Tips and strategies for effective study of FE exam

 

Based on our personal expertise after clearing the FE test in civil, industrial, and mechatronics, the list below was created. We also take into account advice from members of the Prep FE forum who have taken the Principles of Electrical (FE) test and FE exam tips for your exam.

Examine your weakest, more difficult subjects first.

Depending on which FE you are taking, the FE test has roughly 14 different topic categories/subjects, such as math, dynamics, statics, etc. There may be more questions in some of these areas than others on the test. For instance, geotechnical engineers can anticipate seeing 10-15 problems on the exam, whereas civil engineers should only plan to face 4-6 questions on the dynamics. We advise you to review the many exam topic areas and choose which ones, based on the number of potential exam questions and your present level of preparedness in that area, you should focus on studying first. We advise setting study priorities in the following sequence.

Leave for the final subjects you never studied.

One or two items on the FE exam may have been absent from your undergraduate engineering course requirements. When discussing subjects like kinetics for engineers or industrial economics for mechanical engineers, this can occasionally happen. However, it will undoubtedly take more time to prepare for such topics than it takes to prepare for the ones you did see in class. You may be able to teach yourself sufficiently about these subjects to confront them on the exam. We're not suggesting that you merely disregard these subjects; rather, we advise saving your review for last. Start with the ones you have an of above of answering correctly.

Sign up for a thorough and organized FE Exam preparation resource.

A few engineering practice problems are undoubtedly lying around, yes. More likely, you might discover a few online as well. Although you run the risk of having knowledge gaps in your preparation by not using a FE review textbook or an online FE test preparation service like PrepFE, these techniques may still be effective. You can avoid wasting time studying for subjects that won't even be on the FE exam study strategy by using a systematic and comprehensive FE exam review source. Worse yet, you can avoid skipping over some subjects that are essential to passing the FE. Some FE review resources exist that contain lecture videos if you haven't attended school in a while.

Make use of the advanced capabilities in your calculation.

Purchase a certified calculator for the test right away. Before the test, get comfortable with it. Because it is inexpensive, packed with capabilities, and a lot of us are accustomed to TI computers from our adolescent years, we advise the TI-36X Pro. The usage of several of the more complex calculator capabilities, like integration, variations, and the problem solver, is also covered in a separate post we published. By using these calculator capabilities during the exam, you can significantly reduce the amount of time you spend on it.

studyforfe.com is a tiny collection of engineers spread out around the nation with a variety of backgrounds and experiences. We each hold master's or doctoral degrees in our various areas and have backgrounds in data science, automotive, electrical, aviation, and civil works.

          

9 Tips to make a PE exam study schedule for maximum productivity

 

You have passed your FE exam, become an EIT, earned a valuable experience of four years under a licensed PE, registered for the PE exam, and are all set to take the PE exam.

Now what?

The one thing that is left that you need the most to successfully pass the PE exam is a PE study schedule.

This article will tell you the importance of having a PE exam study schedule and tips about making a study schedule for PE by yourself.

So let’s get started.

Why Do You Need a PE Exam Study Schedule

The PE Exam is well-known for being difficult, but let me tell you, that’s not the case. The exam is not that hard to pass if you are well-prepared.

But:

Preparing for the PE exam without the study schedule is like sailing a ship without a rudder – you don’t know where you are heading towards! 

Therefore:

Creating a study schedule for the PE exam is the key.

Otherwise:

Your chances of getting failed might increase.

Because:

Finding time to study for the PE exam along with your other routine activities is a hard nut to crack. That’s why you need a proper study schedule to maintain a balance between both your personal life and academic life.  

9 Tips for Perfectly Scheduling Study Time for PE Exam Preparation

1. Examine Your Existing Time Management and Schedule

The first step to creating a PE exam study schedule is to analyze your ongoing pattern of schedule and how much time you put into your daily activities. You have to manage your time for studying by limiting or getting rid of those things in your life that aren’t productive and favorable to getting to your ultimate goal. 

For example:

You can temporarily delete your social media applications, or at least limit their usage, as they consume a lot portion of your day.   

