I wanted tosee if any folks are planning to go for both the SE Components in Oct 2022 and what is their planned schedule. ALso if folks who have already passed both components in 1 shot, on how their strategy looked like? Is it better to start prep for 1 compnent and then intermittently revisit while preparing for the other component to retain info or should it be 1 component completely and then jumpt on prep for the other component. Appreciate input!
SE Both Components for Oct 2022
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I took both components this week. I did buildings so it might not be as useful to you, but here are my tips:
Study vertical first, then lateral. Vertical will help you reinforce basics which are also used for lateral.
Get as many practice problems in as you can, specially in areas you are weak at.
don’t stress about reviewing analysis beyond basic stuff. If it takes you more than 5 minutes to analyze a problem by hand don’t study it.
Do the practice exams so you get an idea of the format, type of questions and content.
If you are taking the exam in October I’d do a practice exam around August to see what your weaknesses are. I did the practice tests late and did not have a ton of time to adress deficiencies.
When you do the practice tests, try to simulate the actual exam. Wake up early, do the AM section in 4 hours, take a break, then do the PM test in 4 hours. This helped me keep pace in the real exam and was able to complete both AM portions in the real test comfortably. PM was a crapshoot since the problems in the NCEES practice test just aren’t as hard as the exam problems. I finished the practice test with plenty of time, but struggled to actually finish the real thing.
Get study material, and evaluate it before starting to study. I got PPI’s SE reference manual for buildings and just studied that without browsing through it to plan my studies. I later figured that the lateral portion was severely lacking, and had to scramble to get more material to study more material specific topics such as steel and concrete seismic provisions which are barely touched at all in the study guide.
Study vertical first, then lateral. Vertical will help you reinforce basics which are also used for lateral.
Get as many practice problems in as you can, specially in areas you are weak at.
don’t stress about reviewing analysis beyond basic stuff. If it takes you more than 5 minutes to analyze a problem by hand don’t study it.
Do the practice exams so you get an idea of the format, type of questions and content.
If you are taking the exam in October I’d do a practice exam around August to see what your weaknesses are. I did the practice tests late and did not have a ton of time to adress deficiencies.
When you do the practice tests, try to simulate the actual exam. Wake up early, do the AM section in 4 hours, take a break, then do the PM test in 4 hours. This helped me keep pace in the real exam and was able to complete both AM portions in the real test comfortably. PM was a crapshoot since the problems in the NCEES practice test just aren’t as hard as the exam problems. I finished the practice test with plenty of time, but struggled to actually finish the real thing.
Get study material, and evaluate it before starting to study. I got PPI’s SE reference manual for buildings and just studied that without browsing through it to plan my studies. I later figured that the lateral portion was severely lacking, and had to scramble to get more material to study more material specific topics such as steel and concrete seismic provisions which are barely touched at all in the study guide.
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Shannonsider_2016
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I took both components (Bridge depth) in April 2021, and successfully retook the Lateral component in October 2021.
My suggestion is to sign up for an online review course for both components as early as you can (i.e. as soon as registration opens otherwise you won't have enough time to go through all the recommended material for both components). I took AEI-california online classes, and they were fantastic. They give you 2 large binders for both components, close to 200 hours of lectures, and a lot of practice problems to go through. If you stick to their schedule you would study the vertical/lateral classes in a good order. Best thing about doing an online course is it forces you to stay on schedule with your preparation.
Not sure if it helps but here's what I did:
- Took AEI online review courses (both components)
- Followed the previous cycle's lectures (i.e. do all the April 2022 lecture videos on demand instead of waiting for October 2022 videos to be uploaded)
- Went through and put into excel the duration + name of each lecture video so I could track my % complete of viewing lecture videos (helped keep me sane)
- Followed all of their recommended homework/example problem/mini exam schedule
- Separated the AEI binders (they give you 1 huge binder per vertical/lateral component) into subject specific (i.e. concrete-Vert, concrete-Lat, steel-V, conc-L, etc) - makes it easier to carry around with me
- Create a "cheat sheet" binder for all AM subjects and the depth - DO THIS AS YOU SOLVE SAMPLE PROBLEMS/ MINI-EXAMS (you will know what information you keep referring back to to solve those problems). From my cheat sheet binder I could answer a lot of AM/PM questions without digging into my primary note binders.
** AM cheat sheets example:
- AEI subject specific summary notes (AEI gives you these)
- At the top edge of each subject-specific binder I added a quick reference example number (i.e. problem #915) and added a key to the cheat sheet so if a similar problem came up in the exam I knew exactly where to find that sample problem. For some keys I added color codes to group problems sub-categories
- Add in copy of any useful tables/pages in notes that you keep referring back to (i.e. determining response spectra)
- etc...
** PM cheat sheets example:
- any formulae you need for analysis (i.e. determine pier stiffness)
- copy of AASHTO load combination table
- compile excel/word table with all references needed for seismic (analysis, column design, shaft design, seismic detailing)
- etc...
Hope that helps and good luck on your preperation.
My suggestion is to sign up for an online review course for both components as early as you can (i.e. as soon as registration opens otherwise you won't have enough time to go through all the recommended material for both components). I took AEI-california online classes, and they were fantastic. They give you 2 large binders for both components, close to 200 hours of lectures, and a lot of practice problems to go through. If you stick to their schedule you would study the vertical/lateral classes in a good order. Best thing about doing an online course is it forces you to stay on schedule with your preparation.
