Exam Passing Percentage

[scottiesei]

Structural is at an all time low, damn with October's curve I would have made it for sure. :wtf:

 

[Road Guy]

that structural test must be a bitch..

 

[JPMORGN11]

Don't you think it would be helpful if NCEES also took the time to break down the percentages for each state as well?

Perhaps that would be too much to ask. That might push the review time to maybe 15 weeks or so.

 

[Mike in Gastonia]

Don't you think it would be helpful if NCEES also took the time to break down the percentages for each state as well?

Why?

Everyone (by discipline) is taking the same exam regardless of which state they are in. What would you learn by knowing that the pass rate for CEs in Ohio is higher than the pass rate for CEs in Arizona? The cut score is the same.

Am I missing something?

 

[EdinNO]

I guess you might know that you are more valuable if you passed and there are only very few people in your state passing.

Ed

 

[RIP - VTEnviro]

I agree with Mike. I think it would be interesting, but not terribly relevant.

The other thing is that if you do it state by state, you can encounter a situation where you have a tiny state like mine where there aren't enough examinees to make the percentages meaningful.

 

[JPMORGN11]

My rational is that if I'm a PE in a state that doesn't have a high number of PEs for whatever reason, my value should be higher than if I was in a State where a PE was around every corner.

Immediately I think of areas such as Alaska and Hawaii.

I agree, we all take the same exam. Although you can't tell me that it would be that difficult to break down the percentages on a state-by-state basis.

While we're on that subject, why is there so much discrepancy amongst states as to their exam eligibility requirements? Shouldn't that be across the board also? I mean, if we're all taking the same tests anyway, should we all have to have completed the same pre-requisites in order to sit for it?

Some states will let you take the PE before you even have an FE? What sense does that make?

 

[dewd]

What about cut scores. I know people have previous years cut scores, so who releases them and when?

 

[EdinNO]

I think since they used to give scores (now they don't any more as of October '05, I believe), people could determine the cut scores via boards like this- that is unless the actually gave the cut scores as well.

For instance, if one person got 54 right and failed and another got 55 right and passed- voila! There's your cut score!

Ed

 

[Mike in Gastonia]

My rational is that if I'm a PE in a state that doesn't have a high number of PEs for whatever reason, my value should be higher than if I was in a State where a PE was around every corner.
Immediately I think of areas such as Alaska and Hawaii.

I agree, we all take the same exam. Although you can't tell me that it would be that difficult to break down the percentages on a state-by-state basis.

While we're on that subject, why is there so much discrepancy amongst states as to their exam eligibility requirements? Shouldn't that be across the board also? I mean, if we're all taking the same tests anyway, should we all have to have completed the same pre-requisites in order to sit for it?

Some states will let you take the PE before you even have an FE? What sense does that make?

Meh.... I guess if I want to know how many Civil PEs there are in Alaska, I'd go search their database.

I think each state actually sets their own guidelines as to eligibility - not up to NCEES. I think technically, they work for the states. Although sometimes it looks like it's the other way around!

 

[JPMORGN11]

My rational is that if I'm a PE in a state that doesn't have a high number of PEs for whatever reason, my value should be higher than if I was in a State where a PE was around every corner.
Immediately I think of areas such as Alaska and Hawaii. 

I agree, we all take the same exam.  Although you can't tell me that it would be that difficult to break down the percentages on a state-by-state basis.

While we're on that subject, why is there so much discrepancy amongst states as to their exam eligibility requirements?  Shouldn't that be across the board also?  I mean, if we're all taking the same tests anyway, should we all have to have completed the same pre-requisites in order to sit for it?

Some states will let you take the PE before you even have an FE?  What sense does that make?

Meh.... I guess if I want to know how many Civil PEs there are in Alaska, I'd go search their database.

I think each state actually sets their own guidelines as to eligibility - not up to NCEES. I think technically, they work for the states. Although sometimes it looks like it's the other way around!

I just made that point about state's setting their own guidelines.

 

[dewd]

So in other words, we will never know how good we did OR how good we even needed to do to pass. h43r:

They sure make predicting my pass/fail status difficult.

 

[Mike in Gastonia]

I just made that point about state's setting their own guidelines.

Actually, you were asking why there was a discrepancy between states. I thought that perhaps you didn't know that each state sets their own. My bad.......

 

[Road Guy]

I would like to see the pass rates for the states, dont know if it would really "show anything substantial" but it would be interesting to see.

Thats something that would be up to each state I imagine..

 

[meers]

TX has the passing rates for every exam on their website. They still don't have the April 2006 passing rates up though.

 

[gknevada]

Does anyone know why the percentage of people who pass the PE exam is so LOW for people who take the test more than once? I don't get it. This is my second time and when I saw the Stats it really discourages me. Shouldn't that percentage be higher? Please explain.

 

[EdinNO]

I've heard various theories. I don't know if I buy them or if I can remember them.

I'll see if I can recall or find the ones I've heard before.

Ed

 

[RIP - VTEnviro]

There is a thread devoted to passing rates going on right now. Feel free to post your comments there.

Edit: On second thought, I've merged this with the on-going discussion about passing rates.

 

[EdinNO]

The soup nazzi has spoken. No soup for you!

Here's the best explanation I have seen (from someone else, not me):

Short answer:

Repeat takers, by definition, tend to be people who aren't good at taking PE exams. The people who are good at it tend to pass on the first try.

Long answer:

Consider a "pool" of first-time exam takers. These people are not all alike: they have different "passing probabilities". Some are relatively smart and well prepared, so they have high "passing probabilities". Some are less smart and poorly prepared, so they have low "passing probabilities". Most people are somewhere in the middle.

After the exam has been administered, some people pass and leave the pool. Others fail and enter the "repeater pool". But the selection process is not random. People with high "passing probabilities" tend to pass and to exit the pool. People with low "passing probabilities" tend to fail, and to become repeaters.

So the "repeater pool" has a very different distribution than the "first-timer pool". The repeater pool has more people with low passing probabilities, and fewer people with high passing probabilities. So the pass rate for the repeater pool is lower than that of the original first-timer pool.

I think this one makes sense.

Ed

 

[gknevada]

(Thank you VTEnviro, I'm so nervous, I didn't see this thread. )