# Fellow Engineers, who have passed the PE exam, can you suggest me what you did different to pass the exam?



## Engineer_562 (Dec 4, 2017)

Hello all,

A little about me, I got 42% on the first attempt (April 2017), 49% on the second (oct 2017) and will be taking it again in April 2018. By looking at the average passing score, I think I need something like 75% to pass it (please correct me if I am wrong). 

I have MERM, statics from hibbeler, solid mechanics from hibbeler, Shigley mechanical design engineering and machinery handbook, for reference. (Can you suggest more)

My main hurdle is my full time job and family. It's super hard to find time to study. 

Please tell me if you have old exams for PE machine design and want to sell it. I am in LA California. 

Please suggest me any other tips.


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## andy10889 (Dec 4, 2017)

I failed the MDM test twice getting a 49 out of 80 as the highest. I just passed the HVAC test and found it MUCH easier. Even if you don't do HVAC it may be easier for you to learn than the MDM. I would order the HVAC test and the TFS test and work a few problems.


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## Ramnares P.E. (Dec 4, 2017)

That's ^ one approach but I have a distaste for engineers taking the exam in disciplines they don't practice because the perception is the exam is easier.


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## njb8547 (Dec 4, 2017)

I failed my first two attempts. Took Dr. Tom's review course for MDM on this third try and passed. I would recommend this course as I believe it helped to get me over the top. I used the MERM, Shigley's Machine Design, and all the reference notebooks you put together throughout the review course.


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## J_MEC (Dec 4, 2017)

I went the self study route. I took Machine Design in April 2017 and passed on the first attempt. I did over 700 practice problems from the MERM, practice exams, six minute solutions, and a few random problems in Shigley's for good measure leading up to the test.

For me, practice problems are the key. It was a waste of time for me to read the MERM or textbooks. I found that I just needed to grind away on problems. 

Another tip is that the FE reference handbook is available for free and has lots of handy equations for those pesky statics/dynamics/solids questions. I actually did use the FE reference handbook during the PE exam because the equations are just easier/quicker to find than the MERM.

If they are available, MIT OCW lecture videos aren't a bad way to get some free lectures on subjects you need improvement in. There is no shame in paying for a review class either.


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## Engin3rd (Dec 4, 2017)

https://www.amazon.com/Mechanical-Exam-Review-Materials-Engineering/dp/1545055890

Take a look at this one. It was very helpful for me, hopefully it will be to you. Best of luck!


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## goast55 (Dec 5, 2017)

I would say consolidate resources and just be comfortable answering problems.  Know your appendix well, it can really help.  I went through the test and just marked off the easy ones (labeled 1-easy  to 3-hard) and just attacked it that way.  If I was spending too much time on a problem, I would mark it for later and go on.  I think time management is the biggest time constraint on the test.


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## SacMe24 (Dec 5, 2017)

Engin3rd said:


> https://www.amazon.com/Mechanical-Exam-Review-Materials-Engineering/dp/1545055890
> 
> Take a look at this one. It was very helpful for me, hopefully it will be to you. Best of luck!


I have the orange-cover version of this book which still has lots of thermo-fluids stuff in it... is this new blue-cover version updated for the 2017 version of the exam? More practice problems perhaps?

Thanks!


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## sayed (Dec 6, 2017)

Ramnares P.E. said:


> That's ^ one approach but I have a distaste for engineers taking the exam in disciplines they don't practice because the perception is the exam is easier.


surprising that a moderator spews borderline insulting comments about an engineer looking for HELP on obtaining his PE license rather than providing actual helpful tips



Engineer_562 said:


> Hello all,
> 
> A little about me, I got 42% on the first attempt (April 2017), 49% on the second (oct 2017) and will be taking it again in April 2018. By looking at the average passing score, I think I need something like 75% to pass it (please correct me if I am wrong).
> 
> ...


We are coming to a new year. What i suggest is take your 2 week vacation early on to pound the material in your head (also recommend completing an ondemand course) and get yourself ready months in advance.

After your 2 week vacation, spend either one full saturday or sunday every week to review.

The week before your exam, i recommend taking time off and pounding through all the practice exams and problems you can.

