AE PE April 2011

[Nickarus]

Hi everyone!

I'm studying for the April 2011 Architectural Engineering PE exam, and have a few questions for anyone else out there who may have walked or is currently treading this path:

1. I noticed the practice exam has a question or two involving the AIA contract docs, but none of the suggested reference material really covers them iirc... is there any suggested reading (besides reading all the AIA docs - eek!) that would be sufficient for those of us who don't handle these on a day-to-day basis? If the only real good source are the contract docs themselves, is the exam supposed to cover everything or may we limit our review to a few choice docs?

2. I've got my hands on the Second Edition of the "Principles and Practice of Engineering: Architectural Engineering Sample Questions and Solutions." After burning through this tiny booklet, I really wish I had more in the way of practice test materials to feel comfortable... If I seek out the first edition does it contain different problems or is the 2nd edition just a corrected 1st edition? Is there really anything else out there with sample questions to practice?

Thanks much!

 

[LEEDengineer]

The first edition is similar to the second and doesn't offer the level of detail in the solutions like you can get with the 6-Minute books. I'm studying for the April 2011 AE PE myself and it's quite frustrating.

 

[CallMeAl82]

I too am in the same pickle. You'd think that since it's been a few years since this exam was offered that there would be more study materials out there. I'm trained as an ME but the AE exam seems more suited to my skillset. I just want to know if I'm shooting myself in the foot by taking the AE exam versus the ME HVAC exam (which I have not directly practiced in a number of years).

 

[Nickarus]

The first edition is similar to the second and doesn't offer the level of detail in the solutions like you can get with the 6-Minute books. I'm studying for the April 2011 AE PE myself and it's quite frustrating.

I managed to get a copy of the 1st edition before reading this advice and can confirm: no reason to seek out both editions - the 2nd is an updated/improved version of the 1st.

I did pick up a good tip on my own: I spent a lot of time seeking/printing/reviewing MEP fundamentals (i.e. pump laws, electrical triangles, structural beam flex/moment formulas) before remembering this stuff is already compiled neatly in the FE exam reference handbook... I didn't save (or can't find) my hard copy from college, but it's free and available as a PDF on the NCEES website (you might need to log in)!

I'm planning to print that out (its big), filter through and tab out content covered in the AE exam, and put that in a binder for a reference next time I can find a block of time .

 

[archeng1]

hi everyone,

I passed the AE exam in April and it was definitely challenging trying to study for the exam given the limited study prep material.

I have an Architectural Engineering degree but really never worked directly in design, most of my experience is in the field of Construction Management. I found the exam wasn't too bad as far as being familiar with all the questions and having ample time to answer everything except for those few guesses.

I posted in another forum what I used most in the exam as far as reference materials about a year ago so if you search the forum for AE study you will find the thread, it has good information of how other prepared for the exam. I basically studied by going through the 2nd edition of the practice guide and finding my week points then putting more emphasis on those. I would suggest going through the study guide in detail and writing out all the solutions knowing them inside and out. (there are ever a few questions right from the book, word for word) I also found helpful and old CERM manual that one of the older engineers in my firm gave me, it was dated from 1982 but i found the structural review topics really helpful and the problems were relevant to the type on the exam. I would also suggest absolutely having the NEC Handbook if you can get the full version (I had the 2002 which is sufficient) then I had a great referenece that covers alot of the material on the examwhich I had from college, it is called Mechanical and Electrical Equipment for Buildings (just a great overall reference and practical - came in handy in the exam for looking stuff up) I also used a concrete and steel textbook i borrowed off of another engineer (get one that references the ACI and LRFD) These are much easier that paging through the Steel and concrete manuals for the people like me that aren't strong in structures. I also went to the web site engineeringtoolbox to pickup short refreshers on specific topics and get right to the necessary formulas. I printed and organized them by topic then put them in a 3 ring binder (i think most states allow this type of binding just not loose papers - so check with your requirements by state) I learned of the 6 minute solutions after the exam so i wasnt able to have those but i think they would have helped alot.

I ended bringing about 20-25 books into the exam but really only used 5-6 of them.

if anyone has any other quesitons drop me a note or i will check back to this post.

and good luck studying if I can do you all can too!

