Tips to passing the PE on the second attempt
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MonteBiker
Bridge Engineer
Study harder (or study if none was done the previous time). Work lots of problems. When you think you have worked all of the problems and understand every one you can find, find more.
snickerd3
Taking suggestions
the diagonostic report should let you know what your weaknesses are. Try studying those and then do more practice problems for everything Montebiker said
I hope I don't need this thread, but it's possible I will. Took it the first time in ME machine design, think I have a 50/50 chance of passing.
Here is what I will do next time, if there is a next time:
1. Right after the exam, I wrote down my impressions of what I did well and poorly on and will use this to help my studies. My concern is that the exam will be much different and I will study for the past exam, so I will try and avoid this.
2. Study very similar to the first attempt by going through the MERM, reading most of it quickly and working the easy problems, skipping the 1hr long problems. I will do both the NCEES exams again and maybe 6 minute solution. Get more familiar with secondary references (Mark's and Shingleys). Study some areas that I didn't get to spend much time on the first exam.
3. Get more familiar with English units for power, energy, mass stuff. I always use ISO, so the exam was driving me crazy with all this lb mass / lb force and how it affects all the units, sometimes in strange ways (viscosity).
Overall my prep will be similar, but modified by what I learned during first attempt.
CivE Bricky
Well-known member
I don't know if I passed yet, but
once I had a diagnostic (I had the pleasure of getting two!), I looked at the weighting of each topic (according to NEECS) and how much it contributed to my overall exam grade.
You know there's 80 questions and by looking at % subject matter, you can easily calculate how many questions are on each topic. For morning, there's 40 questions and each subject area is 20%, so you know each morning subject area has 8 questions. Follow the same logic for afternoon.
Then use your diagnostic - it gives you % right on each topic, so you can figure how many questions you got right and wrong in each topic. All points are the same -- if you rock the morning and do miserably in the afternoon, you can still pass.
Use those parts to analyze and make a plan. (First time I missed by one question (54/80); second time I missed by 7 or so (48/80)--- way too tired - couldn't focus)
For example, for me:
4/8 right on structural morning wouldn't change much without investing maybe 100+ hours --and even then, I might not get a single question on anything I studied.
but
8/12 right on geometric design (traffic aftn) could probably move close to 11/12 or 12/12 with maybe 20-30 hours study....
so which 4 points are easier to go after?
I set target questions right for each subject area (easiest additional points plus a little extra cushion) and then divided and prioritized my study efforts accordingly.
I also did some review of the stuff I previously had under my belt so I wouldn't lose that. Also remember that some questions get recycled from exam to exam, so if you remember any that gave you trouble, make sure you learn the answer, just in case you see it again.
I did general study of a topic (Kaplan and CERM mostly) just enough to understand problems - and then tried to study mostly by doing problems and reviewing solutions.
Good luck...
once I had a diagnostic (I had the pleasure of getting two!), I looked at the weighting of each topic (according to NEECS) and how much it contributed to my overall exam grade.
You know there's 80 questions and by looking at % subject matter, you can easily calculate how many questions are on each topic. For morning, there's 40 questions and each subject area is 20%, so you know each morning subject area has 8 questions. Follow the same logic for afternoon.
Then use your diagnostic - it gives you % right on each topic, so you can figure how many questions you got right and wrong in each topic. All points are the same -- if you rock the morning and do miserably in the afternoon, you can still pass.
Use those parts to analyze and make a plan. (First time I missed by one question (54/80); second time I missed by 7 or so (48/80)--- way too tired - couldn't focus)
For example, for me:
4/8 right on structural morning wouldn't change much without investing maybe 100+ hours --and even then, I might not get a single question on anything I studied.
but
8/12 right on geometric design (traffic aftn) could probably move close to 11/12 or 12/12 with maybe 20-30 hours study....
so which 4 points are easier to go after?
I set target questions right for each subject area (easiest additional points plus a little extra cushion) and then divided and prioritized my study efforts accordingly.
I also did some review of the stuff I previously had under my belt so I wouldn't lose that. Also remember that some questions get recycled from exam to exam, so if you remember any that gave you trouble, make sure you learn the answer, just in case you see it again.
I did general study of a topic (Kaplan and CERM mostly) just enough to understand problems - and then tried to study mostly by doing problems and reviewing solutions.
Good luck...
For the first try I did all the problems I could in 3.5 months and 350+ hours and read some of the MERM for each problem and identified in my notebook which reference I used for each problem. I then put that information in a spread sheet and re-reviewed all the problems I did and in doing so found more places in the MERM that I could use instead of shigley, Marks, or the machinery handbook. I also tabbed the shit out of the MERM. All the tabbing and effort to do the spread sheet helped but I think some of that time should have been spent doing more problems.
