October 2019 Post Exam Wait Period - Welcome to the Suck

[tmntjmc]

I surprisingly feel better now than I did before the exam. The Tuesday and Wednesday before the exam I felt very confident and was just ready to take the exam. Then Thursday rolled around and I was thinking, "do I even really need a PE license?" 

Luckily I was able to take the test with a close friend of mine so the morning of, lunch, and evening after we kept each other distracted. We took the Power PE, so after the exam we spontaneously decided to go see The Current War which was fitting.

I still feel pretty confident in my answers, though. I finished my first pass of the morning and afternoon sessions in 1.5 hours, then second and third passes in about 45 minutes each. Then the last hour of just reading over questions making sure I didn't misread a question, or type something in my calculator wrong.

I also went through and marked A, B, or C for questions I feel confident about, felt I made an educated guess, or just plain guessed. Then used A*0.9 + B*0.5 + C*0.25 to calculate a preliminary score. I then spent time working on C's and B's to get them to B's and A's until my score was where I wanted it. I didn't want to go over my original A answers too much, because I didn't want to start second guessing my answers.

This was my 4th attempt at the PE Power. This afternoon session felt the worst out of all the other times I took it. There was a lot of problems I hadn't seen before.. In any event, as usual, I did whatever I could. I just pray that luck is on my side this time...  . anybody else feel this way for Power PE? 

 

[Orchid PE]

This was my 4th attempt at the PE Power. This afternoon session felt the worst out of all the other times I took it. There was a lot of problems I hadn't seen before.. In any event, as usual, I did whatever I could. I just pray that luck is on my side this time...  . anybody else feel this way for Power PE? 

What sort of electrical work do you do full-time? 

 

[tmntjmc]

What sort of electrical work do you do full-time? 

I'm a service planner/ designer for Anaheim Public Utility. It's odd we don't use any codes per say, we reference GO 95. Anyways, yeah I'm pretty bummed about this being my 4th attempt and feeling bad about it..  

 

[bdhlphcdh]

This was my 4th attempt at the PE Power. This afternoon session felt the worst out of all the other times I took it. There was a lot of problems I hadn't seen before.. In any event, as usual, I did whatever I could. I just pray that luck is on my side this time...  . anybody else feel this way for Power PE? 

First time taker, and as someone put it in another thread, I feel like I studied for the wrong exam.  I left feeling completely devastated and am fairly certain I failed.  I feel like no amount of studying could prepare you for way the questions were presented and how the answers were given.  

 

[tmntjmc]

First time taker, and as someone put it in another thread, I feel like I studied for the wrong exam.  I left feeling completely devastated and am fairly certain I failed.  I feel like no amount of studying could prepare you for way the questions were presented and how the answers were given.  

That's the worst part about this exam, that you can take all the "guaranteed pass courses" and what not but when it comes down to it, you could have every imaginable reference with you and study for 3 or 4 months and it still won't prepare you for what may be on the exam. I seriously felt that no amount of studying could have prepared me for this exam session. And that's the worst feeling because I feel like I can't do anything to get this thing over with.. It's a punch to the gut every time.. 

 

[LyceeFruit PE]

This was my 4th attempt at the PE Power. This afternoon session felt the worst out of all the other times I took it. There was a lot of problems I hadn't seen before.. In any event, as usual, I did whatever I could. I just pray that luck is on my side this time...  . anybody else feel this way for Power PE? 

This was my 7th time taking Power PE. The April 2018 test was the worst one I've taken and 2 of my attempts were without studying (burn out and also trained for Boston Marathon).

The afternoon wasnt wicked awesome but I didnt think it was that awful.

 

[tmntjmc]

This was my 7th time taking Power PE. The April 2018 test was the worst one I've taken and 2 of my attempts were without studying (burn out and also trained for Boston Marathon).

The afternoon wasnt wicked awesome but I didnt think it was that awful.

Wow, I give you props for not giving up. Though idk how many more "punches to the gut" I can take willingly. It's so hard knowing that there's really no way of studying for this exam, luck has to definitely be on your side.. we'll see =/  

 

[leggo PE]

Thanks for sharing the post! 

I wrote PE Civil Structural. Compared to the other exams, those writing this exam probably had the most reference material to bring in. I was a bit caught off guard that there was a rule there "could not be any hand writing in your reference material". I fortunately did not have any writing in my references but I did not see this a restriction on NCEES page or in my exam authorization released before the exam. Seems strange for an open book exam to restrict handwritten notes ...