 

[kbales]

hi everyone, I passed the AE exam in April and it was definitely challenging trying to study for the exam given the limited study prep material.

I have an Architectural Engineering degree but really never worked directly in design, most of my experience is in the field of Construction Management. I found the exam wasn't too bad as far as being familiar with all the questions and having ample time to answer everything except for those few guesses.

I posted in another forum what I used most in the exam as far as reference materials about a year ago so if you search the forum for AE study you will find the thread, it has good information of how other prepared for the exam. I basically studied by going through the 2nd edition of the practice guide and finding my week points then putting more emphasis on those. I would suggest going through the study guide in detail and writing out all the solutions knowing them inside and out. (there are ever a few questions right from the book, word for word) I also found helpful and old CERM manual that one of the older engineers in my firm gave me, it was dated from 1982 but i found the structural review topics really helpful and the problems were relevant to the type on the exam. I would also suggest absolutely having the NEC Handbook if you can get the full version (I had the 2002 which is sufficient) then I had a great referenece that covers alot of the material on the examwhich I had from college, it is called Mechanical and Electrical Equipment for Buildings (just a great overall reference and practical - came in handy in the exam for looking stuff up) I also used a concrete and steel textbook i borrowed off of another engineer (get one that references the ACI and LRFD) These are much easier that paging through the Steel and concrete manuals for the people like me that aren't strong in structures. I also went to the web site engineeringtoolbox to pickup short refreshers on specific topics and get right to the necessary formulas. I printed and organized them by topic then put them in a 3 ring binder (i think most states allow this type of binding just not loose papers - so check with your requirements by state) I learned of the 6 minute solutions after the exam so i wasnt able to have those but i think they would have helped alot.

I ended bringing about 20-25 books into the exam but really only used 5-6 of them.

if anyone has any other quesitons drop me a note or i will check back to this post.

and good luck studying if I can do you all can too!

What "6 minute solutions" are you referring too? I haven't found one for Architectural. I saw your post in the other forum. It was extremely useful. I just finished going through the sample questions and feeling comfortable......I hope.....been out of school since 2001 and haven't taken an exam in 9 years. I have an AET degree from the University of Cincinnati and have found my old reference materials very useful. I purchased an updated Mechanical and Electrical Equipment for Buildings and I'm trying to skim through it again before taking the test.

What steel book did you use? We were taught straight from the LRFD and briefly touched on ASD. I was going to purchase "Steel Structures Design: ASD/LRFD" by Alan Williams from Amazon.com as it was pretty new and references the newer additions of the steel manuals.

 

[Nickarus]

I've been re-reviewing and making sure everything I can tab from the practice exam (2nd edition) has been tabbed in my references...

I found an error which I think the official addendum missed:

Problem #519's solution tells you the maximum floor area for a given hazard classification covered by a single riser is found in NFPA 13-2007 section 5.2.2.1.

The section they're referring to (and which I'm tabbing) is actually 8.2.1.

I happen to have 2007 and 2010 side-by-side and it's the same for both.

 

[Nickarus]

I've been re-reviewing and making sure everything I can tab from the practice exam (2nd edition) has been tabbed in my references...
I found an error which I think the official addendum missed:

Problem #519's solution tells you the maximum floor area for a given hazard classification covered by a single riser is found in NFPA 13-2007 section 5.2.2.1.

The section they're referring to (and which I'm tabbing) is actually 8.2.1.

I happen to have 2007 and 2010 side-by-side and it's the same for both.

Hey, in the event anyone in the future stumbles across this and is wondering, I recall another error in the answers regarding the shear calcs for a footing. The specifics elude me right now, but I recall the solution references the wrong depth of concrete below the reinforcement.

My hope is these will help anyone else plowing through the practice exam and/or any of those responsible for issuing addenda to catch these issues.

 

[Nickarus]

hi everyone, I passed the AE exam in April and it was definitely challenging trying to study for the exam given the limited study prep material.

I have an Architectural Engineering degree but really never worked directly in design, most of my experience is in the field of Construction Management. I found the exam wasn't too bad as far as being familiar with all the questions and having ample time to answer everything except for those few guesses.