For the second attempt this past spring I read the entire MERM (another 3.5 months and 350 hours) and did all the problems in the MERM and the NCEES book. This also helped as I found more information in the MERM that would have helped on the first try. I also changed some of my tabs.
For the third and hopefully my last attempt this Fall I am just doing and re-doing problems using the references I have used in the past (Marks, Shigley, MERM, and Machinery Handbook). I may set-up my own quick reference notebook for frequently used equations. I hesitated doing this for the last exam but I believe it would save time which is very important.
Note: For both exams I had a seperate 3 ring binder with the MERM index in it which helped alot.
For the second attempt this past spring I read the entire MERM (another 3.5 months and 350 hours) and did all the problems in the MERM and the NCEES book. This also helped as I found more information in the MERM that would have helped on the first try. I also changed some of my tabs.
For the third and hopefully my last attempt this Fall I am just doing and re-doing problems using the references I have used in the past (Marks, Shigley, MERM, and Machinery Handbook). I may set-up my own quick reference notebook for frequently used equations. I hesitated doing this for the last exam but I believe it would save time which is very important.
Note: For both exams I had a seperate 3 ring binder with the MERM index in it which helped alot.
nashbmattPE
Well-known member
Failed April 2009 ME
This time I will focus more on working problems
This time I will focus more on working problems
I just found out i passed the PE. It's the second time i took it. My advice would be to work as many problems as you can. the first time i studied I read the MERM basically cover to cover but it was the wrong way to study. This time i did every problem i could find. I didn't get anywhere near half of them right the first time, but i just kept working them.
the other thing i did was change depth. My first time Thermo scared me so i took machine design. BIG MISTAKE for an Aero. This time i took thermo/fluids and passed.
To sum up:
1. Work as many problems as you can find
2. Take what you know
AND MOST IMPORTANT
3. DO NOT GIVE UP!!
someone in the NY thread said that all PEs have one thing in common, they all passed the test ONCE!! THAT is a great statement!
the other thing i did was change depth. My first time Thermo scared me so i took machine design. BIG MISTAKE for an Aero. This time i took thermo/fluids and passed.
To sum up:
1. Work as many problems as you can find
2. Take what you know
AND MOST IMPORTANT
3. DO NOT GIVE UP!!
someone in the NY thread said that all PEs have one thing in common, they all passed the test ONCE!! THAT is a great statement!
djshortsleeve
I'm a PE!!!
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^ this is huge.
I studied regulary - at least one good session on weekends and 2-4 during the week. I would take 30 min breaks at work and work some problems too. In doing this, you keep your mind sharp, confidence up, and common values (air/water density, specific heats, etc) are easily memorized.
I took a review course which made the whole thing very structured. It was big in sharpening my economics as well.
But back to the first thing - get the NCEES sample problems/solutions. I got this a couple weeks before the exam and only got a little more than half correct on each side. I was scared, but it forced me to study even more. The real exam was much easier and I was very well prepared.
I studied regulary - at least one good session on weekends and 2-4 during the week. I would take 30 min breaks at work and work some problems too. In doing this, you keep your mind sharp, confidence up, and common values (air/water density, specific heats, etc) are easily memorized.
I took a review course which made the whole thing very structured. It was big in sharpening my economics as well.
But back to the first thing - get the NCEES sample problems/solutions. I got this a couple weeks before the exam and only got a little more than half correct on each side. I was scared, but it forced me to study even more. The real exam was much easier and I was very well prepared.
Take the next exam!!!
Since you studied for the first exam, review less and practice more.
The ASCE online class was a good review and they provided good tips.
Expect the unexpected. Thankfully I passed on my first attempt, but there were some problems on there that I couldn't believe they were asking. Usually the material that you blow off during studying and then see it on the exam. Be familiar with all the subjects in MERM, or at least the ones in the recommended chapters. Closer to exam time, go through the chapters over and over, just skimming through and keeping very familiar with the subjects. This way you can at least identify unfamiliar subjects when you see them on the test and know where to look for them in MERM.
Take many reference books with you to the exam, even if you haven't looked in them before. I did this and found answers to about 2 problems that I would have otherwise missed. Do well in the morning portion. The afternoon sections are generally harder, and you are pretty much wasted by then anyway.
Good luck.
Take many reference books with you to the exam, even if you haven't looked in them before. I did this and found answers to about 2 problems that I would have otherwise missed. Do well in the morning portion. The afternoon sections are generally harder, and you are pretty much wasted by then anyway.
Good luck.