Doing it this way you won't have the excuse that your family is a hindrance in being successful.

(p.s. i also recommend the HVAC test. it was so easy i thought i was doing the problems wrong during the test, thinking i was having a brain fart and over simplifying the problems)


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## Ramnares P.E. (Dec 6, 2017)

@sayed as an engineer I would hope you see the ethical dilemma presented by taking the PE exam in an area you are not practicing solely for the sake of passing the exam.

Regarding your comment about providing help, see the stickied thread with my write-up for mechanical TFS examinees.


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## andy10889 (Dec 6, 2017)

To add I practice in the consulting field and we do a little of everything. I do maybe 45% HVAC and some machine design and some fluid design.  I honestly have a little knowledge in all 3 subject fields. 

Jack of all trades I guess ( A little about everything and a lot about nothing)


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## sbrookef (Dec 6, 2017)

jvanoye said:


> I have the orange-cover version of this book which still has lots of thermo-fluids stuff in it... is this new blue-cover version updated for the 2017 version of the exam? More practice problems perhaps?
> 
> Thanks!


I have the blue version (never used the orange one) but there was not any thermo-fluids in it. All the information was relevant to the new PE updated exam 2017. I can't compare the practice problems because I haven't used the orange version!


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## GamecockEngineer (Dec 6, 2017)

I bought the NCEES practice exam and worked through it about 5 times until I had a good understanding of all the concepts.  Honestly I thought it did a good job of covering everything I ran into on the exam itself.  For exam references I took in the MERM, Shigley's Mechanical Engineering Design, and a photocopy of my worked out practice problems.  I tabbed the MERM and shigleys quite a bit.  I think all in all I spent about 300 hours studying, spread out over 6 months.  I studied a lot the week leading up to the exam.

I think the biggest thing I remember about the exam that you should be able to prepare for is to pay close attention to units.  Also understanding exactly what the question is asking you to do.


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## CTOD (Dec 6, 2017)

GamecockEngineer said:


> I bought the NCEES practice exam and worked through it about 5 times until I had a good understanding of all the concepts.  Honestly I thought it did a good job of covering everything I ran into on the exam itself.  For exam references I took in the MERM, Shigley's Mechanical Engineering Design, and a photocopy of my worked out practice problems.  I tabbed the MERM and shigleys quite a bit.  I think all in all I spent about 300 hours studying, spread out over 6 months.  I studied a lot the week leading up to the exam.
> 
> I think the biggest thing I remember about the exam that you should be able to prepare for is to pay close attention to units.  Also understanding exactly what the question is asking you to do.


That's very similar to my approach. I worked the NCEES practice exam around 5 times as well, in addition to doing all but the last two weeks of homework from the PPI prep course ( I attended every lecture ). If I had to do it again, I would have stretched my studying over 6 months. 

I waited for the PPI course to begin to start studying and it's about a 3 month program that leads right up to the exam. I managed to squeeze somewhere around 250 hours of study time into those three months, and that was that *hard and very stressful*. I wish the course ended two weeks before the exam, I regretted not doing the last two homework assignments in the test, but I believe the extra study on the NCEES practice exam saved me on the test. 

I also picked up some different study material that was really helpful in breaking down the concepts to their basics, it was a book by Timothy Kennedy, called Mechanical PE review, machine design and materials. I ended up using that book during the exam a couple times and it saved me each time. 

Know your references very well. If you study enough with the MERM, you should have a good feeling of the physical location of each subject in each chapter, and you should even strive to be familiar enough with each chapter that you can recall the images of the examples you are hoping to locate during the exam. This way you can rapidly flip through a chapter instead of going to the index and back if you know the example or formula is near by. 

Take time to breath if you get hung up on a problem. I skipped around ten problems in the morning and afternoon, and once I answered everything I knew I could handle, I went back and filled the gaps. I probably got 8 of 10 right out of the ones I skipped earlier in the exam, just because my mind was less stressed about time and sometimes, solving the other problems you know how to solve can lead you to solving one you may have been stumped on earlier. 

I circled my answers as I went, and triple checked the scan-tron when I was done to make sure it matched up. Yes, I did find a couple bubbles filled in wrong, these things happen when your brain is melting. 