Not sure if it helps but here's what I did:
- Took AEI online review courses (both components)
- Followed the previous cycle's lectures (i.e. do all the April 2022 lecture videos on demand instead of waiting for October 2022 videos to be uploaded)
- Went through and put into excel the duration + name of each lecture video so I could track my % complete of viewing lecture videos (helped keep me sane)
- Followed all of their recommended homework/example problem/mini exam schedule
- Separated the AEI binders (they give you 1 huge binder per vertical/lateral component) into subject specific (i.e. concrete-Vert, concrete-Lat, steel-V, conc-L, etc) - makes it easier to carry around with me
- Create a "cheat sheet" binder for all AM subjects and the depth - DO THIS AS YOU SOLVE SAMPLE PROBLEMS/ MINI-EXAMS (you will know what information you keep referring back to to solve those problems). From my cheat sheet binder I could answer a lot of AM/PM questions without digging into my primary note binders.
** AM cheat sheets example:
- AEI subject specific summary notes (AEI gives you these)
- At the top edge of each subject-specific binder I added a quick reference example number (i.e. problem #915) and added a key to the cheat sheet so if a similar problem came up in the exam I knew exactly where to find that sample problem. For some keys I added color codes to group problems sub-categories
- Add in copy of any useful tables/pages in notes that you keep referring back to (i.e. determining response spectra)
- etc...
** PM cheat sheets example:
- any formulae you need for analysis (i.e. determine pier stiffness)
- copy of AASHTO load combination table
- compile excel/word table with all references needed for seismic (analysis, column design, shaft design, seismic detailing)
- etc...
Hope that helps and good luck on your preperation.
SEaspirant
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Thank you so much for your detailed response. Indeed it is very helpful. I am also a Bridge Guy and wanted to ask you if it helps to create Flow Charts for the PM Section like for Pre-stressed Girders, Post Tensioned Girders, Steel Girders, etc. At least AASHTO Chapter 6 Appendix has good flowcharts references for the steel design but could not find anything for the Concrete (including P/S). Would you know off hand if these AASHTO flow charts are available somewhere (like DOTs, CALTRANS, etc.) that i could use or if you have a better suggestion. BTW what was your schedule while preparing for the Exams (weekday/weekend)? Trying to find balance between work, family and the prep. Appreciate all you help.
Shannonsider_2016
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No problem - happy to help.
For the Vertical Bridge Depth - the AEI course had very good notes/examples for the depth. I personally didn't do any flowcharts, but that seems like a great idea. Here are some additional resources I used for the exam:
- Caltrans Bridge Design Practice (Feb 2015) - Chapter 7 Post-Tensioned Concrete Girders (Includes flowcharts)
- Caltrans Bridge Design Practice (Feb 2015) - Chapter 8 Precast Pretensioned Concrete Girders (Includes flowcharts)
- FHA Steel Bridge Design Handbook (Dec 2015) - Design Example 1(straight continuous comp steel girder) & 3(curved continuous comp steel girder) & 4(straight continuous comp steel tub) & Splice Design.
Overall due to the scope of the Vertical Depth, I found it hard to try and cover all the bases with flowcharts/quick reference notes. What helped me was going through the course bridge am/depth material and solving lots of problems.
For the Lateral Bridge Depth - I went through the code and summarized all requirements for seismic analysis and design for various components in a table in word. Break this into requirements for various components (columns, wall-pier, footings, analysis). Then break those into specific requirements (i.e. column long reinf/ tie reinf/ spiral reinf requirements). List the equation/design requirement in the table, the section/equation reference and the page number. You could also add sketches to your summary table for greater clarity.
I also printed off the few pages in AASHTO related to seismic analysis/design/detailing to include in my Bridge-Lateral Depth binder and had them marked up with my own notes/sketches, and this was a great quick reference in the exam.
I was like yourself where I had a tight window to study with work and a family with young kids. I would estimate you would need ~400 hours (watching lectures, preparing + solving problems) to put yourself in a great position. I started in January 2021, and my schedule was:
- Saturday - studying at office for 6-7 hours
- Sunday - studying at office for 5 hours
- Weekday - 2 or 3 hours a day (mainly in the evening at home)
I did not end up having enough time to work through all the recommend problems with the course. If I had started at least 1 month earlier I would have been very well prepared. Biggest thing is getting through the lectures on the course (while also tabbing up the book as you go along or as you are solving practice problems), and then if you are finished with lectures with a few weeks before the exams you are in a good position.
Thank you so much for the putting the time and effort to explain your experience.
I am not a bridge guy, but this is very helpful for anyone thinks about taking the exam.
Thank you
SE Bridge. Passed Vertical in October 2021. Just took Lateral on April 2022.
Studied by myself. I didn't count the time and just put as much time as possible. Every time before the exam I felt I was ready. But the real exam was much tougher than the NCEES practice exams and time was very limited for both vertical and lateral.
If I were to take both exams at the same time, I would spend the same amount of time as I did them separately. Just to be safe.
For Vertical PM, I would recommend study IDOT bridge design practice and Wisconsin DOT bridge design examples. These are very good examples for superstructure design.
For Lateral AM, I would suggest to get Seismic Design Review Workbook (Hiner). There is not much Lateral PM examples online. I was using some seismic design examples by FHWA dated 1997. But you need to compare the changes between codes.
Studied by myself. I didn't count the time and just put as much time as possible. Every time before the exam I felt I was ready. But the real exam was much tougher than the NCEES practice exams and time was very limited for both vertical and lateral.
If I were to take both exams at the same time, I would spend the same amount of time as I did them separately. Just to be safe.
For Vertical PM, I would recommend study IDOT bridge design practice and Wisconsin DOT bridge design examples. These are very good examples for superstructure design.
For Lateral AM, I would suggest to get Seismic Design Review Workbook (Hiner). There is not much Lateral PM examples online. I was using some seismic design examples by FHWA dated 1997. But you need to compare the changes between codes.
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