Passed PE Power, first attempt, 10 yrs out of school (FE Electrical & Computer 6 months prior first attempt)
Thrilled to share I passed the PE Power Exam this week, first attempt, 10 yrs out of school, and wanted to share my FE/ PE exam journey for anyone going down this path or considering it.
Passed FE Electrical and Computer in March, studied 6-8 months, 300+ hours. I primarily used Wasim Asghar’s (studyforfe.com) Study Guide for FE book (100% completion), his and various YouTube lectures and NCEES sample exams.
Following the FE, I studied 5 months, 300+ hours for PE (about 15-20 hrs per week first few months then 20+ the last couple). For PE I knew I needed a more structured plan to learn materials effectively and efficiently (had the goal of passing by the end of 2026, first attempt being end of quarter 3) so I utilized Wasim’s PE Power courses. Completed 100% of his On Demand course, 100% of his Master’s class, then his practice exam 1 followed by practice exam 2 a week later after refining weak areas. I averaged 77.5% and 64% on these practice exams on first attempts. Wasim provided positive feedback about those scores and someone else posted they got similar scores and passed so this helped gauge my readiness for the exam. From there, I focused on correcting my weak areas and did a high level review of topics I hadn’t touched in a while. At this point I felt I had a pretty good grasp of the materials and good shot at the test.
On exam day I felt comfortable and confident throughout with not too much stress and finished each section with 30 minutes left over after reviewing my flagged questions. There were not many surprises or questions that I couldn’t handle (maybe 4 or 5 total). In fact there weren’t many that I skipped my first pass through to attempt the easier questions. I will say the wording can be tricky, but I tried to focus on handling it the best way I knew that came intuitively from my preparation. I felt pretty good walking away from it even though I know I made a couple mistakes. That week waiting for results was more stressful than the exam! But stayed positive knowing even if I had to try it again I’d learn even more and refine my understanding. But thankfully, my preparation paid off and was overwhelmed with relief when I saw the pass Wednesday morning.
What I found most hopeful about Wasim‘s course is it had a structured plan that I could execute in an efficient manner, lectures that tied several pieces of information together, explained concepts in various ways, and provided several practice problems. He provides a well rounded, first principles exposure to the material and for many topics goes beyond what may be expected on the exam.
I highly recommend his courses and materials if you are embarking on this journey for effective and efficient preparation and will no doubt help sharpen your engineering skills and knowledge beyond the exam.
Highly recommend to learn the foundations, practical applications, industry specific details (like knowing which size prongs/ slots for 120V receptacles are associated with the Hot/ Neutral/ Ground) and become familiar with navigating the NEC/ NFPA standards. One cool trick I learned is for motor FLC tables at end of article 430, click on article 440 in the bookmarks section and scroll up. Noticing patterns like this will help navigate in a timely manner on the exam.
Most importantly, stay steady on the studies and don’t give up! Take needed breaks but don’t stay down too long. It is tough (very tough at times) to spend that time away from family, hours before/ after work and on weekends. But if this is your goal, focus on it as an opportunity to learn and grow and trust the process.
I cannot go without saying that I am extremely grateful for my family who has been supportive in this endeavor and allowed me to sneak away to study all these hours.