October 2020 Exams

[Odinious]

Been trying to keep up the momentum but it is hard especially seeing some states on the rise.  We are doing OK here in MA for the time being.... Does anyone see a possibility where NCEES offers the exam to people in some states but not others? I can't see them doing it unless they can offer in all 50 states.

Honestly, I am not hopeful that the exam is offered again. EET is about to kick the tires on their online breadth course and I will follow though until this frigging thing is canceled again. I know it is selfish to be that upset about it, but... dang. Studying in the winter when it gets dark at 5-6 PM and freezing out is a different story than it is during the summer.

 

[beccabun PE]

I started studying again a couple weeks ago and I also don't think my brain can handle the exam getting canceled again. It was absolutely devastating in March, and I'm dreading going back to my 15-20 hours per week of studying, not to mention all of the stress and anxiety of wondering if it's even going to be worth it or if it will be canceled again. I wish NCEES would release their strategy for administering the exam in a safe way. I get that they have two days of exams now, but there were 16,000 people who weren't able to take the exam in April, and I imagine that most of them are going to take it in October. So they'll still have approximately the same amount of people each day. What's their strategy for keeping everyone safe? Are they going to guarantee social distancing will be enforced? Are we going to be required to wear a mask during the entire exam? I know it's four months out, but even just a developing strategy would be a little comforting right now. 

 

[civilrobot PE etc etc]

I had a novel idea over the weekend. I'm thinking about holding off on registering and studying at full force until there's some certainty to this situation. No point in dropping everything in my life to dedicate 10-20 hours per week to something that may not even happen or may actually happen in an unsafe manner. 

States are doing their own thing and if NCEES leaves it up to the State to decide, I'd rather not be in an overcrowded room with proctors whispering in my face while I'm trying to take an exam and not get sick. I'm glad I had the opportunity to see what it's like to sit for the exam so that I can make an informed decision. There are times when we're just close. In line, bathroom, hotels, etc. 

I'd rather study and continue to solve problems at a reduced rate of urgency until the country has a solid group of grown ups in charge and we're actually making progress as a unit.

 

[Odinious]

I had a novel idea over the weekend. I'm thinking about holding off on registering and studying at full force until there's some certainty to this situation. No point in dropping everything in my life to dedicate 10-20 hours per week to something that may not even happen or may actually happen in an unsafe manner. 

States are doing their own thing and if NCEES leaves it up to the State to decide, I'd rather not be in an overcrowded room with proctors whispering in my face while I'm trying to take an exam and not get sick. I'm glad I had the opportunity to see what it's like to sit for the exam so that I can make an informed decision. There are times when we're just close. In line, bathroom, hotels, etc. 

I'd rather study and continue to solve problems at a reduced rate of urgency until the country has a solid group of grown ups in charge and we're actually making progress as a unit.

I think you're on to something. Pennsylvania will be issuing a ban on gatherings of over 25 people tomorrow or Thursday in its southwestern counties due to a spike in covid-19 cases. If a ban on gatherings like this can occur on such short notice, then why put in the months of effort? 

 

[JollyGreenGiant]

I live here in Pittsburgh and with spikes generating bans on gatherings, closures of various businesses, and this stuff happening with little notice, I am skipping the October 2020 Civil Structural Exam.

Yeah, I failed in October 2019 and was all wound up, working on problems, and studying more materials full steam ahead when April 2020 was cancelled. I am not going to risk studying through the Summer when my kids are stuck at home and then back to school where we are teaching them at home 3 days a week. No, it's not lost study time should it be canceled (partially lost though) but it's lost time with my family and putting more on my wife during very trying times.

Things are crazy, life isn't exactly simple right now, and I'm not sure October will bring peace & quiet. I would rather wait and shoot for April 2021 when things will (hopefully) be much more certain.

That's my plan. Maybe it's not the best plan. Maybe it's not even a good plan. Maybe it won't work out, maybe it will but it's what Ive got right now.

 

[justanotherguy808]

Feels lucky that I passed Oct 2019 

 

[Dothracki PE]

I registered for my exam today and noticed "board approval pending" .  I got my approval from board on Jan 2019.  Since NCEES center is closed I reached out to them through chat service and  the person told me it doesn't show on NCEES system. I already took exam on April 2019 and failed.  The person on the chat asked me to send an email to board asking to update the NCEES. I don' understand how board communicates with NCEES. I sent the email to board. 

P.S: I was actually surprised to see the rudeness of the person on the chat. Person (Dallas) just kept closing the chat improperly and closed it again and again when i was trying to ask more questions. How they get job to handle customer service with that attitude and we have to pay $100 just for admin fee.   