So work problems of all types as much as you can, study between 200 and 300 hours, work the NCEES practice exam multiple times (until you can ace it), take a prep course and do all their homework, attend all their lectures, rework their homework, then work the NCEES practice exam again. Tab your references, become very familiar with them, and you should be good to go. 

Also, I took the week off work before the exam and reviewed and studied a ton. I made sure to relax the day before the exam and only tabbed my references and flipped through pages while watching a movie. I also stayed in a nearby hotel the night before.


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## Audi Driver P.E. (Dec 7, 2017)

Just use the approach that you only have one opportunity to pass.  Everything else should fall in line.


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## engineerdude123 (Dec 8, 2017)

njb8547 said:


> I failed my first two attempts. Took Dr. Tom's review course for MDM on this third try and passed. I would recommend this course as I believe it helped to get me over the top. I used the MERM, Shigley's Machine Design, and all the reference notebooks you put together throughout the review course.


I can second Dr. Tom's class.  It was extremely helpful and I went into the test much better-prepared than the first time I took it.

Surprisingly, I actually studied less for the exam the second time around since the course helped me to hone in on the specific topics that would likely be on the exam.

OP, I would highly recommend signing up for his class.


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## MTH180 (Dec 12, 2017)

I passed the October 2017 exam and only spent the two days prior to the exam studying. I was in the same boat having a family and a full time job that is very hard to get away from. My only references were the MERM and a piping design book (covered welding and drawing standards).

My biggest suggestions would be to take your time reading the questions. They are often filled with erroneous information that can lead you to calculating one of the listed _wrong_ answers. I think one other pitfall is having too many references. You only need two or three reference books and make sure you know where to find the information you need.

Good luck!


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## SacMe24 (Dec 15, 2017)

sbrookef said:


> I have the blue version (never used the orange one) but there was not any thermo-fluids in it. All the information was relevant to the new PE updated exam 2017. I can't compare the practice problems because I haven't used the orange version!


Thank you very much !.. I just bought the book....


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## ereisch (Dec 19, 2017)

MERM was reasonably useful, also Marks' (whatever edition you choose).  The biggest help for me was going through the various practice exams/problems/etc., and then creating a list of equations that I found myself using frequently.  I put those equations into a Word table (using equation editor), along with a reference to where I found that equation (in case I needed more information on the subject while taking the exam).  I then printed out that list of equations (mine ended up being ~3-4 pages long).  I also classified all of the practice problems (from NCEES) into another table, which referenced them back to the practice exam question number.  Example: let's say problem 184 was "cantilevered bracket stress analysis" or problem 192 was "minimum weld thickness" (hypothetical, non-real-world examples).  I then alphabetized that list and printed it out as well.  That way if I encountered a problem that was slowing me up a bit, I could see the solution technique used by someone else to check my work or help me along.

The whole goal is to save your time on the problems that you know how to solve, but still need reference equations.  If you can get to the reference equation quicker, then that allows you to spend more time working on the problems which you need to do more research on, etc.  Hence, the printed list of equations; it's easier to scan through a 3-page document you're familiar with than a 1,000 page reference manual which is very poorly organized (e.g., MERM).

But (IMO) the most important skill you need to have to pass the machine design &amp; materials exam is _problem recognition_ -- the ability to read a problem statement and know immediately what category into which you should mentally bin it.  To use the earlier example of a cantilevered bracket, if you aren't immediately breaking the figure down in your head into a free-body diagram and recognizing the line of action of each of the forces, then frankly you need to go back to basics.  If you are breaking it down, but just applying the wrong equations, you need to be able to better recognize how the forces are propagating through the system and _what they are asking you to find_.  If they're interested in the factor-of-safety of the highest-stress bolt, you need to be able to mentally recognize which is going to be the highest-stress bolt, and then just do the analysis for that one.  If you do all N bolts, you'll take too long on what was intended to be a 4-5 minute problem, and may not finish the exam on-time.

