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.

 

Why You Must Take FE Exam Preparation Course

 

Indeed, for FE aspirants, there are different resources mushrooming online that promise to offer you tips, guidance, course material, and mentoring. But before you choose your FE exam preparation course ensure that it is worth the time and money you are spending on it. With the wrong resource, you can waste your precious time and even feel frustrated at the end of your session. It is better to select the course that you can depend on and that leads you toward success.

For the win-win FE exam tips, you can trust someone who has cleared both the FE and PE exams and is a licensed professional engineer. Ensure that your mentor has the experience and holds a degree of Bachelors in Engineering in addition he is eager to share the lessons he learned during his exam time to motivate you. Engineers who have passed the FE exam either in civil, mechanical, or electrical engineering disciplines often share tips and tricks for the community to help them successfully pass the Fundamentals of Engineering exam.

You have to get familiar with the detailed list of topics covered in the FE Exam. You must know that the FE exam covers the majority of your engineering undergraduate courses e.g. statics, mathematics, and more, but in addition, NCEES, the authority for conducting the exam, publishes a list of the exact topics that can appear on the FE exam question paper. Having knowledge about the specific topics enquired on the FE exam and not just the general, will help you during the FE exam. It will save you from being surprised by the question paper.

FE exam preparation course includes overall knowledge about the different exam topic categories and choice to decide the categories you need to study in a systematic way. You need to prepare all the questions that have a possibility to appear in your current exam. It thus becomes essential that you must sign up for a complete and structured FE Exam prep source. 

Wasim Asghar is a licensed professional engineer based in Texas (PE); he also has branches in Florida (PE) and Ontario (P.Eng). He has excellent experience in commissioning, designing, and plant engineering for various mining, infrastructure, and energy clients. He holds a degree of Bachelors in Engineering – Electrical with distinction; he has taken his degree from McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada. The lessons he learned during his exam time have motivated him to start Studyforfe.

Engineering Ethics for FE Exam

 

Engineering is a highly valued, respected, and grooming profession. To serve this important profession honestly, engineers adopt high standards of honesty and fairness. The reason is the impact that engineering directly or indirectly cast on the lives of the public and contributes to the national as well as the global economy.

Therefore, the conduct and roles of engineers must be enriched with honesty, unbiasedness, fairness, integrity, and non-discrimination. All these aspects of personality and profession are crucial for public health and safety as well as client security. Engineers must stick to a higher level of professionalism that reflects their honesty and dedication to the field.

Engineering Ethics for FE Exam is included in the syllabus as directed by NSPE. These FE exam rules or NCEES® model rules are intended to test knowledge of the Electrical engineer code of ethics of candidates going to attempt the FE exam.

This blog will help you go through the series of statements that you need to answer in either True or False related to Engineering Ethics for the FE Exam. Let’s go through these statements in detail.

NCEES® Code of Ethics for the FE Exam

1. Licensee’s Responsibility to the Public

• Licensees need to meet their professional obligations carefully to ensure the health, welfare, and safety of the public.
• Licensees are allowed to pass subjective remarks if such remarks are in written or documented format and align with the interests or values of their employer or the public.
• Licensees do not require to get into any truthful acts for the vast interest (health or safety) of the public.

