Civil PE Exam (Water Resources) Recommended Standards

[tlars]

I am taking the Civil (Water Resources) exam in April. NCEES recommends many transportation and structural standards for the test. It is highly unlikely (and seemingly impractical) that I will obtain all of these materials before the test. Which standards are the most useful for the exam?

At this time, I have CERM and the accompanying solutions manual, and 6 Minute Solutions for Water Resources, Geotech, and Environmental. I have pretty much covered all of the problems except for the structural in the CERM solutions manual, which is quite extensive. Which structural subject are key for review?

Any other tidbits of wisdom would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Slugger926]

My suggestions are for mental and physical preparation, and smart test taking skills that will help more than studying.

Start doing 30-45 minutes of aerobic exercise per day. This will help your endurance and IQ (+20%) for the test. After being in the work world for four plus years, the test is more thought demanding than the same work every day.

Cover all materials you covered in school that you don't currently use in your job. Reviewing those topics will help you solve a problem fast.

Be ready to guess on those killer problems that you know will take an hour or two to solve.

Eleminate all stress the week of the test. Don't let in-laws visit during that week (happened to me). Take a few days off before the test from work. Workout two days before the test, but not the day of the test or the day before.

Go get a massage the day before the test.

Eat a decent breakfast before the test but don't overeat which will take blood from your brain to your stomach for digestion killing IQ points.

Pack protein bars, pop, and Slimfast to snack on during the test.

Pack a light lunch for you lunch break eliminating any stress of going off site to eat.

Don't forget to include a really good units conversion table in your materials since you can't use an HP-48GX anymore.

Relax and have fun. Taking the above advice will probably help more than worrying.

 

[LHA]

I, too, am a Water Resources guy, but I believe my strategy would work for any Civil.

I basically studied only the CERM, making notes in the accompanying Quick Ref. as I went. I rarely opened another book during studying. Those notes, formulae, tables of common (and not so common) constants are what you will use for over 80% of the exam. That is really what they are testing for anyway; the PE exam is not a test on whether you can regurgitate previous solutions, and the writers do a very good job of putting real-world twists in the problems so that examinees can't often do that. The exam will test whether you can combine book-level knowledge with what you have learned as an EIT. If you have a good base of both, you will pass.

Don't buy ANY new references with which you will not have working experience...you will not have time to use them to any advantage. Get intimately familiar with your general civil ref.

Take your old text books to the exam, although I really didn't use them either. Only during the final "crunch" during the last minutes did I go to my texts to scramble for a few points.

In PA, solved problems are OK, any reference is. All just have to be bound (3-ring is OK), no loose pieces of paper. Check your state, then take them if you are allowed. I took all of my solved problems, although I didn't use them very much at all. By the time you take the test, you pretty much know what you know AND don't know what you don't. There is no time to study a solved problem someone else did and learn how to use the algorithms and concepts to solve the one on your exam. If it is a problem you did, then you already know how to do it!

Don't study areas you don't work in, except for a quick refresher. I, too, am weakest in structural. I review Shear and Moment, Toque and the most basic of force distribution concepts only. There is no time to falter around with textbook solutions, etc. You will do fine, if you master your areas of strength.

Best of luck, stay calm, review what you know, glance at what you don't and you'll do fine.

As to Sluggers advice, what works for you depends on what type of individual you are. For example:

I did not do any workouts, aerobic or otherwise.

I didn't have any problems that took an hour or two to solve.

I did take a few days off before the test from work.

I did not get a massage the day before the test.

I did not eat any breakfast before the test, decent or otherwise.

In PA, you can't eat anything during the test, so I didn't pack any snacks. Check with your state before you take anything.

I did pack a light lunch. I did eat there, and that did eliminate the stress of leaving the site.

Your CERM has a really good units conversion table, and I did depend on that more than any other single material.


Remember: The Chinese ideogram for “crisis” is comprised of the characters for “danger” and “opportunity.”
-Steve

 

[bltseattle]

I agree with LHA, although it's been about 8 years since I took the exam. At that time you could pick and choose the longer afternoon problems.
I only used the CERM and the practice exams I had worked through. I had about 6 old exams with solutions, and I built a simple index so as I ran into specific problems I could quickly find the example I had previously worked through. This approach worked very well for me. I had also taken a PE review course that I found very helpful.

Good luck!