Mechanical Engineering FE, Passed 1st Try Detailed Experience
I took the FE Mechanical on 6/26/26. Today 7/1/26 I recieved the email that the score was available at 7:12am CST-passed, and the Credly badge email at 7:44am CST.
Wasn't sure I'd pass, realized there were 45 seconds remaining with ~15-20 questions left. I began clicking next and C for every question. Each question took 2-3 seconds to load, thus eating up enough time to prevent me from even clicking through the last 7 questions.
I approached with this mindset: if the 1st half is easier, then I definitely want to spend time solving a problem I know I'm on the track toward solving. If the points are this hard to get in the easy half, then I know the 2nd half will demand more time per question for fewer net points. In conclusion I aimed to crush the 1st half doing every problem I could, and grab enough points from the harder 2nd half to limp over the finish line of the pass point threshold. I went into the 2nd half with only 1h40 min remaining.
I used the PPI2Pass live prep course but stopped attending live sessions about halfway through. If I didn't have time to go through the book material the lectures weren't very helpful in solving problems I was too lost to even begin to understand. If I did read the material so many people asked such basic questions that we didn't get to that many useful questions. I skipped many of the later chapters of the subject areas of review e.g. rotating machines in the electricity and magnetism review, and the combustion chapter for the thermodynamics review. Those latter covered areas of subjects did come up, and at a higher rate than expected. Reading a pump power chart came up in 3 questions.
Lastly I found that many questions needed more than 2 steps. Personally I can't algebraically manipulate 5 terms in a single step to isolate the relevant unknown, which is how solutions can often be presented. Perhaps if I could then the minimum steps to solve would decrease.
I am 9 years out of undergrad.
I'll try to check in tomorrow 7/2/26 to review any questions in comments.
Good luck, and hammer the practice problems.