Any Test Taking Tips for April 2013...

[PE_4_Panda]

To all of those that just recently took the exam last Friday...any suggestions for those taking the exam in April?

I have taken into account many others past means and methods for passing the exam but I am always curious. I have just completed the Testmasters course and I have found the CERM Sample problems to be intense in comparison to those in the course. Did the CERM sample problems help or hinder?

 

[nobody1231234]

To me, Six Minute Solutions and Godwami's book seemed to be more than enough to study for the exam. And, if you do Transportation, bring the AASHTO Green Book (they asked a lot of stuff that'd be found there).

 

[PE_4_Panda]

Did you use the Six Min Solutions for all or just construction? I have the Goswami book and practice exams. I will be taking the construction section so I dont think I will need the AASHTO Green Book.

 

[desantmf]

I have heard from many people that the October morning portion was really hard this year and it was difficult to finish on time. The problems required multiple steps and had some tricky conversions with them. When I took the exam in April, I thought it was pretty easy and mostly common sense. I had over an hour left to review in the morning, and I am not a fast test taker. But who knows what the test is going to be like April 13, all you can do is prepare the best for you.



I have lots of advice and tricks of the trade on my website for the Construction PE Exam at www.learncivilengineering.com. I asked one of my buddies to give me a couple of lessons learned from the Oct 12 exam, and this is what he said.



1-NEVER waste your time on a question you are not familiar with. You will end up wasting 30 minutes instead of Max 6min available.



2- It highly recommended you have your own cheat sheet organized in a file instead of flipping in references during exam.



3- Always check your UNITS; hence, FT-INCHES and Hour-Seconds before you finalize your answer.



4- The more you practice problems the easier it gets during exam day.



I hope this helps…



"Know where to find the information and how to use it - That's the secret of success." - Albert Einstein

www.learncivilengineering.com

 

[MONTAG455]

I was an Oct 12' test taker and I can assure you that it would have taken well over 10 hrs of preparation in each of the AM topics in order to have been successful on the AM portion. I would also highly recommend studying more than 50 Hrs for your discipline, remember, your discipline is 60% of the exam. This exam is not for the 'faint of heart' either. I took a review course put on by a Phd in Civil and the general rule is that if your working full time, it will take 6mths to fully prepare for this exam. This exam requires not only working practice problems but also reading the CERM and understanding the concepts, tables, formulas, etc...

I would read many different review books. Every author has a different way to approach a problem and I used some books for some answers and other books for other answers primarily because I was comfortable with that Author's approach to solving the problem. Knowing how to solve problems a few different ways will pay dividends on exam day.

jt

 

[fetzdog121]

It may sound stupid, but read the question and make sure that you understand what the question is looking for rather than just calculating something unnecessarily.

Check the units of everything given in the problem to make sure you don't multiply ft&inches unless that's what you need to do.

 

[pleasepass]

I managed to pass the construction depth test after the second try iin April 2012. Because I drive over an hour to get to work and was pressed for study time (married with three kids also), I downloaded the files from the Texas A&M site and converted them to sound files that I listened to on the way to and fro from work. Sounds retarded but it really helped me to become familiar with the material and then helped when it came time to work problems - familiarty is key to building the confidence you need to get er done! One caveat: I would recommend listening/watching only Geotech, Reinforced Concrete (first 30 minutes only), all of the hydraulics and hydrology courses and maybe statics - I didnt get alot out of some of the other courses. I got to studying after work and on the weekends before my kids got up which leveled off my available study time. I started looking at this stuff in November 2011 but didn't really pick up steam with it until early January 2012. I bought all the standard study guides, references, practice tests, etc., spent a bunch of money... same as everyone else here.

I made two custom study/test binders - one 1-1/2" condensed binder which had each of of the five topics (tabbed, organized) and another 1" binder with additional info for the p.m. portion. THESE ARE MUST HAVES!!! YOU NEED YOUR OWN CUSTOM BINDERS WITH YOUR WORKED PROBLEMS AND YOUR NOTES TO REALLY HAVE AN IMPACT ON PASSING THIS TEST!!! I brought in a binder for my first try back in 2010 but it wasn't very comprehensive or well organized; quite frankly I was not well prepared. Having your own custom binders really helps with your confidence level and let's not forget... answering problems quickly! The biggest advice I have to pass this thing is work on developing your note binders as you study - you will develop pride in what you constructed, it will become a symbol of the effort you've put in and your devotion to the task, it'll give you worked examples in your time of need, it'll give you a lot more confidence, the list goes on... all-in-all IT WILL HELP YOU PASS!!!

Good Luck!!!

 

[mdriver]

That's not stupid advice at all. Units are key for sure but also understand what is asked. I think I made the mistake of seeing numbers and started calculating before understanding what was being asked the first time around. Took a calmer approach the second time and passed October 2012's exam. Not sure if it helped passing but felt much more comfortable.

Hardly used CERM but studied with it alot. Definately had it in the exam though. I took Construction the first and Water Resources the second. Applied Fluid Mechanics by Mott aided bigtime. Intro to Environmental Engineering Textbook helped alot as well.

I did the same thing with the Texas A & M material as pleasepass! Listened to it so much travelling back and forth from my project (4 hours from home) and believe it or not put in headphones while falling off to sleep each night. Thought I was being weird by doing that but it helped. Drove the material in thy brain! Took School of PE as well.

Good luck.