After a loooooong day, we all deserve a shot

[mssuthnr]

Well, AM was tough for me. I hope that the PM one will pull my scores up enough to pass. Cheers!!!!!

 

[cogborn84]

I thought the AM was pretty tough too. I came up with pretty good answers in the end but a lot of them caught me off guard. I was expecting it to be easier. But I feel like PM was a little better. I was transportation depth. 

 

[Phatso86]

Ridiculouslyrough for me.

Took a 150hr review course. Studied entire ppi book. Practiced THOUSANDS of problem. Took many many practice exams and did in  the 80s every time.

Get to the test and it's completely  unfamiliar. Nothing like anypractice test.

I took power electrical and it  Mostly seemed like conceptual questions. Which not at all what i focused on ( since the review material didn't either)  

 

[Limamike]

Same here , nothing about the exam was clear . Just theory after none theory. Glad to know I wasn't the only one thinking that 

 

[sjamb]

Same here , nothing about the exam was clear . Just theory after none theory. Glad to know I wasn't the only one thinking that 

textbook theory, or work experience theory?

 

[cogborn84]

textbook theory, or work experience theory?

A lot of the questions were not straightforward. The test didn't ask questions in the same manner that practice exams did, so in order to find the solution you needed to know the material good enough to manipulate it and use the theory behind it. And there were a few questions that utilized concepts in ways I had never thought of.

 

[texasEE]

Anyone take the electronics one yesterday? Thoughts? 

 

[Phatso86]

A lot of the questions were not straightforward. The test didn't ask questions in the same manner that practice exams did, so in order to find the solution you needed to know the material good enough to manipulate it and use the theory behind it. And there were a few questions that utilized concepts in ways I had never thought of.

yes, but the problem is that review and sample problems simple didn't go over material as they presented. Like the power flow questions and bus configurations.

I admit they were easy questions, BUT they weren't questions that i was familiar with since that stuff was briefly presented in the PPI book.

I figured many questions could be answered by using google, which is stupid. In the real world, i have google to help me if needed. Google can't help someone work out problems (which is what i focused on)

 

[cogborn84]

yes, but the problem is that review and sample problems simple didn't go over material as they presented. Like the power flow questions and bus configurations.

I admit they were easy questions, BUT they weren't questions that i was familiar with since that stuff was briefly presented in the PPI book.

I figured many questions could be answered by using google, which is stupid. In the real world, i have google to help me if needed. Google can't help someone work out problems (which is what i focused on)

I was transportation depth, so my PM was different than yours. But overall I agree. I was quite surprised at the amount of unfamiliar content. I put in more study time and did more problems than friends and coworkers close to me. The idea was to be so well versed that I could tackle almost any problem.... well I was well versed alright, but not in the stuff they tested on ha ha. In the end I think I did ok, but it sure took longer and was more frustrating than I was expecting.

Sounds like you really put in a lot of time, most likely more than me. I am sure you performed well, I know a lot of people that felt pretty bad about it.

 

[knight1fox3]

yes, but the problem is that review and sample problems simple didn't go over material as they presented. Like the power flow questions and bus configurations.

But isn't that the point of the PE exam? To see how one applies their knowledge based on both education and work experience? :dunno:

 

[cogborn84]

But isn't that the point of the PE exam? To see how one applies their knowledge based on both education and work experience? :dunno:

I agree with this, and it is the reason I am not bitter about it. Overall, it was a tough test, I will respect anyone that comes out of it with a pass. I hope I am one of those.

 

[knight1fox3]

I agree with this, and it is the reason I am not bitter about it. Overall, it was a tough test, I will respect anyone that comes out of it with a pass. I hope I am one of those.

If you did your due diligence, I'm sure you'll do fine. Here's something to lighten the mood a bit:

Here's one of my favorite exam recaps from a previous exam cycle:

I'll repost from main forum for the EE's in the house.

EE - Power. "You sunk my battleship."

Preparation Time/Materials: 250 total hours. 5 textbooks, prep coursework notebook, 2 notebooks of graduate class material, calculators, snacks, rolling suitcase.

Money: ~$1,550.

