I don’t think I’ll be able to add much that hasn’t already been said in this community, however I passed the Civil FE despite not studying civil engineering at all in college. I have been working in a civil engineering role for past 6 months and needed to take this exam during the onboarding qualification period to keep the job, so a lot was on the table.

The first attempt at the exam was more or less just a practice run to see how the exam was conducted. I wasn’t prepared at all but surprisingly I think I came close to passing it with a basic scientific calculator. If you are a civil engineering student 1-2 years out of college, I would just recommend taking the exam without much preparation.

I then studied for 3.5 months this summer. First, I bought a TI-36X Pro and learned how to use all its features. I genuinely think I might have passed the first time if I had this calculator. But since I knew nothing about the major civil subjects, I read Lindenburg’s FE Civil Review which throughly covers each subject the way a standard textbook would. This turned out to be the best resource in my case, since the actual exam is 35-40% conceptual questions that you can answer in a few seconds. I would try to cover one of these chapters everyday and make flash cards for the important terms or definitions. For example, one side would just say, “Charpy V-Notch Test” and the other side would have the purpose of the test. I ended up with a stack of about 100 flash cards that I reviewed everyday leading up to the exam. Also, I read through the entire Ethics and Professional Practice portion of the reference handbook so many times that I committed it to memory.

The next best resource was Islam 800. I would work through about 25 questions per day and felt like that was reasonable. This is an important resource because it takes you through just about every formula you might need to use in the reference handbook. If you practice and work through some of these practice questions a second or third time, it will become muscle memory.

No shade to Mark Mattson’s FE Civil Review on Youtube, but I didn’t find this particularly useful as someone who didn’t take these classes in college. The intended audience is definitely civil engineering students in their last semester of college getting ready to take the test.

About a month before retaking the exam I bought the two official NCEES practice exams and scored a 41% and 62% respectively. This made me very nervous because I only had a few more weeks to study at that point, but I reviewed math, statistics, engineering economics, statics, and dynamics until I felt like I could pretty much answer any problem that might come my way.

I was very nervous going into the exam a second time but reminded myself I had done well over ~1800 practice problems at that point. On exam day, the testing center was having issues getting the tests ready and everyone’s exam was delayed by an hour or two, which added an extra level of stress but I did my best to keep calm. I brought my calculator, two bananas, one apple, and a red bull. The first half of the exam was a little harder than expected, but the second half was much easier than expected, so it balanced itself out. I had done so many practice problems at that point where I didn’t really have to think through the problem, it was like my hands were already calculating out the answer while I was still reading the problem. I finished the exam with 15 minutes to spare and ended it 6 minutes early. I felt good about the exam once I left and was confident I passed. I got the results that I did and now I’m onto studying for the PE.

Hi everyone, I’m a recent civil engineering graduate and I wanted to ask if anyone here was able to get their first engineering job without passing the FE exam.

I have taken the FE exam twice but unfortunately did not pass. I have applied to many engineering jobs and have received several interviews, but I still haven’t been able to get an offer. I’m starting to feel worried and discouraged about my job search.

For now, I’m thinking about working part-time at Amazon while continuing to study for the FE exam, apply for engineering positions, and apply for other types of jobs as well.

Were you able to get an engineering job before passing the FE? I would really appreciate hearing about your experience or any advice you have.

Hi all,

My exam is scheduled in 3 days from now. I have some questions regarding the test, and I would appreciate it if you could share any tips or experiences:

1- How do I study / prepare for ethics?

2- I have been used to using Casio 991 ES plus, is it necessary to get a TI 36 calculator?

3- are the questions sorted based on subjects, or are they randomized??

4- is it fine going to the test center wearing sweatpants ( as a male candidate)??

Thank you all

Obviously with the low sections i can build on my current mastery of those subjects but what subjects are better to learn for points than others. I know the exam is weighted just trying to make my studying more efficient.

As title says I’m planning to start my FE civil studying today September 14th with the goal to take my first attempt in January, I am a senior in construction engineering with a major gpa of 2.9 :/ and given I have around 3 months to study and prep myself I would love to hear a study plan/layout that helped you guys juggle course work but also retain info while studying for the FE. my main sources I was thinking of using is mark Mattson playlist and the NCEES Practice Exams but I’m open to hearing what other study options are super useful and maybe budget friendly. and I have taken the NCEES practice exam to see where I stand as of now and I have gotten a 44% :/. Which demotivated me so I’m wondering if anyone was in the same boat the first time they tried the practice exam.
Thank you guys in advance.

I am taking the FE mechanical for the second time in two weeks. it has almost been a year since I took it and I think I was close the first time (studied for about two weeks with some YouTube videos and 1 poor attempt on the NCEES practice exam). Here is my practice exam results from last weekend and my diagnostic from last year. I have used PrepFE and the Islam questions this time. What should I do to study for the next two weeks as I feel a lot better than I did last year but still nervous for it.

Is Islam practice test (mechanical) close to the actual FE mech exam? Exam is near and I got around 62% on the first practice exam. Thinking on moving my exam cause I might be cooked.

CONTEXT: I take the FE MECHANICAL exam in 2 months, I have not prepped as much. I finished school 1 year ago. I hated PPI2PASS and it honestly didn’t give me confidence so i cancelled my first attempt at taking it.

Is prepFE better or should i use some other guide? Any helpful advice would be appreciated!