I posted in another forum what I used most in the exam as far as reference materials about a year ago so if you search the forum for AE study you will find the thread, it has good information of how other prepared for the exam. I basically studied by going through the 2nd edition of the practice guide and finding my week points then putting more emphasis on those. I would suggest going through the study guide in detail and writing out all the solutions knowing them inside and out. (there are ever a few questions right from the book, word for word) I also found helpful and old CERM manual that one of the older engineers in my firm gave me, it was dated from 1982 but i found the structural review topics really helpful and the problems were relevant to the type on the exam. I would also suggest absolutely having the NEC Handbook if you can get the full version (I had the 2002 which is sufficient) then I had a great referenece that covers alot of the material on the examwhich I had from college, it is called Mechanical and Electrical Equipment for Buildings (just a great overall reference and practical - came in handy in the exam for looking stuff up) I also used a concrete and steel textbook i borrowed off of another engineer (get one that references the ACI and LRFD) These are much easier that paging through the Steel and concrete manuals for the people like me that aren't strong in structures. I also went to the web site engineeringtoolbox to pickup short refreshers on specific topics and get right to the necessary formulas. I printed and organized them by topic then put them in a 3 ring binder (i think most states allow this type of binding just not loose papers - so check with your requirements by state) I learned of the 6 minute solutions after the exam so i wasnt able to have those but i think they would have helped alot.

I ended bringing about 20-25 books into the exam but really only used 5-6 of them.

if anyone has any other quesitons drop me a note or i will check back to this post.

and good luck studying if I can do you all can too!

What "6 minute solutions" are you referring too? I haven't found one for Architectural. I saw your post in the other forum. It was extremely useful. I just finished going through the sample questions and feeling comfortable......I hope.....been out of school since 2001 and haven't taken an exam in 9 years. I have an AET degree from the University of Cincinnati and have found my old reference materials very useful. I purchased an updated Mechanical and Electrical Equipment for Buildings and I'm trying to skim through it again before taking the test.

What steel book did you use? We were taught straight from the LRFD and briefly touched on ASD. I was going to purchase "Steel Structures Design: ASD/LRFD" by Alan Williams from Amazon.com as it was pretty new and references the newer additions of the steel manuals.

I'm not sure about the 6-minute books (I suppose you could pull one from each discipline but that's surely excessive prepping). I just finished my exam, and can say the recommended references published in the practice exam and available on AEI's website, are pretty spot on. The ASTM Steel manual (mine is 13th ed. - black hardbound cover) was certainly helpful during the test, and doubles as a swingable blunt object if you are attacked by zombies on the way to the testing site.

I'm sitting on my hands till I get my letter, but if everything goes well and I pass, I promise to give a full writeup of what/how I studied, what I brought and how I prepared mentally... but I don't want to count my chickens before they hatch!

 

[shawankie]

I just found out that I passed the AE PE in Illinois so I thought I'd share my experience since there is very little study info out there for the exam.

A little about me:

I work for a large architectural firm which has its own in house technology design studio to cover the design of all things low voltage including audiovisual, telecom, security, medical communications, wireless, acoustics, etc... Most of what I do on a daily basis is audiovisual system design with some electrical, mechanical, acoustics and lighting as it relates to my AV systems.

My study prep:

I bought the second edition study guide "Principles and Practice of Engineering: Architectural Engineering Sample Questions and Solutions" in December before the exam and used that as my basis for what the exam would cover. I would say that that guide is a pretty good gauge of what the exam covers and what topics you should be familiar with walking in there. Almost every question was a variation on a theme brought up in that book (as any good reference guide should be). Plus the book gives a good mix of the different types of questions:

1) Pure calculation - find the equation, analyze XYZ and crunch out an answer

2) Code/Standard reference - given XYZ situation find the answer based on some code may include some calculation

3) General AE knowledge - I would normally say there are "experience" questions, but I was able to look up some in the references I had.

I just worked all the problems in the books and wrote down all the fundamental equations used in them, or flagged my reference material based on the question. Google was my friend on some of them where I didn't have a specific reference.