General Observations: Arrived at my site 30 minutes prior to report time. Noticed that many others had literally libraries and libraries of books. Someone had a giant wagon with bungie cords holding all of the books together. Others just had a single piece of paper. Wild. I randomly started thinking of a national geographic special with narration by Morgan Freeman on PE test taking habits. I needed that laugh to clear my head.

AM Session: Felt the AM session was great. Only ended up with 6-7 that I didn't have a single solid answer or couldn't find it in my reference. I finished slightly early and checked only some of my work.

PM Session: Total unadulterated bloodbath. Couldn't seem to concentrate enough to find the equations I needed. Calculator was spitting out answers that were out of this world. Saw stuff that I barely covered in droves. About 2-3 hours into the afternoon, my brain felt like it had been through a dishwasher and I started hopping around from question to question. Not good. I will be lucky if I got a quarter to half right. I might as well have taken another discipline in the afternoon or gone to work. A monkey may have been able to do better.

Final Thoughts: As I left the exam area, I felt numb, dumb, and a little crushed. I felt like I blew the morning session out of the water. Then the PE got off a torpedo as I was heading to collect my stamp, promotion, and better life. I'm not very good at guessing and doing the math in my head all weekend I kept envisioning a percentage score in the upper 60s with an afternoon diagnostic that simply says "monkey". 6 months of neglecting my wife and family might be for nothing in the end except doing it all over again. I know the pass rate for repeaters is low, but what is the divorce rate?

Oh well. If I recall from a coworker, last years results were released in around 45-50 days following the exam. I think he got his in late May. We shall see. I guess the ultimate decision is now do I crack open another book....or another beer?

 

[cogborn84]

If you did your due diligence, I'm sure you'll do fine. Here's something to lighten the mood a bit:

Here's one of my favorite exam recaps from a previous exam cycle:

ha ha yes. I read it on one of your other posts. I also read it to my wife. We both had a good laugh. I am optimistic and feel at peace with the test yesterday, I honestly can't think I anything I would have done different. So I am good. But it is still therapeutic to talk about it. Otherwise it gets bottled up and bothers me ha ha.

 

[Phatso86]

But isn't that the point of the PE exam? To see how one applies their knowledge based on both education and work experience? :dunno:

The problem with that logic is that not everyone does everything to be familiar with every minor detail about all topics. If I have a minor question on a random topic, I'd ask a co-worker, or better yet google.

Google can't teach you or show you how to work out problems. 

This test i took were loaded with Google questions on the same topic. (Breakers must have come up at least 6 times, while other topics were completely missing)  

 

[Ken PE 3.1]

Each test is different and passable.

 

[Limamike]

Let's just admit that it was a f#&king hard test. Period ! Lool 

 

[Limamike]

textbook theory, or work experience theory?

More textbook stuff 

 

[JGipe1]

I was transportation depth, so my PM was different than yours. But overall I agree. I was quite surprised at the amount of unfamiliar content. I put in more study time and did more problems than friends and coworkers close to me. The idea was to be so well versed that I could tackle almost any problem.... well I was well versed alright, but not in the stuff they tested on ha ha. In the end I think I did ok, but it sure took longer and was more frustrating than I was expecting.

Sounds like you really put in a lot of time, most likely more than me. I am sure you performed well, I know a lot of people that felt pretty bad about it.

I think you took the EET review course right? I took it as well. A few people on this site said the course would prepare you for 90% of the questions. I think that figure, would be closer to 75%.

The other 25% you are on your own. But a lot of us are in the same boat. They took questions from obscure topics because they purposely wanted an overall lower score.

 

[cpu_guy]

I am happy to see that everyone else had around the same experience as me yesterday with the computer eng exam. It makes me feel a little better... 

I was caught off guard by several questions, some of which would have only been known from experience. But, I guess that should be expected... 

I guess the rumors that the Oct exams are more difficult may be true...

 

[cogborn84]

I think you took the EET review course right? I took it as well. A few people on this site said the course would prepare you for 90% of the questions. I think that figure, would be closer to 75%.

The other 25% you are on your own. But a lot of us are in the same boat. They took questions from obscure topics because they purposely wanted an overall lower score.

I didn't actually take any classes. I self studied with Mansour material. It worked out really well. In the end it covered most questions. I just had to look at it a little different than how it is commonly presented. I have heard EET is pretty good, I bet you did great.