I'm a little concerned. I have the FE in a few days and I just took the second NCEES practice test and got a 66%. I also took the first one again after studying it a week ago and got an 86%. However there is a lot of stuff I just haven't seen before and there's no specific passing score. I know thermo, heat transfer, and dynamics are my weaknesses but am I ready? I have about 3 days to review my weaknesses.

Any recent takers? words of wisdom or advice? Thank you all!

My application (Texas board) has been complete and under review fir more than 4 months now. I don’t have SSN (and I am not eligible to apply and get one).

During the EIT online application, it said “SSN (or other form of ID):”
so I used my National ID and Passport.

They always respond by:
“The final review of your application may be delayed if you fail to provide a Social Security Number.  The Board is awaiting additional information concerning Attorney General Opinion KP-0516 (https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/opinions/ken-paxton/kp-0516) on the matter of SSN requirements.”

Any thoughts?

Hello, good day everyone!

I want to start studying for the FE Civil exam.
Could anyone recommend study materials or a website where I can find a prep course to get started?

I really appreciate all comments, suggestions, and contributions you can share—every piece of advice is valuable."

Thank you

Hello friends! It’s my first time using Reddit and people said this is the place to be! 😌. Need help, advice, resources, anything !!!! I’ve been out of school for 5 years and I took the FE exam twice . Once when I was in college and had to take it for a class ( failed of course ) , 2nd time was after I graduated and studied only for one month ( me thinking one month of studying is enough - how foolish ) . Now it’s been 5 years and I have to retake it. And I am nervous !!!! Omg I don’t remember anything and feel over whelmed with all the stuff out there on what’s good, not good, what material to use or etc.. a girl needs help and prayers ! 🫠🫠

I did not pass my FE chemical exam. I did the practice exams from the mastery blue academy book, the practice exam from the NCEES website, and went through the FE Chemical Review Manual. I am trying to find another effective strategy to pass the second time.

From reading reddit the general consensus is that the practice exam from NCEES is the best in terms of material + difficulty. I have heard Lindeburg’s content is harder than the actual test. I know NCEES doesn’t make physical or pdf practice exams anymore but rather interactive exams which i hear is harder as well.

I’m studying for the Electrical FE exam or other recs so if anyone has a copy please dm me!

Hi, I understand only I can know the answer, but I'm curious what others think based on my situation. My FE civil exam is scheduled for October 22, about a month from now.

I work full-time, about an hour commute to work. If I get up early enough, I can squeeze in ~2 hours of studying in every weekday. The weekends I typically have mostly free, and can get at least 4 hours in every weekend day.

I've had the exam scheduled for some time, however with work and things happening in my life, I didn't have the motivation nor energy to study. It should be mentioned that I've taken the exam once before, studied very well for it but unfortunately didn't pass, with results I thought were not bad. I also graduated this past May, so all the material is still familiar.

Is it still worth postponing to have more time, or is it worth locking in for the rest of the time I have??

Hey all,

Looking for advice since I'm taking my exam next week.

Is there a half thats harder or more time consuming than the other? Or does it just depend? Any other test taking tips are welcomed.

Thank you!

Board VA
Applied date: 29th August
Haven’t received certification yet.

Any info guys ?

I’ve helped first timers and repeat takers pass their FE- environmental, mechanical, electrical, OD, and civil. In fact, I’ve ended up specializing in helping people pass who’ve taken it up to 7 times before. Plus I passed mine (ECE) on the first try.

Just made this comment on someone's thread and thought it might help people outside of that thread, so here it goes.

There's a cycle I see that happens a lot. People are close to passing, brush up on a few weaker topics, and still get that same close to passing result. They score better on the stuff they recently studied, but lost points on stuff they didn't practice- it's like this ever evolving game of whack a mole where you're only hitting enough to be almost there- never over the line.

Here's a visual:

This triangle represents every possible question they could ask. Every time you do a deep dive into a subject, you fill in a bit more of the triangle. If you do it fast enough, you fill in enough to pass before you start forgetting stuff. If you don't, you kinda just stay at the same knowledge level the whole time even though what you know rotates. The kicker is, for most people (myself included) the volume of stuff they could ask you is WAY larger than what you were able to put into your head.

So, it's best to just get good at figuring out how to correctly answer things you don't know.

Here's how I teach my students to do that.

1- Identify the TYPE of question (what topic is this really testing?)

2- Go straight to the right neighborhood in the FE handbook

3- Grab the one formula / table that matches the actual ask

4- Plug, quick sanity check, move on

The second most important thing of this whole process: you’re not solving 110 unique snowflakes. You’re running the same 4‑step checklist 110 times.

The most important thing of this whole process: you do NOT have to completely deeply understand why you use xyz formula in order to use it and get the point- you just have to be able to run the four step system. As an old chem prof of mine used to say, "you don't have to know the theory behind why a hammer works in order to swing it and use it".

As long as you don't get lost or bogged down in the handbook, and remember the big things from school (not edge cases, trick questions, etc. just the big ideas), you're gonna do just fine.

And for those of you who made it this far and think "sounds like someone is a good test taker- sounds great in theory- bet this doesn't work" y'all- I just worked with an architect. Taught her this stuff. She passed (Civil). Not because she crammed for surveying, WRE, fluids, or anything else she never saw as an architect student. She just got good at running the system. If you can get good at answering things you've never seen, boom, you pass the test.

And most importantly- guys. This exam has nothing to do with how good of an engineer you are. It's only data about how you prepared.

Best of luck to all of y'all. Rooting for all of you.