Complete book list that I used and brought into the exam:

NEC Handbook (2005)

IBC (2006)

Mechanical and Electrical Equipment for Buildings (11th Edition)

ACI 318

AISC (Steel Construction manual 9th edition)

NDS Nation design spec for Wood Construction

NFPA 101 (life safety code)

Pocket Ref (Thomas Glover)

Ugly's Electrical Reference (2011 edition)

Books I wish I had:

ASCE 7 (Minimum Design Loads for Building)

Civil Engineering Review Manual (Lindenburg)

NFPA 72 (national fire alarm code)

An HVAC text book or reference - some of the ASHRE books might have accomplished this.

I would say that the three most valuable books were the Mech and Elec Equipment for Buildings, the Pocket Ref and the Ugly's Electrical Guide. The Pocket ref and the Ugly's Guide cost a grand total of $25 on Amazon so no one should go without them. I probably used them on at least a third of the questions. the Ugly's guide pulls the most important parts of the NEC and puts them in a quick easy to read format plus has all sorts of useful equations. Same with the pocket ref, it takes the most important look up tables form the other standards and puts it all in one book. I liked the Pocket ref so much after using it to study and in the exam, I bought the full sized Desk Ref to keep at work.

Obviously the code books are important as well because so much of the AE industry is geared towards code compliance. So I would get as many of those on the Reference Material list as you can and just have them in the exam, just in-case.

Hope that helps anyone who is studying if not, feel free to ask any additional questions!

-Dave

 

[LEEDengineer]

Great post and congrats!! I just found out I passed too (also AE + Illinois)!!! When I return from vaca I will definitely have to post my rundown and my final list of books. Looks like we wish we had included some of the same books! LOL

 

[Nickarus]

***Thread is in progress - this is gonna take a while!***

Hey everyone! I passed, and just got my stamp and new business cards in the mail .

Since there's so little out there regarding experiences with the Architectural Engineering (AE) PE exam, I knew from the get-go that I would want to share what did/didn't work for me, regardless of the outcome.

MY BACKGROUND:

I got my bachelors and masters in Kansas State's Architectural Engineering program. That education was a cross-discipline engineering education (electrical, structural, mechanical), with many building-industry specific classes (power, lighting, fire protection, LRFD, HVAC, plumbing, energy codes, estimating, project management and so forth).

After school, I began working for an MEP consulting firm who permitted me to practice cross-discipline design and CA. My day-to-day prior to the PE exam involved mechanical, plumbing, power and lighting design; energy modeling under various contexts(LEED, commissioning, calibration), and project management from start to finish.

The only parts of the exam material which haven't been part of my day-to-day life in my career are the structural topics and rated fire constructions. Everything else I either do on a regular basis or have at least have dabbled in.

STUDY MATERIALS:

Primary study material was the 2nd edition of the Principles and Practice of Engineering - Architectural Engineering practice exam. I also ordered the first edition hoping to double the amount of practice questions to work from, but was dissapointed to find they are largely the same. My advice is to just get the latest edition. Also grab the errata and work those in from the AEI site below, and peruse the forums here for further corrections to the practice exam solutions .

Useful Websites:

• This forum: http://engineerboards.com/
• Sign up for your test here: http://www.ncees.org/
• Read this in entirety: http://content.aeinstitute.org/engineering/pe_exam.html
• Bookmark your state board's site: http://content.aeinstitute.org/engineering/state.html
• Tons of useful fundamentals explained simply and with pictures - great source for reference materials to bind: http://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/

HOW I STUDIED:

I resolved to photocopy each problem from the practice exam onto a separate sheet. I then wrote out a full solution (and sometimes multiple approaches to the same problem), with references as necessary, on engineering paper. Answers were stapled to each problem, then each problem was sorted by discipline for easy reference in my PE exam binder (i.e. lighting, plumbing, power, HVAC).

Along the way, every time a problem referenced something, even if I didn't need to look it up, I tabbed that reference.

Every time a concept or "fundamentals" came up that I didn't know or was fuzzy on, I hopped onto google and found a good resource illustrating and explaining the topic thoroughly, printed it off, and filed it in my PE binder.