2. Divide Your Free Time During the Week into PE Study Sessions

Take out your free time during the week and avail yourself of it by dividing it into PE study sessions. Plan to make a PE study schedule that dedicates at least 5-8 hours for studying each week. 

You can also download our free PE Exam Planner, which will help you schedule your study time more effectively. 

3. Plan Enough Time To Study Each Topic

List down all the several important topics of the PE exam on paper or in a document file. Then, plan about what you need to study from those topics and commit enough time to learn each one of them.

4. Prioritize Your List

After creating a PE study schedule that summarizes all the main topics of the exam, start prioritizing your list.

It means:

You need to classify the topics by importance, determine which topics you must study on a priority, and which one requires more time to focus than others. 

5. Keep Well-organized Notes on Each Topic

Make well-organized hand-written notes for each topic. Writing things down will help you to memorize the information more quickly.

Your notes must contain:   

• Tables and charts
• Formulas and equations
• Practice problems and their solutions 

6. Make Room for a Weekly Study Review

Your PE study schedule should have enough room so that you can do a quick study review every week. The weekly study review will help you better understand what you studied the whole week, what areas need more focus on, and what topics you are strong in. It will also help you figure out how much time you had dedicated to each topic and whether or not you achieved your weekly target.

7. Also, Leave Some Room For Flexibility in Your Schedule

While strictly following the study schedule for the PE exam, keep in mind that you have other things in life that you have to reserve time for. So make sure to leave some room for flexibility in your PE study schedule so that you can give time to your closed ones and other leisure activities. Take out time for those events that can’t be rescheduled, like wedding ceremonies, birthdays, appointments, etc. 

Furthermore:

Don’t forget to devote time to your body. Take a good amount of sleep, and set aside time for exercise. It is a must-have for your body to function correctly!

8. Stick to Your PE Study Schedule

The most crucial thing is to stick to your PE study schedule. Otherwise, what’s the point of making the schedule, right?

Stick to your PE exam study schedule for a minimum of three weeks consistently. Then, you will become habitual in following that schedule because scientific studies demonstrate that it requires at least 21 days to make something a habit.

9. Take Short Breaks and Stick to Them

Studying constantly without any pause will not help you out, as it will cause extreme stress and burnout. Therefore, make sure to take short breaks of at least 15 minutes after every hour of studying. 

How An Online Course Helps You Save a Lot of Time for the PE Preparation

An online course, such as our PE exam prep course, could turn out to be a savior when it comes to saving time for the PE exam preparation. 

Because our online PE exam prep course:

• Allows flexibility – you can learn at any time and from any place
• Offers 100+ quizzes and lectures
• Teaches about how to solve problems quickly
• Keeps you stick to the study plan 

You save a lot of your time by enrolling in online PE courses as they only focus on essential topics that will appear in the PE exam.

Conclusion

The PE exam is not a hurdle that you can’t overcome. You can easily pass the PE exam if you have a proper PE exam study schedule, as it will give you a clear vision of what topics need to be focused on and will keep you motivated to get your target.

 

FE Electrical and Computer Exam – 5 common reasons for failure

 

“Success is stumbling from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm.”Winston Churchill Failure is without doubt a bitter pill to swallow. Ideally, we all want to cruise through life from one success to another success.

However, sometimes failures are encountered and they need to be dealt with appropriately. Probably the worst response to failure is quitting on your dream because once you stop pursuing your dream that’s when you truly fail. In this blog we have talked about a detailed discussion of the FE electrical and computer exam failure.

5 Common Reasons of FE Electrical and Computer Exam Failure

Here are the five reasons for FE Electrical and Computer Exam Failure you should be aware of:

1.     Underestimating the challenge

2.     Procrastination

3.     Exam Preparation Resources

4.     Exam Preparation Strategy

5.     Fear of failure

1. Underestimating the challenge

There’s no doubt about the fact that the FE Electrical and Computer exam is challenging. You are tested quite literally on all 4 years of ECE undergraduate coursework.

