Cut Score revealed

[Dark Knight]

For years this has been one of the most intriguing and discussed topic for PE exam takers. The Cut Score always shows up season after season like a bad penny. Hundreds of question and theories have been thrown into the mix. That until today...

Using an algorithm, a very simple one I should say, and looking at previous results and dates released I just discovered a pattern. It is so simple that am surprised it has taken this long for someone to come up with it. But it has been there right under our noses. Here is how you will know...

On your results letter after your name and other useless information there is going to be a line saying the exam you took (i.e. Civil, Electrical, Mechanical etc.). Right next to it will say Pass or Fail. Here is when the mystery is no more. If you get a Pass means you are over or at an imaginary line that NCEES,in its infinite wisdom, set as the bar to decide (without knowing crap about you or your trajectory as a professional) if you are competent enough. If you got a dreaded Fail means you are under that imaginary line and will have to go through the same hell again for the next four to six months. 

I do not think there is an intelligent explanation on why NCEES does not give scores anymore. For me it facilitates a lot of manipulation and selectivity. It is also a power trip and they like it. I bet they feel very powerful.

Bottom line is that here is the Cut Score: Pass/Fail. That is all that matters and it does not get any easier. If you passed you give a hoot about the cut score and if you failed, should do the same. You can always take an educated guess if you follow your diagnostic sheet. But let me tell you; it is an useless exercise and you do not need a stinking sheet to know. Believe me...you already knew when you left the test site. 

At the end of the day the cut score is just an imaginary line and that is the bottom line because NCEES said so.

 

[Audi Driver P.E.]

Pretty sure this revelation is going to satisfy no one that was concerned with it.

 

[thecityofjoy]

For years this has been one of the most intriguing and discussed topic for PE exam takers. The Cut Score always shows up season after season like a bad penny. Hundreds of question and theories have been thrown into the mix. That until today...

Using an algorithm, a very simple one I should say, and looking at previous results and dates released I just discovered a pattern. It is so simple that am surprised it has taken this long for someone to come up with it. But it has been there right under our noses. Here is how you will know...

On your results letter after your name and other useless information there is going to be a line saying the exam you took (i.e. Civil, Electrical, Mechanical etc.). Right next to it will say Pass or Fail. Here is when the mystery is no more. If you get a Pass means you are over or at an imaginary line that NCEES,in its infinite wisdom, set as the bar to decide (without knowing crap about you or your trajectory as a professional) if you are competent enough. If you got a dreaded Fail means you are under that imaginary line and will have to go through the same hell again for the next four to six months. 

I do not think there is an intelligent explanation on why NCEES does not give scores anymore. For me it facilitates a lot of manipulation and selectivity. It is also a power trip and they like it. I bet they feel very powerful.

Bottom line is that here is the Cut Score: Pass/Fail. That is all that matters and it does not get any easier. If you passed you give a hoot about the cut score and if you failed, should do the same. You can always take an educated guess if you follow your diagnostic sheet. But let me tell you; it is an useless exercise and you do not need a stinking sheet to know. Believe me...you already knew when you left the test site. 

At the end of the day the cut score is just an imaginary line and that is the bottom line because NCEES said so.

Yes , I already knew that ....

 

[Dark Knight]

Pretty sure this revelation is going to satisfy no one that was concerned with it.

It was not supposed to.

 

[npcannon]

It's easy, if you pass, to say "eh, I don't care if I passed by 1 point or 10". I feel like had I failed I'd be obsessed with how close I was to passing. For me now it's just a mild curiosity. I left the test fairly confident I'd passed, I'd be curious if I barely scraped by or did well, either way, pass is a pass. 

 

[Mangano]

I'm under the belief that I'm close to the 70% mark, although I did not tally up the questions that I was unsure of.  I'd be very interested to see the cut score if someone figures it out based on sourced results.

 

[thecityofjoy]

Not sure why they release your score when you failed ; not when you passed .... Texas does it .. Why do other states don't ?

 

[GTStructural]

Not sure why they release your score when you failed ; not when you passed ....

Theoretically, it's so you know what areas you need to improve on, or so I'm told.

 

[Dexman PE PMP]

Thats why the NCEES gives you a diagnostic report showing your strengths and weaknesses for you to improve.