2. Licensee’s Responsibility to Clients and Employers

• Licensees are allowed to take charge of the responsibilities that lie outside their area of expertise after informing their employers.
• Licensees must serve their employers or client as valuable and fair employees.
• Licensees are not liable to follow any laws of the state or federal if they deem their actions harmful, destructive, or problematic for their employer or clients.
• If Licensee’s judgment is revoked or terminated due to the potential reasons of undermining the life or property of any individual or group, they must inform their employers or clients or concerned authorities.
• Licensees are allowed to review but they shall refrain from approving such engineering/architectural/technical documents that fail to meet the industry standards.
• Licensees shall refrain from disclosing any sensitive or non-sensitive stats, data, or information without the written consent of the client or employer. Whereas, the information or data prohibited from this category by state or federal laws can be shared.
• Licensees shall abstain from permitting the use of their names in business activities owned by a person or group that they think is involved in fraudulent and decisive activities unless such business ventures are found to align with the concerned state or federal regulations or compliances.
• Licensees with information of any alleged breach or violation of these engineering ethics codes, shall inform the concerned authorities (private or public authorities), and ensure full cooperation with the authorities in charge to further validate such information.
• Licensees shall not sign any documents or plans that involve activities out of their technical knowledge or domain but they are allowed to sign documents not created under their supervision but sourced from someone they deem experienced in the involved activity or domain.
• Engineers shall remain objective and honest in professional documents or statements to ensure they best serve the interests of the other stakeholders, team members, and employer. The Licensee’s documents shall include all associated and complete information with the date that reflects the time frame for which they were occupied by the employer or client to develop such reports.
• Licensees can state publicly technical arguments based on true knowledge and facts required in the specified domain.
• Licensees shall not pass any statements, critical remarks, or opinions on technical matters that are preferred or paid for by interested individuals or groups until they add their comments by independently identifying the interested person or group on behalf of whom they are supporting the particular cause.
• Licensees may not involve in any matter having a conflict of interest if it impacts or tends to impact their duty and the service delivery.
• Licensees shall not receive or welcome any compensation or financial assistance, from more than one client or stakeholder for the same project or deliverable, unless the scenario is made transparent and affirmed by all involved clients.
• Licensees shall not ask for but may accept any compensation or financial assistance, from outside agents or irrelevant individuals or groups for their services, despite the scenario being made transparent to all involved clients.
• Licensees in public domains as advisors or employees of a government or semi-government authorities may get involved in decisions related to the services offered by them or their employer in the public or private sector unless such decisions or steps preclude technical areas beyond their competency.
• Licensees shall not confirm any agreement or project from a public body on which a senior officer of their parent organization serves as an advisor, consultant, or member.
• Licensees shall not purposefully forge their qualifications nor allow any written misinterpretation of their qualifications. Engineers may accept bonuses or rewards for previous projects or assignments completed at their previous organization. Documents intended for the allocation of employment shall particularly mention the JD (Job Description) and the date of employment.
• Licensees shall admit their mistakes after consultation with their seniors or clients.

3. Responsibility of the Licensee to Other Licensees

• Licensees shall not try to get employment or professional benefits by putting false acquisitions on other licensees, or by any other fraudulent activities.
• Licensees in salaried job roles shall embrace part-time engineering assignments or tasks only to the degree aligned with regulations set by the employer and ethical or moral codes.
• Licensees shall refrain from committing any activity that can potentially hurt, injure, or damage the reputation of fellow licensees. Licensees who deem other licensees guilty of any illegal or fraudulent activities shall forward such info to the concerned authorities.
• Licensees in private work environments shall abstain from reviewing the assignment or project of other licensees working for the same employer, except with the consent of a fellow licensee, or unless the contract or job of the fellow licensee is terminated with the same employer.
• Engineers shall honestly pass the credit for any task, project, or assignment to another licensee to whom credit belongs.

Conclusion

The aforementioned NCEES® model rules are vital for your FE exam and engineering career as well. The role of the engineer is highly impactful for both the society and organization. Engineering codes of ethics are intended to keep the honesty and integrity of licensees intact throughout their service duration.

Amid so many societal norms and popular opinions, some of the acceptable but immoral activities are prevalent among the masses. The impact of such activities can be devastating in a critical profession like engineering.

Therefore, Engineering Ethics for FE Exam is added in the course outline of FE exams to keep licensees associated and informed with proven and adapted moral conducts of the industry.

For more information about FE Electrical Exam Prep visit Study For FE.