I think that refers to not being able to write in your test materials during the exam. Hand-written notes/practice problems/equations sheets/etc. are all fine so long as they're three holed punched, though some states have been particular about writing in pencil vs. pen in notes. If someone really wanted to be safe, they could photocopy all of their handwritten notes. An awful waste of paper, but it wouldn't be hand-written any more!

 

[LyceeFruit PE]

Wow, I give you props for not giving up. Though idk how many more "punches to the gut" I can take willingly. It's so hard knowing that there's really no way of studying for this exam, luck has to definitely be on your side.. we'll see =/  

I basically cannot give up. Not if I want to stay with my company or in the consulting field. Im so epically over it.

But yeah its partially luck I think. It sucks

 

[tmntjmc]

I basically cannot give up. Not if I want to stay with my company or in the consulting field. Im so epically over it.

But yeah its partially luck I think. It sucks

Hey, I know of a couple of people that keep taking it and when they passed they say "I don't know how I passed" which tells me it's a big part of luck that determines the outcome. Let's hope you and I and many others can keep shooting the darts until we hit the bulls eye! I only hope I can keep my willingness to sit in time after time because it's draining.. Part of my wishful thinking is maybe at some point, the committee gets tired of seeing my name on there and just passes me based on the number of attempts lol. 

 

[pse19622]

Took mechanical thermal fluids, first attempt. The morning section was significantly different from what I expected. Even the afternoon seemed a little off. The NCEES practice exam was definitely more straightforward than the real thing. Was able to finish each section about a half hour early, and left feeling pretty good. I've definitely had a few questions pop back into memory, which has caused some doubt as I can't remember all the details or if I did the problem correctly. At the end of the day, I put in a tremendous amount of time and effort to prepare for this thing, got plenty of rest before the exam, kept diet and exercise up to par, etc. Praying to see the green "PASS" icon on my profile in a few weeks.

 

[Zach Stone P.E.]

So far it seems that the feedback from this exam is similar to the feedback from every exam prior to it: very difficult to really anticipate what exactly will appear on the exam, a lot of curveball questions, and ultimately what I typically call the shock factor. 

Just a reminder, no one ever leaves the exam room feeling confident, and the exam is graded based off some type of cut score, so please keep your head up and enjoy your free time off to relax and pick back up on your social life, family life, and career. 

Best of luck to everyone that took the exam, it is not an easy tasks and I know the vast majority of you put in a serious effort and time commitment. 

 

[RBHeadge PE]

 Was able to finish each section about a half hour early, and left feeling pretty good.

At the end of the day, I put in a tremendous amount of time and effort to prepare for this thing, got plenty of rest before the exam, kept diet and exercise up to par, etc. Praying to see the green "PASS" icon on my profile in a few weeks.

It sounds like you're in a good place.

I've definitely had a few questions pop back into memory, which has caused some doubt as I can't remember all the details or if I did the problem correctly.

situation normal

 

[Orchid PE]

Is anyone here required to have a license for their job, or did you take the exam just to have a license in your back pocket just in case?

I fall under the latter category since I work in the electric utility industry. I'm interested to know who all needs the license and why.

 

[Tiger15]

Is anyone here required to have a license for their job, or did you take the exam just to have a license in your back pocket just in case?

I fall under the latter category since I work in the electric utility industry. I'm interested to know who all needs the license and why.

I took it last year. I've never had a job that required the PE. So it was just for the personal accomplishment / resume building.

I have a friend that took it with me last year. His job requires it. That definitely amps up the stress level.

 

[EB NCEES REP]

Do you want the results?

 

[LyceeFruit PE]

Is anyone here required to have a license for their job, or did you take the exam just to have a license in your back pocket just in case?

I fall under the latter category since I work in the electric utility industry. I'm interested to know who all needs the license and why.

I work in consulting and if I want to hit senior level and advance, I'm required to have my PE.

 

[Orchid PE]

I have a friend that took it with me last year. His job requires it. That definitely amps up the stress level.

I could only imagine. It would suck knowing your job and/or a promotion were on the line.

 

[Orchid PE]

I work in consulting and if I want to hit senior level and advance, I'm required to have my PE.

Awesome. So when you get the Pass notification sometime in December , is it an immediate promotion or will you have to wait until annual raises are given out?

 

[Orchid PE]

Anyone plan on starting their own firm?