did. If you want it, try again. We're here for you, cheering you on, just like others did for us.


Here here! It's a hard test. Here's a summary of my PE "journey":

First time - I took a 6 week review course on Saturdays, and looked through all the notes. I didn't really do a lot of practice problems (we were in the process of moving so study time just wasn't available). I knew I'd be unprepared, but I took the test and looked at it as a slightly expensive practice exam. I was 80% sure I failed, and I did  . I think I spent more time color coding binders and references than I did doing practice problems...

Second time - NCEES changed the exam format to include Construction and also merged Water/Enviro Depth, so I spent a ton of time on Construction/Enviro problems because I didn't think I had enough background to do well in those areas. I decided to join a study group (two actually). We met twice a week for 3-4 hours, averaged 4 problems per session. We also worked a practice exam as a group, and we did another as a timed test (I aced the water section, failed the rest). Almost all our time was spent on the depth section. On my own I worked some practice problems, mainly from the NCEES sample exam and some from the CERM book, plus I spent an inordinate amount of time organizing references and problems so I could look them up quickly. I felt like I did a LOT better, and felt great about the exam when I was done. Still failed though  This time, I had aced the Water section in the morning, and was still weak in structural, transpo, geotech, plus I had some really weak scores in the afternoon on certain topics based on my diagnostic report.

Third time - I skipped the study group, but had some lunch sessions with PE's in my office who helped explain some key concepts in the areas that I was particularly lacking comprehension(structures/geotech). Those really helped my basic knowledge and made working problems easier (I'd been avoiding practice problems in those areas because I couldn't get over the hurdle of not "getting" the fundamentals). I spent 50% of my time on practice problems in the 5 morning disciplines and 50% on the afternoon areas that I had weak scores. I made a binder to store all my work. I did a TON of practice problems, making sure that not only did I have the right answers, but that I "got" the concepts. I realized I made tons of careless mistakes when I tried to rush through things, like unit conversion errors, using perimeter instead of wetted perimeter (doh), etc. Catching mistakes became my main focus, because I knew that was the easiest thing to fix to improve my exam score. I made a list of repeat mistakes/errors I made and put it on the wall where I studied. Every mistake I caught was a possible point closer to passing. By the time I took the exam, I was subconciously checking for those errors without looking at the list. I studied from July to October, with a 2 week vacation to Europe right at the end of September. Just before that vacation, I was coming home from work at 6pm, studying until 11pm, plus 8-10 hrs on the weekend. After the vacation I went back to that same routine. I memorized a lot of basic equations because looking them up wasted a lot of time on the last exam attempt. I tabbed the living s*** out of my CERM book, and read every chapter. I also wrote what page in CERM I used to answer each question (when I used CERM, which was 90% of the time) While studying, I felt like a shut-in, and I was determined not to suffer through another exam cycle. I took the exam and felt like there were a lot of curveballs I wasn't prepared for. I hardly used any of my references other than CERM and my own practice problems. I felt like complete crap after I finished the exam, it was like a study hangover. Then I got the letter 2 months later saying I'd passed


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## 3sACharm (Jan 12, 2009)

I think the most important things I learned taking the PE this last time were:

1. Don't think about how many hours to study total, for me thinking about that was overwhelming. Just start a routine and stick to it, whether its 2 hours a day for 4 months, or 4 hours a day for 2 months...it does take a lot of time to prepare, but it's the quality of that time that counts. If you're just sitting there trying to get through another study session because you have to, it won't help if you aren't learning something.

2. Don't do problems that are 10 times harder than PE problems, it's just wasting your mental energy and your study time. I wasted a lot of time on these long 10-15 step practice problems and never used them again. Buy the NCEES Sample Exam or 6 min solutions and also work similar problems at that level tha tyou can dig up/find.

3. Do focus on catching mistakes, checking units, reading the question completely. When you make a mistake write down a reminder to fix/look for that mistake next time to prevent it. On the top of my list it said, "Do you want your PE? Then DON't do this:"

4. Do make sure you can answer the question in more than one way, maybe by reversing what you're solving for, to show that you can function outside the "study vacuum". Doing this can give you twice or three times the practice with just a handfull of problems.

5. Do read the CERM book as you work problems. I couldn't read it cover to cover in one sitting, so I read it as it became applicable to what I was studying. If you are doing a question and realize you need Chapter 30, read the whole Chapter as part of working that problem, you'll get through the book and you'll get practice problems done at the same time.

6. Do take breaks. Studying all the time will burn you out before the exam. Make sure you can step away from the books, come back and still remember what you learned/practiced/etc.

7. Do have two book piles: 1) One is the most critical items you'll use for 98% of the exam (CERM, notes, practice work, etc.) 2) the other is a bunch of random books, or "security blankets" you'll probably not need but might like to have just in case. The second pile should include one book for every morning topic that goes more into depth than the CERM, plus an engineering dictionary. These may be handy for obscure "wild card" questions, but don't spend time reading through these in great detail, or tabbing them (that's what the index is for!).


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## MechGuy (Jan 12, 2009)

I was a three timer as well, and I am the prime example of never give up!

1st time: decided to take PE at the last minute you could sign up for it. Took a review class (Testmasters) but didnt really hit the books very hard. Failed with a 68. Couldnt finish all the problems in time during the exam.

2nd time: took the online review course with PPI. Did more problems, but fell behind in the study schedule and still didnt take it seriously enough. Result: failed with a 68. couldnt finish all the problems during the exam.

3rd time: decided that it was ballzout or nothing! Started studying the day I found out I failed the April exam. Read every entire chapter of MERM that had topics on the exam. Did every example problem in MERM and every problem in the associated book of problems. Worked out every problem in all three 6 minute solutions books. Took the NCEES Sample exam as well as the Lindberg Sample Exam. Took the week of the exam off.

Result: Was done an hour early during the morning exam and finished all the problems in the afternoon exam. Result: Passed with an 82.

For me, this exam simply took ballzout studying every night after work for 4 months. My wife and kids hated me but they understood. and now they are happy. So why are you reading this? get off your arse and study!!!

oh, and the folks on this board helped me out a ton too


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## tbob (Jan 20, 2009)

Hi MechGuy

Can you let me know which review course help you more for the PE exam. I am try to take one Testmaster or PPI.

Thanks.


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