Pass FE Electrical - Computer - PE Power exams in 2022

 Are you planning to clear FE Electrical & Computer and PE Power exams in 2022? Look no further - on this channel you will find valuable information that can help you pass both exams in the first attempt!For more information see this video

How to Take Breaks Effectively While Studying FE Electrical & PE Power

 

Picture this, you’re studying for the FE Electrical or PE Power Exam and everything is going well. You’re being productive, covering lots of content, or doing many practice questions, and you feel motivated and confident for the exam. But then you see that your phone is sitting next to you and you look at it and think: “I’ve been studying quite a bit, I think I deserve a 5-minute break”. And then you pick up your phone and it turns out to be a mistake.

Fast forward 2 hours and you’re still on your phone, responding to messages, scrolling through social media, or watching videos. You suddenly don’t feel like studying anymore but you feel guilty for wasting precious study time. Suddenly, the feelings of being motivated and confident for the FE exam have faded and you feel guilty and disappointed in yourself, but you still can’t stop scrolling through your phone. Everything was going so well before you picked up your phone, so what happened? The answer is simulation.

The Science Behind Stimulation

Every time you do something stimulating such as scroll through social media, your brain produces high amounts of a chemical molecule called Dopamine. This chemical is known as the ‘molecule of more and makes you feel good and stimulated.

Once you perform this stimulating task, your brain sets this high amount of dopamine as your baseline and makes you motivated to pursue even more dopamine such as watching videos or movies.

Now if you suddenly begin a low-stimulation task such as working or studying, your brain has no desire to do it anymore because the dopamine release from such an activity is far lower than the new baseline.

History of this Mechanism

Your brain is developed to produce dopamine in this way because thousands of years ago, this system helped our hunter-gatherer ancestors to survive. The brain would release dopamine when they chased after and hunted prey, and this motivated them to continue doing so and feed themselves and their families to survive.

In today’s day and age, however, corporations hire neuroscientists to exploit this mechanism and produce highly addictive products which generate revenue. The level of stimulation that these products give is tremendously higher than anything our ancestors ever had access to. This unnatural level of dopamine is foreign to the brain which is why it is so addicting.

Your brain does not realize how producing so much dopamine in response to watching hours of Netflix or Instagram impacts your life, it is simply following a biological mechanism that you were born with. Similarly, it does not realize that being truly productive while working or studying is what truly improves your life and makes you happier and satisfied in the long run, it simply sees the lack of dynamic colors, sounds and entertainment and produces much less dopamine since it is technically less stimulating.

How to Use this Mechanism to Your Advantage

Since this baseline level of dopamine dictates your amount of motivation, you can carefully control what the baseline is. Once you begin a low-stimulation task such as working or studying, you will lower the baseline and feel much more motivated with each minute of studying up to a point.

Once you have this motivation, do not suddenly decide to do any highly stimulating activity such as watching videos until you’re done studying for the day, no matter how tempting it may be. This way, your levels of motivation will not fluctuate and you won’t need to exert extra willpower to convince yourself to study after watching videos.

How Do I Get Rid of Distractions?

First of all, make sure your phone is out of reach. Secondly, you can try using free software such as “Focalfilter” to briefly block distracting websites during the hours in which you’re supposed to work or study.

According to the famous book “Atomic Habits” by James Clear, the trick to pruning bad habits is to make them less accessible and keep them as hard to reach as possible. Your brain, despite being the most complex instrument in the universe, still operates by some simple rules, and the ideas discussed in this blog are some of them.

What Do I Do During My Breaks?

You can do anything that isn’t extremely stimulating and many of these activities is up to you to discover. I personally like to take a walk outside or take a second to stretch my arms and clear my head. Some people who study in groups also like to converse during their breaks which can be effective.

Famous Practitioners of this Strategy

This concept brings us back to some of the original lessons we learned as children. There is a time for work, and there is a time for play, and it is important not to mix the two as we tend to do as adults.

In fact, one of the most intensely productive people of the 20th century, President Theodore Roosevelt lived by this idea. He would schedule the hours between 8:30 AM and 4:30 PM as those where he would cultivate intense focus without any distraction.

This example was also used in the famous book “Deep Work” by Cal Newport and has historically been the true method to perform quality work efficiently and also enjoy the process.

For more information about FE Exam visit Study for FE