FE Exam Prep (if I had to go back in time and do it all over again)
For context, I’m a mechanical engineering graduate that is 4 years out of college. I passed the FE exam on my first attempt a couple of weeks ago. I want to provide a post on how I would tell myself to prepare for the exam if I had to go back in time and do it all over again.
Get 3 months of PrepFE (you can get an extra free month if you use someone’s promo code). Spend an hour reviewing each of the exam categories by doing practice problems. Use the official NCEES handbook and an exam-approved calculator while doing practice problems.
Purchase the first of two NCEES official practice exams. Take the exam while timing yourself to simulate the actual exam. It’s important to use the NCEES handbook and an exam-approved calculator. If you get <65% on the practice exam, I would keep studying (I got something like 45% on my first practice exam). If you get more than 65% on the practice exam, go take the actual exam.
Go back to PrepFE and practice weaker categories. Then, start taking their timed 20 question practice exams. Continue taking the timed practice exams until you average at least 75% across 5 consecutive exams.
Purchase the second of two NCESS official practice exams. See step 2 above. I got 70% on my second practice exam. If you get <60% on the second practice exam, I would keep studying with PrepFE and consider buying additional practice exams from other resources. But, I would say it also comes down to risk tolerance. For me, I wanted to feel like I over-prepared to boost confidence and improve my chances of only having to take the exam once. But everyone is different.
Finally, let’s talk price. The 3 months of PrepFE and the two NCEES practice exams cost $185 (I got the second practice exam for 10% off since I bought it at the same time as the actual exam). I am very fortunate that my employer covered my exam prep materials. I know that’s not the case for everyone, so apologies if these prep materials I mentioned are over budget. I will say that PrepFE felt like it was on the lower end of cost and it worked for me. It’s also worth considering spending a little more on prep materials to reduce the number of exam attempts. Each exam is $225.
Overall, I spent about 90 hours preparing for the exam over 3 months. I felt comfortable during the exam and confident coming out of it. What I’ve laid out is by no means the only way to prepare for the exam, but it’s what worked for me. Hopefully this post helps someone. Cheers!