@thinlineExactly the same happened to me. I register on June 25th after receiving my approval from NY state but it still says pending on the NCEES website. The woman I was chatting with was not very helpful or nice. She eventually said to reach out to the state board, not NCEES. I told her that I understood and thanked her for her help. No response ever after that.

 

[Odinious]

This can't possibly be good news for us poor saps taking October paper based tests... a sign of things to come?

Philadelphia bans large events through February 2021 due to coronavirus

 

[RBHeadge PE]

This can't possibly be good news for us poor saps taking October paper based tests... a sign of things to come?

Philadelphia bans large events through February 2021 due to coronavirus

Pretty much yeah.

Back in the day, SEPA would test outside Philly at the Fort Washington Expo Center, and if that's still the case then Kenney's order wouldn't apply to it. But it's my understanding the NCEES tried to establish more numerous smaller testing sites for Oct 2020 to comply with potential local gathering limits. I could envision Oct 2020 being a patchwork administration where some regions test and some regions or States don't test. I could also see it getting cancelled again.

 

[Dothracki PE]

99 days left, who knows... I hope it says based on region at least New York is on the downward trend.

 

[RBHeadge PE]

99 days left

Who else has the countdown clock on their phone's homescreen.

 

[CAPLS]

Pretty much yeah.

Back in the day, SEPA would test outside Philly at the Fort Washington Expo Center, and if that's still the case then Kenney's order wouldn't apply to it. But it's my understanding the NCEES tried to establish more numerous smaller testing sites for Oct 2020 to comply with potential local gathering limits. I could envision Oct 2020 being a patchwork administration where some regions test and some regions or States don't test. I could also see it getting cancelled again.

I would be surprised if NCEES allows patchwork testing given general concerns about test information being compromised.  I would bet money that NCEES people are monitoring what’s going on VERY closely with every bit of concern the rest of us are. 

 

[Tiger15]

I would be surprised if NCEES allows patchwork testing given general concerns about test information being compromised.  I would bet money that NCEES people are monitoring what’s going on VERY closely with every bit of concern the rest of us are. 

I'm sure they are. I assume that they very much care about their mission. They have to to put up will all the people who complain at them constantly.

 

[civilrobot PE etc etc]

I can’t control what NCEES will do and I can’t control what other people are doing to stay healthy. I can only control myself. I’ve officially decided to sit this one out.

 

[Odinious]

Well that escalated quickly.

[Pennsylvania] New statewide restrictions on bars, restaurants, gatherings to take effect Thursday

Of particular note, indoor events and gatherings of more than 25 persons are prohibited.

 

[Zach Stone P.E.]

Only time will tell, hopefully the exam does not cancelled otherwise it is going to be extremely demotivating for those that were first impacted by the April cancellation. 

 

[256_civil]

Supposed to take the test in October and sitting here everyday feeling like one minute the test will probably happen then the next minute it wont. Its a terrible feeling considering I went through this in April and it didn't pan out. Makes it extremely hard to focus on studying... 

 

[CAPLS]

Its probably not any consolation, but I do feel for all of you that are in the midst of preparing for this step in your career attempting to obtain a license.  I recall all the trials and tribulations that I experienced when going through that and those were normal times.  This is not a fun time for any of you with all the uncertainty associated with examinations let alone the uncertainty associated with ensuring that your job remains intact.  Keep it going.  You'll have the opportunity to get the license.  Just a few more hurdles to go through than what you originally thought, but it will just be that much more satisfying when you do get that license.

 

[Stardust]

NCEES email response, stole from Reddit:

NCEES is closely monitoring the rapidly changing events taking place with COVID-19. We will be making every effort to ensure that we protect the health, safety and welfare of examinees and our proctoring staff for this exam administration. New exam day policies regarding measures being taken at exam locations will be communicated in early August 2020. This will give examinees enough time before registration closes to determine if they would like to proceed with the exam or cancel.

While we will do everything within our power to host the exam in as safe a manner as we can, there is no way for NCEES to ensure that the exam will take place. If the exam needs to be cancelled, we will make sure examinees are informed immediately and full refunds issued. We will make ever effort to hold the exam, as we certainly understand its importance and the time/money that goes into this for examinees. However, local/state guidelines as well as national implications may cause us to have to cancel specific exam locations or the exam in its entirety. There are many factors here that are beyond our control and no one can predict what will happen in the future. We will do our best to keep examinees informed in a timely manner of any decision that is made regarding the October 2020 administration.

 

[Road Guy]

I hope they can make state to state decision and not just blanket cancel the entire US.

One would think there are many venues that you can space people out much  more than 10 FEET ,  they may have to stagger arrival times and go outside their typical "norm" though, which is hard for NCEES to do..