If you've failed it multiple times, you also need to know _how_ you failed -- e.g., if you finished on-time and felt pretty good about it, then you likely just need to read the questions more carefully; a frequently-used test-administering technique is to have the correct answer available, and then populate the remaining choices with the most commonly-encountered wrong answers.  Did you forget to convert units?  That's incorrect answer 1.  Forget a factor-of-safety?  That's incorrect answer 2.  And so on.  On the other hand, if you found many of the problems difficult to answer, did not finish all problems in time, or did not know what equations to apply, then that's a lack-of-studying or lack-of-comprehension issue which will require more classes, studying, etc.  For my part, I think I finished the morning session with about 10 minutes to spare, and the afternoon session with about 1 hour to spare; I spent the remainder of my time double-checking my answers.  I also flagged some questions in the problem book for "further analysis"; if I felt it was taking too much time to solve a problem, or came up with an answer that I wasn't too sure about, I would leave it blank (or _provisionally_ answer it and mark it for self-review) and skip to the next one, and use the extra time after I finished the remainder of the exam to deep-dive into the questions which were harder for me.  The last thing you want to do is spend 20 minutes working on a problem which, if you end up guessing in the end, you only have a 20-25% chance of getting right, and then leave the last 3-4 problems of the session blank because you didn't get to them in time, especially if those 3-4 problems were easily solved.


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## sayed (Dec 19, 2017)

just take the HVAC exam. Even if your state licenses by discipline, it would still be under mechanical.

The test was so ridiculously easy, I second guessed myself thinking i oversimplified the problems in my head. It literally felt like the same question over and over and over.

They were such basic questions that i honestly don't even remember a single problem (all so similar to any practice problem from references). I don't see how anyone could get in trouble giving out an exam problem since they were not unique at all. (except for the few ashrae look ups). This is probably one of those tests that you hear about someone walking in with no study time and passing.


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## Engineer_562 (Feb 13, 2018)

Thank you everyone for your wonderful feedback and tips.

Thank you Stephanie and Michael for sending your PE materials. I really appreciate your help.


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## sayed (Feb 15, 2018)

Ramnares P.E. said:


> @sayed as an engineer I would hope you see the ethical dilemma presented by taking the PE exam in an area you are not practicing solely for the sake of passing the exam.


many states do not require a separate licensure to practice multiple disciplines.

I never heard about a license application (for a state that doesn't license by discipline) that requires one to take the exam in the area which you practice.

I also never heard of a licensed engineer having an ethical crisis over signing work he's qualified to do but haven't taken an arbitrary test for it. (Not that ncees tests magically qualifies someone to do work if you pass their tests)


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## Ramnares P.E. (Feb 16, 2018)

Concur that many states do not require separate licensure to practice multiple disciplines and that the exam application does not require an engineer to take an exam in the area which you practice.  However, with that said, who determines what you are qualified and not qualified to do?  Also, it appears, from the dialog here, that many advocate taking the exam in a specific area because it's considered "easier" rather than because the individual practices or is qualified in that area.  Obviously passing the exam does not magically qualify someone to do the work, there are quite a few on here who are examples of that it appears.


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## GamecockEngineer (Feb 26, 2018)

I do not recommend you try taking a different flavor of the PE just to pass if you plan to practice something else.  That would be unethical.

I passed the MDM exam on the first try.  I only took the MERM and Shigley's Engineering Design books into the exam.  Use those books when working practice problems, and work lots of problems.  Tab the books for things you see recurring.  Become familiar with how to use the MERM, its a time saving tool when you get comfortable with it.

As far as practice problems I would encourage you to purchase the NCEES practices exam.  I thought it was extremely helpful to focus my preparation efforst.  

Also give yourself at least 6 months of study time before taking the exam.


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## edcar27 (Feb 27, 2018)

Studied the MERM extensively over a 3 months span leading up to the exam, worked about every example problem in it, front-to-back. Also, and I think this was critical, tabbed the living heck out of it. See pic below.

Tabs are color-coded to subjects. Also, made an index with more detailed descriptions and color codes to match my tabs.

This really is the secret to my success. MERM covered over 90% of the exam and was my primary resource.