I recognized pretty quickly that if I was weak in any area of the exam, it was definitely structural. I resolved to study all the other topics first, assemble my notes/tabs and complete all the non-structural exam questions before touching anything structural. Then with about a month to go before exam day, I crammed structural solely. I found these forums and google to be my friends in finding problems and solutions similar to each the practice exam brought up. I made sure I was capable of solving each problem on my own, and identified where to look in my structural references for each subtopic. I thoroughly skimmed the contents and retabbed all structural references. There are a LOT of gems that can save much time in the AISC manual for example... more than I remember!

REFERENCES USED ON TEST DAY:

See uploaded picture below - that's the large suitcase I use for international travel... so full I couldn't close the zipper! I referenced all but a few items through the test however:

1. 3-ring binder of PE reference materials - following post will provide another picture/discussion of its contents
2. "Nick's Plumbing Handbook" is a continuation of my college notes from plumbing/fire protection classes that I've added to and often referenced in practice. It contains code snippets and journal/manufacturers guidelines for sizing and designing water/waste/steam/gas/vent/medical and other related plumbing systems.
3. This Binder's title is pretty self-explanatory. I took the full NFPA sections 14, 101, 99, 13 and 72 from our office's loose-leaf reference set. It could mean the difference between a right and wrong answer to bring the right year for each, by the way! Refer to the practice exam's suggested reference list.
4. The Acoustic Systems is a notebook from a college elective of the same name. Covers various noise criteria, construction acoustic properties, and related formulae.
5. Generic Engineering Economics text with all the usual formulae
6. 6
7. NCEES Principles and Practice of Engineering Structural Engineering I Sample Questions & Solutions
8. IBC 2003
9. IPC 2006
10. ASCE 7-02 : Minimum Design Loads for Building and Other Structures
11. NFPA 72 - 2002: National Fire Alarm Code. Brought this as this is the version I studied in school, and it has all my tabs/margin notes.
12. ASHRAE Principles of Heating Ventilating and Air Conditioning (Red cover, based on 2001 Fundamentals)
13. The four ASHRAE Handbooks: Fundamentals, Refrigeration, Applications, Systems
14. (see above)
15. (see above... and I cannot count to 4 apparently... to lazy to fire up mspaint again!)
16. IESNA Lighting Handbook 9th ed.
17. NEC 2008
18. ASHRAE/IESNA/ANSI Standard 90.1-2007
19. ACI 318-05: Building Code Requirements for Structural Concrete and commentary
20. ANSI/AF&PA NDS-1997: National Design Specification for wood construction, and supplement
21. Text: Structural Design in Wood, 2nd edition, Stalnaker
22. "Engineering Dictionary" a colleague suggested I borrow - I didn't need it
23. AISC Steel Manual (13th edition)
    WHAT ELSE DID I BRING ON TEST DAY?:
    
    Straight edge, approved calculator, orange Gatorade, Chex Mix, lunch box (though a surprise lunch was provided), light jacket, wallet with ID, google map of directions to the testing center.
    
    WHAT DID I LEAVE IN MY CAR?:
    
    Cell phone, coffee... emptied my pockets, and kept only my car keys and wallet/ID.
    
    HOW DID IT GO?
    
    I finished the last problem of the morning portion in a little over 2 hours... lots of time to spare. I used another hour to review dog-eared problems where I felt I could use a confirmation from one of my references, and to re-work all problems that involved a calculation... just to double check for user-error - this resulted in a few changed answers. With an hour left to go, and feeling hungry for lunch, I think I was the 2nd person out the door.
    
    The afternoon session was rougher, with more than a few problems requiring some "reference perusal." I used all 4 hours in the afternoon, until it was called for pencils to drop, but I had time to at least attempt to work all problems. Ultimately, I think there no more than 3 or 4 problems where I had to fall back to an educated guess (trying to eliminating one or more options first).
    
    Opening the letter that arrived was dreadful... I really no longer cared about passing - I just wanted to never take that test again! Fortunately the results provided some much needed relief!
    
    ***Thread is in progress - this is gonna take a while!***
    

 

[Nickarus]

**reserving post #2 for a continuation with another snapshot of my PE binder's contents**

 

[bkeefer01]

I work for an MEP firm (provides services for a variety of architectural projects) and I am hoping to take the PE exam in April 2012 in order to improve my standing in the company. I currently work as an electrical engineer, but I studied Architectural engineering in university so I seem to have a fair shot at passing both types of PE exam. At first glance, the Electrical PE is the most logical choice due to the relevancy to my job....