 

[Dexman PE PMP]

Not sure why they release your score when you failed ; not when you passed .... Texas does it .. Why do other states don't ?

The main reason for not releasing passing scores is to further reinforce the "competent to be an engineer" line they hold to and to prevent unnecessary competition between engineers.  Someone who passed with a 70% has a PE worth just as much as an engineer who passed with a 99%.

 

[NYCProjectEngineer PE PMP]

The main reason for not releasing passing scores is to further reinforce the "competent to be an engineer" line they hold to and to prevent unnecessary competition between engineers.  Someone who passed with a 70% has a PE worth just as much as an engineer who passed with a 99%.

I think this is it. People would put their score on their resume (which to me would look so childish) to try and stand out from other PEs. 

The range of quality PEs is staggering though... I know some PEs which have no business managing a construction project let alone holding a license to seal design documents while others who can run calcs in their head for a complex structure design change have the same license. Hell I even know some SEs who are morons... no idea how you can pass the SE and not be super smart. 

 

[thecityofjoy]

Well interestingly enough the specifications change ... Previously the PE did not have Power section separate . People could have got PE in previous years ... very different from today . I wonder how the PE will look like 10 years from now ... I'm sure it will be computer based .... maybe there will be more questions on control systems given that lot of EEs now have to deal with this ... also probably questions on changes to NEC code relevant for that year ...

 

[lisfs]

To me PE cannot be used to determined one's knowledge, experience, or intelligence.  There are just so many things in Engineering in general and one cannot know EVERYTHING.  In addition to that, the test questions are all different every time and every engineer has different jobs/experience/education background etc., it's hard to use it as an orange-to-orange comparison.

 

[Mike in Gastonia]

The main reason for not releasing passing scores is to further reinforce the "competent to be an engineer" line they hold to and to prevent unnecessary competition between engineers.  Someone who passed with a 70% has a PE worth just as much as an engineer who passed with a 99%.

Agree. Think of what an attorney would do with this in a courtroom. "Well, the expert for the prosecution only scored a 71 on their PE exam while our expert for the defense scored and 87! Clearly, our expert is better than theirs!"

 

[CA_Scott PE]

Agree. Think of what an attorney would do with this in a courtroom. "Well, the expert for the prosecution only scored a 71 on their PE exam while our expert for the defense scored and 87! Clearly, our expert is better than theirs!"

Not to mention if you take into account the people who passed only because they got a few lucky guesses - not that I would know anything about that.

 

[NYCProjectEngineer PE PMP]

All I know is that if they decide to make the PE a CBT (like the FE), they should still make people wait a month for the results. Its almost like hazing for engineers.

 

[Dark Knight]

I think this is it. People would put their score on their resume (which to me would look so childish) to try and stand out from other PEs. 

The range of quality PEs is staggering though... I know some PEs which have no business managing a construction project let alone holding a license to seal design documents while others who can run calcs in their head for a complex structure design change have the same license. Hell I even know some SEs who are morons... no idea how you can pass the SE and not be super smart. 

True words.

A wise man once said...You can be a PE and still be an *****.

 

[Dexman PE PMP]

It's also an engineer's responsibility to limit the use of his PE to only the experience he has.  I have been construction management almost my entire career.  I have no business stamping a bridge design.  

Agree. Think of what an attorney would do with this in a courtroom. "Well, the expert for the prosecution only scored a 71 on their PE exam while our expert for the defense scored and 87! Clearly, our expert is better than theirs!"

To further expand on this, what if one expert took the Water Resources (Civil) exam and the other took the Power Systems (Mechanical)? Many states do not differentiate their PE's and leave it up to the engineer to practice within his/her experience, but I have seen plenty of MechE degrees taking Civil PE exams.

Like I said above, I am CM. I took the first offering of the CM depth exam. One of the guys I went to college with has the exact same degree, has almost the exact same work experience as me, but because he sat for the exam 6 months before me had to take the Transportation depth.  We still work in almost the exact same position.

 

[Road Guy]

I know that I barely passed, and I know this because after the morning session, I picked the easiest 20 in the PM and then left the rest blank..

 

[Mangano]

I know that I barely passed, and I know this because after the morning session, I picked the easiest 20 in the PM and then left the rest blank..

Different scoring system/test layout at the time?