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## BeefyAmericanMachoMan (Feb 27, 2018)

My biggest piece of advise would be to take a prep course, like Testmasters.  I found it extremely cumbersome to try and study the PPI practice problems and the Six Minute Solutions.  These questions go into WAAAY more detail than the test questions do which will actually cause you to overthink each problem.  The worst thing you can do on this exam is overthink the problems.  The questions are pretty straightforward and if you've practiced enough, you should be able to spot how to work the problem very quickly.  I studied here and there for a couple hours/day about 2-3 days per week the 3 months leading up to the exam.  The 6 weeks prior to the exam I started a prep course and that is when I really buckled down.  After every session I would go home and work the example problems and summarize that day's topics + read up on the next day's topics.  I would spend the days between training going back over all this info and doing the practice exams.  

Make a summary/conversion sheet out of computer paper and put it somewhere easily accessible.  I put mine in the front of my reference binder and it was probably 4 pages total (front only).  These included equations for efficiency of different machines, generic markups for the power cycles, conversions (i.e., kW to Btu/hr, hp to kW, CFS to gpm, etc.).  This will speed up most of the process of getting to the answer.

Prep courses are best in my opinion because they prepare you MENTALLY for the exam.  They also give you lots of tips that have helped lots of people, like myself, pass the exam with good grades.  I took the Testmasters course for TFS and I passed the October 2018 PE with a score of 85.  

I would also google "best foods to help your brain during tests" or something like that.  I bought a lot of these foods and ate them at the lunch break.  It really helped me in the afternoon portion.

Get a motel close to the exam site the night before (unless you live very close).  This will help you in the event your car magically doesn't start the next morning.

Take $50 cash money.  DO NOT just show up with a debit/credit card.

Tabulate your books and be familiar with them.  I can't stress this enough.  You must be familiar with your books.  Know where every equation is that you will need.  If it's one single equation/conversion in a section, just add it to your summary sheet.  Don't waste your time flipping through books looking for one thing.  Use large enough tabs that you can easily read the section/item you are tabbing.  Don't use the tiny tabs that you can barely write on.

*Books I used*:

*MERM* - tabulate this bad boy as much as you have to but only tabulate the items you need for your exam.  Don't tabulate everything.

*Pressure Vessel Handbook (14th ed. Megysey)*

*Fluid Mechanics (2nd ed. Cengel/Cimbala)*

*Heat and Mass Transfer (4th ed. Cengel/Ghajar)*

*Thermodynamics (6th ed. Cengel/Boles)*

Note, I said the above are the books I *used*.  I took in a couple more that I did not need.  One I didn't use was the Machinery's Handbook (29th ed.) from Industrial Press which some say you need and some don't.  I personally didn't use it for the exam, but I did find it helpful for a few of the NCEES practice exam problems.  My point is, it's better to have it and not need it, than not have it and need it.

Lastly, this is my most important piece of advice.  Take the last day off before the exam and just chill.  If you don't know it by now, you won't know it during the test.  Enjoy your day doing something you like (but nothing dangerous, it would suck to be admitted to the hospital the day before the exam) or visit with family.  I personally spent the morning with my wife and son enjoying playing with them and after lunch I drove to the motel and watched TV, went to a good dinner, drove around the exam site area to get familiar with it, and just relaxed.  

Also, I'm not some hippie, feel good person, but it helped me tremendously to believe I was prepared and believe I did well.  I didn't feel like I did well after the test, of course, but I believe that mental preparation can determine your outcome.


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## BeefyAmericanMachoMan (Feb 27, 2018)

Ramnares P.E. said:


> That's ^ one approach but I have a distaste for engineers taking the exam in disciplines they don't practice because the perception is the exam is easier.


I agree completely.  The purpose of this exam is to test your knowledge of your area of expertise.  How would you feel if you went to a cardiologist who was given his license because passed an exam over podiatry?  You definitely wouldn't feel comfortable having him slice you open and doing surgery.

I personally don't like that engineers are able to take an exam outside of their area of expertise.  With that being said, if you're just a super well-rounded engineer who remembers everything from college and you can implement that knowledge into any situation, go for it, but most of us are not that way.  We get a job after school and we spend our 4-5 years working as an EIT in some specialty.


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