...however, I'm curious, what are the advantages to getting an Architectural PE, if any? I understand that I would get the same PE stamp with the AE PE as with the EE PE, but I heard that there are some jurisdictions that specifically require an EE PE to stamp electrical drawings, i.e. DC.

Any opinions of the career net worth of each type of PE would be GREATLY appreciated!!

Any thoughts?

 

[gte621n]

I also work for an MEP firm and work as an Electrical Engineer. My undegraduate degree is in Aerospace Engineering and I also have work experience doing Mechanical and Plumbing design. I decided that the best option for me was the Architectural PE exam rather than the EE - Power exam. The Architectural PE Exam seems seems to be right on par with what most MEP firms deal with on a regular basis except for the Structural portion of the exam, which is 25% of the exam. I don't have any real-world working Structural experience but I took plenty of Structural courses in college to feel like it could sit for the exam. I passed the Architectural PE Exam last spring. In the end, I think you have to decide which one is right for you. I'd suggest buying the NCEES EE - Power practice test and the AEI Architectural Engineering practice test and flip through them to see which test you feel is right for you. In Ohio, there is no distinction between PE stamps so I wasn't worried about being able to sign drawings. I think that the Architectural PE Exam is still fairly new to the engineering community, but I see it growing more and more popular in the near future. The AEI website shows that 49 states and Puerto Rico accept the Architectural PE Exam, the only one that currently does not is Vermont. (http://content.aeinstitute.org/images/contrib/map-state2.jpg)

I am pretty confident that it doesn't matter which exam you take, the Architectural or Electrical PE exam, your career will be given a boost but ultimately it will reflect how good of an engineer you really are, not the letters after your name.

Good luck with taking the exam.

 

[bkeefer01]

Thanks, I will definitely buy both practice exams for comparison. Can I ask what study books you used to take the test?

I am just curious though if anyone has any experience with an employer preferring one type of PE over the other. Does anyone have any good and bad experiences that would provide some clarity? In addition to Vermont, I heard that DC requires an electrical stamp. Are other states potentially heading this direction??

 

[bkeefer01]

I know that I am early, but is anyone planning or thinking of taking the Architectural PE exam in April 2012??

I want to ask because I want to develop a network of support, especially since there are so few of us taking the exam.

And definitely a longshot, but is there anyone planning on taking the exam in Maryland? I am also wondering if any of you who took the exam in 2011 are still visiting this forum.... If you are in the DC-VA-MD or PA areas, interested in selling me some of your books? PM me if you are interested.

Brian

 

[Nickarus]

Thanks, I will definitely buy both practice exams for comparison. Can I ask what study books you used to take the test?
I am just curious though if anyone has any experience with an employer preferring one type of PE over the other. Does anyone have any good and bad experiences that would provide some clarity? In addition to Vermont, I heard that DC requires an electrical stamp. Are other states potentially heading this direction??

There are a number of 'discipline-specific' states incl. CA/NV/ID... - I think you can tell reliably by whether the seal says something generic like "professional engineer" or specific like "electrical."

In practice, my work before and after the exam is about 50/50 mechanical/electrical, and for smaller projects I'll often cover all disciplines, so the AE PE made a lot of sense from a "what I do" standpoint. That said, I had the same concerns regarding inter-state licensure. While some states are 'discipline specific (CA/NV/ID... etc),' I don't think they will all necessarily have a problem with the AE stamp. I believe the bigger issue is whether the state recognizes the AE P.E. exam at all... there's a link to a map showing who doesn't on the AEI website - I'm not sure whether it's kept current: http://www.aeinstitute.org/engineering/pe_exam.cfm

I'd encourage you to get your employer's opinion on the matter if they have one - in the immediate term their input might have a reasonable impact on your decision. My employer emphatically told me from the company's perspective, "a PE is a PE is a PE." Considering most states do recognize the AE PE now (see map in above link), and that list logically should grow in time so long as the body of AE Professionals grows and develops a larger voice, the only reason someone with appropriate experience/background would want to shy away is if they're going to be required to stamp drawings in states that aren't recognizing the seal.