The exam tests you on 17 categories including Mathematics, Probability and Statistics, Ethics and Professional Practice, Engineering Economics, Properties of Electrical Materials, Circuit Analysis, Linear Systems, Signal Processing, Electronics, Power Systems, Electromagnetics, Control Systems, Communications, Computer Networks, Digital Systems, Computer Systems, and Software Engineering.

The Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam is not a walk in the park for most students which means you might face failure. It is even more challenging if you are not a recent graduate.

Based on the latest stats provided by NCEES®, the failure rate among first-time exam takers who graduated within 12-24 months is 23% and that for repeat takers is as high as 35%.

2. Procrastination

Time management for FE Electrical and Computer exam preparation can be difficult. There are 17 exam sections to prepare and these individual sections don’t necessarily complement each other. For instance, Digital Systems will have little to no overlap with Signal Processing similarly Circuit Analysis will have little to no overlap with Electromagnetics.

This is mainly because of the nature of Electrical Engineering which is by far the most diverse field. As you progress through your FE electrical and computer exam preparation you will actually be climbing lots of small mountains (each topic is a new challenge) rather than climbing one big mountain.

But the bigger challenge is ‘procrastination’. A lot of students keep putting FE electrical and computer exam off again and again because of failure. The truth is that the more you delay it, the harder it gets.

In addition to the obvious reason i.e. being out of school for a long period of time, personal commitments and job responsibilities also come into the way. So if you ever plan on becoming a PE then don’t delay this exam – start preparing now!

3. Exam Preparation Resources

Arguably the most precious investment that you make in preparing for FE Electrical and Computer exam is that of your time. A vast majority of candidates preparing for this exam also work full-time and many of them also have other commitments that demand their time and attention.

Therefore, it is crucial to use effective exam preparation resources otherwise you’d not only be wasting your money but also your time. An effective exam preparation resource is one that helps you become exam ready in the least amount of time and does not overwhelm you with irrelevant details.

4. Exam Preparation Strategy

FE Electrical and Computer exam results are binary – Pass or Fail. You don’t receive any grades on your performance. Some students study very hard but are not necessarily smart. In many ways, trying to ace this exam can be counterproductive because it will take a lot of your time and require intense effort which can impact other areas of your personal and professional life.

In order to pass comfortably, you need to study hard and smart. For example, rather than suggesting whether to focus on their strengths or weaknesses, I recommend students to first focus on the top 5 sections that carry the highest weight i.e. Mathematics, Circuit Analysis, Electronics, Power Systems, and Digital Systems. Similarly, the first 5 sections of the FE Electrical and Computer exam are relatively easy and account for roughly 25% of the exam weightage.

Students should aim to score A+ in these sections i.e. Math, Probability & Statistics, Engineering Economics, Ethics, and Properties of Electrical Materials. Last but not the least, even if you get bored by some sections or find them challenging, try not to skip them altogether because that will guarantee a 0 or very low score in those sections and sabotage your chances of passing the exam.

5. Fear of failure

“He who fear being conquered is sure of defeat.”Napoleon Bonaparte Fear of failure is one of the reasons why students procrastinate in the first place. Even after mustering up the courage to prepare for the exam for several months, some of them never feel 100% ready for it.

They go into the exam without confidence and lose composure quickly during the exam. If that sounds familiar to you then remember that it’s not uncommon and there are some tips and tricks that can help you to avoid failure. First of all, it is very improbable for someone to ever feel 100% ready for such an exam because of the range of topics and variety of ways in which one can get tested.

So if you are not feeling 100% ready even after doing everything you possibly could, then don’t worry because a lot of other hardworking and diligent candidates are in the same boat.

Secondly, it is better to reschedule the exam and take it when you have confidence in your own self rather than walking into the exam room telling yourself that you are not ready. As Napoleon said, “He who fears being conquered is sure of defeat.”

Finally, remember that in the grand scheme of things even if you fail the exam it won’t be a big deal. You can always retake it so don’t compromise your performance by imagining and reimagining failure continuously.

Go into the exam room with full confidence after preparing as best as you can to give it your best shot and maintain your composure while facing tough questions.