You might inquire ahead and find that you won't be required/expected to seal drawings for some time... office politics may make it something of a non-issue for you as well.

If you pursue the AE exam - I have another post around here somewhere detailing my references... I need to finish that writeup but a good portion of it is there.

 

[Nickarus]

...Well I can't seem to edit my 2nd post - must be b/c i waited so long? If any moderators can move these contents up one or 'unlock' those posts for editing that'd be nice =).

Moving on: Attached is a snapshot of my bound reference binder. Creating this was part of my prep for the exam, and in practice I turned to this reference as often as any other resource during the test.

It's hard to capture everything in a single photo, but here's a description of its final contents, front to back:

• NCEES notice letter with information needed to enter and take the exam.
• The first row of green tabs is a "filtered" set of topics from the current FE reference handbook (accessible as a large PDF on the NCEES website). This was included as an afterthought almost, to potentially fill in any gaps in the fundamentals I didn't think to include in my studies. If you're going to include this, you'll save time doing it later as you probably won't be familiar with what is/isn't really going to be covered in the exam until you've studied the PPE practice exam thoroughly.
• After that are select AIA contract documents: A201, G701, C141, & B141. Don't recall actually using these much, but seemed relevant material from the practice exam.
• Following are a set of tabs that organize notes, collections of equations/diagrams, highlighted articles, and basically anything I had to google along the way studying the practice exam. The topics are organized as: Electrical, Mechanical, Structural, PM/CA/Other. Examples include reference sheets for college course finals for select topics, wikipedia articles, a collection of economics equations/tables, and fully worked examples of lighting/HVAC/power problems that weren't included in the practice exam (college notebooks were invaluable in this dept).
• The next tab was not really used at all, but was the result of planning around 'the worst case' for testing day. This contains copies of every piece of correspondence regarding applying for the exam, exam specifications, forms submitted to my state's board, definitions in the state bylaws concerning eligibility/experience... basically trying to cover any possibility of my eligibility or ability to take the exam coming under question. I wish I could advise to not worry about this, but mistakes do happen and I expect it's a possibility that someone could be stopped at the door because a number-cruncher somewhere typed a letter of your name wrong into the system. Better to be prepared just in case!
• Finally, the last section of this binder contains the most useful and pertinent thing I did to prep for the test. Here's what I did:

1. Found a good block of time with a copier, then copied/cut/paste/copied each problem from the practice exam onto an individual, separate page (using canary colored paper for clarity).
2. Then, I went through each problem, skimmed it, and sorted the canary pages by topic. The categories are M, E, P, S and Misc.
3. Worked each problem by topic as a group COMPLETELY and neatly. I worked on engineering paper and stapled any work to the problem at hand.
4. Anytime a reference was necessary for me to complete something, I made notes of what I looked up and where to solve the problem, on the problem.
5. Anytime I recognized a problem could be solved by more than one approach, I solved it EACH way. This helped me remember on test day when a "fast" approach would be appropriate, and when an alternate approach is handy for checking your answer.
6. I later went back - there were a number of problems I simply "knew" the answers to, but I tried to put myself into the shoes of someone clueless and identified a reference so I might know where to look for similar info.

During the test, these worked problems were REALLY handy. Many actual exam questions were very similar to the practice problems in content/procedure, just with different numbers, and organizing them by subject matter meant I wasn't wasting time flipping around the practice exam booklet trying to confirm things I was 90% sure of.

As a generalization, for "worked" problems involving multiple steps to find an answer, I would characterize many (but not all) of the practice exam questions as slightly more complex than their actual exam counterparts. I hesitate to even write that, because there were certainly some complex problems to be found (for me mainly in the afternoon session), but keeping your nerves in check is an important part of test taking and it may help some keep their cool while studying and waiting for the clock to start. What I'd take away from this is, if you can get to a point where you feel 100% comfortable understanding and solving any particular problem, you may well be 110% confident on test day when you see the same sort of problem, so I'd move on to the next topic/problem once you're comfy and avoid "over studying" any specific problem.

Hmm can't seem to 'attach' like the first post either... wonder what's up? Anyway here's the image uploaded to postimage.org - hopefully this doesn't expire before someone needs it:

 

[Wildsoldier PE]

:laugh:

OH MY GOD, all that reference material...you even took an Scale with you!

...Well I can't seem to edit my 2nd post - must be b/c i waited so long? If any moderators can move these contents up one or 'unlock' those posts for editing that'd be nice =).

Moving on: Attached is a snapshot of my bound reference binder. Creating this was part of my prep for the exam, and in practice I turned to this reference as often as any other resource during the test.

It's hard to capture everything in a single photo, but here's a description of its final contents, front to back:

• NCEES notice letter with information needed to enter and take the exam.
• The first row of green tabs is a "filtered" set of topics from the current FE reference handbook (accessible as a large PDF on the NCEES website). This was included as an afterthought almost, to potentially fill in any gaps in the fundamentals I didn't think to include in my studies. If you're going to include this, you'll save time doing it later as you probably won't be familiar with what is/isn't really going to be covered in the exam until you've studied the PPE practice exam thoroughly.
• After that are select AIA contract documents: A201, G701, C141, & B141. Don't recall actually using these much, but seemed relevant material from the practice exam.
• Following are a set of tabs that organize notes, collections of equations/diagrams, highlighted articles, and basically anything I had to google along the way studying the practice exam. The topics are organized as: Electrical, Mechanical, Structural, PM/CA/Other. Examples include reference sheets for college course finals for select topics, wikipedia articles, a collection of economics equations/tables, and fully worked examples of lighting/HVAC/power problems that weren't included in the practice exam (college notebooks were invaluable in this dept).
• The next tab was not really used at all, but was the result of planning around 'the worst case' for testing day. This contains copies of every piece of correspondence regarding applying for the exam, exam specifications, forms submitted to my state's board, definitions in the state bylaws concerning eligibility/experience... basically trying to cover any possibility of my eligibility or ability to take the exam coming under question. I wish I could advise to not worry about this, but mistakes do happen and I expect it's a possibility that someone could be stopped at the door because a number-cruncher somewhere typed a letter of your name wrong into the system. Better to be prepared just in case!
• Finally, the last section of this binder contains the most useful and pertinent thing I did to prep for the test. Here's what I did:

1. Found a good block of time with a copier, then copied/cut/paste/copied each problem from the practice exam onto an individual, separate page (using canary colored paper for clarity).
2. Then, I went through each problem, skimmed it, and sorted the canary pages by topic. The categories are M, E, P, S and Misc.
3. Worked each problem by topic as a group COMPLETELY and neatly. I worked on engineering paper and stapled any work to the problem at hand.
4. Anytime a reference was necessary for me to complete something, I made notes of what I looked up and where to solve the problem, on the problem.
5. Anytime I recognized a problem could be solved by more than one approach, I solved it EACH way. This helped me remember on test day when a "fast" approach would be appropriate, and when an alternate approach is handy for checking your answer.
6. I later went back - there were a number of problems I simply "knew" the answers to, but I tried to put myself into the shoes of someone clueless and identified a reference so I might know where to look for similar info.

During the test, these worked problems were REALLY handy. Many actual exam questions were very similar to the practice problems in content/procedure, just with different numbers, and organizing them by subject matter meant I wasn't wasting time flipping around the practice exam booklet trying to confirm things I was 90% sure of.

As a generalization, for "worked" problems involving multiple steps to find an answer, I would characterize many (but not all) of the practice exam questions as slightly more complex than their actual exam counterparts. I hesitate to even write that, because there were certainly some complex problems to be found (for me mainly in the afternoon session), but keeping your nerves in check is an important part of test taking and it may help some keep their cool while studying and waiting for the clock to start. What I'd take away from this is, if you can get to a point where you feel 100% comfortable understanding and solving any particular problem, you may well be 110% confident on test day when you see the same sort of problem, so I'd move on to the next topic/problem once you're comfy and avoid "over studying" any specific problem.

Hmm can't seem to 'attach' like the first post either... wonder what's up? Anyway here's the image uploaded to postimage.org - hopefully this doesn't expire before someone needs it: