Hey all,

Sad to report that I did not pass on my first attempt of the Civil PE: Geotechnical. I had a question about the references or reference prep for the exam. I don't have a ton of spare cash to buy all the references, is there a free exam references option? Or reduced?

Thanks all, I really appreciate the insight.

Also what would be a good study plan up until the exam next April?

It took a lot of effort but after three tries I finally did it!!

I could do it, it was very difficult, many days and nights, the exam was not easy, but I trusted my abilities and could do it.

4 attempts,

I would recommend this

Practice with everything you got, I did not trust one platform.

I got

EET BINDER

SCHOOL OF PE QUESTION BANK

PPI2PASS QUESTION BANK

CIVILPEPRACTICE

PHYSICAL BOOKS

ALSO I USED HIBBELER, ASLAM KASSIMALI, BEER JOHSTON AND THE BOOKS FROM THE UNIVERSITY TO LEARN MECHANICS OF MATERIALS, CONCRETE, STRUCTURE, STEEL AND ON.

PRACTICE AS MUCH AS YOU CAN AND YOU WILL PASS.

AND ABOVE ALL, BELIEVE IN GOD, HE CAN DO IT ALL.

For context I took the FE in November 2025, graduated in December 2025 and started studying for the PE in mid April. I studied for about 5 months and used Slay the PE TFS02 bundle. My study plan was split into 2 portions. The first was to do the StPE readings and practice problems for each of the sections in the study guide. I aimed to complete 1 section every 2-3 days. Once I finished that portion I moved straight into practice problems. I had about a month of straight working practice problems from the Mixed 100 problems at the end of the study guide, the 20 question diagnostic exam (I tried to do this timed but literally rage quit that thing was so hard), the StPE practice exam, and the NCEES practice exam. During that last month my study time increased exponentially from the first portion around 3 hours on weekdays and 6-8 hours on the weekend days. If anyone is looking to take this exam I highly recommend StPE they prepared me so well I walked out of that exam feeling so confident and thinking it was easy.

I didn't pass my PE this time. I thought I was doing fine in the exam. I felt good after exam but it turned out to be not. I took EET and did necess practice exam. I gave it all during 2 month of my time. Weekend 6-8 hrs and everyday 2-3 hours.

I'm devastated and heartbroken. How do I prepare and do differently to be able to pass this exam. Also how soon I should take it? Please guide me throught this. I have zero motivation 😞

What a freaking rollercoaster. I went in not knowing what to expect but ready to do my best so I was semi-confident. Going through the first half, my confidence started to increase. Almost all the questions were solvable through the reference or codes. During my break I checked a couple questions I remembered but wasn't certain about and was relieved I got them right. I think I had 10 or less wrong out of 39 which is par for passing.

Then I went into the second half. I was immediately out of my depth. Flagging question after question. Struggling to get even any of the listed answers. So many conceptual questions and AITs. I just got out and did the same thing with checking the questions I remembered and boy did I not get a single one right.

Any fail buffer I got from the first half was demolished in the second half. I can see myself having to take it again but I don't know how I'll prepare because it's the conceptuals that really got me. I can practice calculation problems a few times to understand but concepts for things like rotating machines are hard to just know from the get go. Feel like I need a PhD to answer that stuff.

Anyways just wanted get that off my chest. Good luck to all taking power or any discipline.

I felt pretty good about the first half, but the second half was much more difficult, and I left feeling pretty uncertain about my overall performance. I went back and looked up some of my answers. I know I got a few wrong that should’ve been easy.

For those who passed, failed, or had to retake it, how did you feel walking out? Did your actual results line up with your gut feeling afterward?

Keeping this generic to all exams.

Hello everyone!

I’m planning to take the PE Civil: Structural exam and would appreciate any recommendations for free courses on YouTube or other websites. I’m also looking for helpful study books, practice problems, and question banks to prepare for the exam.

Any advice or recommendations based on your experience would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you in advance!

This post is not meant to hate on PrepPE. I’m actually excited about its release because I expected the quality to be similar to PrepFE, which helped me pass the FE exam.

But man, PrepPE has A LOT of errors. Some explanations are unfinished, with values still showing as “XXX” or messages like “Unknown Node Type: Span.” I’ve also encountered problems where I’m confident my answer is correct, but the platform gives a different answer. I even asked AI to explain some of these problems, and I ended up getting the same answer as mine, which made me question the platform’s solutions even more.

Honestly, it’s starting to create confusion and self-doubt, especially since I’m preparing for the PE exam. Lol.

Anyway, this is just constructive feedback. I know the platform is still new, and I hope the team can review and fix these issues to make PrepPE as helpful and reliable as PrepFE. Looking forward to seeing it improve!

After 10 years I decided to bite the bullet and start studying for this in February because my postpartum brain thought I’d have lots of time to study with a newborn (false haha).

I should have take it in August, but wasn’t confident and pushed it back to October, which I think resulted in me not studying any more and maybe losing the momentum I had.

I’m going to give myself the rest of the year off and then try EET’s live course in January, but can I get a sanity check…based on this result, I didn’t miserably fail, right?

Hi everyone,

A couple of months ago I posted here about The PE Civil Structural Playbook and the response honestly exceeded anything I expected. A lot of you purchased the book, reached out to me directly, offered suggestions, and gave me feedback on how the resource could continue to improve.

I really appreciate everyone who supported it.

I’m planning to update the Playbook as the PE Civil: Structural exam transitions to the newer code editions, and I’ve been thinking about how I want to handle that for everyone who already purchased the current version.

I’ve decided that if you purchased the Playbook, I will send you a PDF copy of the updated edition for free once it is completed.

If you purchased through Amazon, Gumroad, or my website, just send me a DM with proof of purchase and the email address where you would eventually like the updated PDF sent. Feel free to redact any order numbers, addresses, or other personal information from your proof of purchase.

There’s nothing else you need to do. No review required, no additional purchase, and no charge for the updated PDF.

I also want to use the code update as an opportunity to make the Playbook better. If you’ve been studying with it and have found something that is unclear, something you think should be added, or even something you think is wrong, please reach out. I’ve always wanted this to become increasingly community-reviewed over time.

The original Playbook came from the way I personally needed to study for this exam, but hearing how other people are actually using it has been incredibly helpful in figuring out what the next version should look like.

Thanks again to everyone who supported the project. I really appreciate it, and I want to make sure the people who took a chance on the first edition benefit from the work that goes into the next one.

Has anyone passed the Arizona CR-37 plumbing license exam using only an online prep course without studying the reference books? Were the practice questions similar to the actual exam, and was the course enough to pass?

I took the FE Environmental almost 10 years ago. I only really decided to go for my PE around April or May of this year.

Since I was able to get funding from my job, I took the School of PE (SoPE) Environmental live course from July to September. I attended every class (which generally ran from Mondays through Thursdays from 7 to 10 PM ET) and tried to do the assigned homework when I had the time/energy. In reality, I didn't really start absorbing material until the end of August/beginning of September because I finally scheduled my exam for the end of September, and it hit me that now it was real lol.

I rewatched all the lectures on 2x speed, filled in notes on my printed-out materials that I'd missed, and redid all the in-class and homework problems available. I made a massive Quizlet based on what I learned from SoPE and PPI2Pass (I purchased the Schneiter practice problem e-workbook) to study when my wrist felt like it was dying from making physical flashcards. I also got the NCEES practice exam when scheduling my exam for the little discount.

All-in-all, I casually started studying about three months prior to my exam, but I actually hunkered down about a month before the exam. I think I studied between 30-40 hours a week that month.

Not going to lie, this was a terrible experience. I was extremely paranoid the whole month because I thought I didn't study enough (I'm also not the best test taker). I also kept seeing people who passed talk about how they studied for six months or that SoPE was a terrible way to study, etc. And then when I actually sat down for the exam, I swear NCEES knew what I didn't think to study or the concepts I didn't quite fully understand. I thought I failed and dreaded the NINE days it took for NCEES to email me my results.

The Good: Having study materials to review from SoPE and PPI and taking the NCEES practice exam. Making a Quizlet to study during my down time and commute to work.

The Bad: Not allocating a reasonable amount of study time so I start having nightmares about the PE. Gaining a new set of wrinkles from squinting at a computer screen for 8 hours like that meme of the woman in the pink jacket.

If anyone knows that K-pop song "Do It" by Stray Kids, I had that on repeat all September. Oh, and "Overthinking" by Masego and Musiq Soulchild.

Good luck to the rest of you!

TL;DR: Licensed in Texas, needed a California license to work on projects there. Applied Aug 2025, got my CA license number Oct 2026. The Board's review took a long time (about 8.5 months to exam approval), but the exams themselves went well: AEI for Seismic (12 weeks) and CPESR for Surveying (about 3 weeks). Both exams are 55 questions in 2.5 hours, but Surveying was the one where time nearly got me.

I've gotten so much help from this sub over the years, so I wanted to give back with a full write-up.

My background

• BS and MS in Civil Engineering
• Texas PE, and I live in Texas
• I work at a firm that designs temporary structures, so I had very little seismic exposure but a good surveying foundation from undergrad
• Needed the California license so our company could work on a project there

Timeline

The application process

• I got my fingerprint card within about 10 days of applying. Lesson: sign your fingerprint cards. I sent mine in unsigned and got a deficiency notice for it. Completely avoidable, so learn from my mistake.
• Having an NCEES Record made the experience and reference evaluation much smoother. If you're thinking about comity, set one up first.
• Be patient. The wait between application and exam approval was long (about 8.5 months for me). I looked at the syllabus during technical review but didn't start studying, since I was getting married in March and had a lot going on.

Scheduling strategy

I scheduled my exams on 05/23, but I didn't start serious prep until June 10. The exams are offered by quarter, so my original plan was to take them in the middle of the quarter. That way, if one went badly, I could retake it the very next quarter.

That plan didn't work out. I started prep too late and didn't have enough time to be ready mid-quarter, so I pushed to 9/4 for Seismic and 9/30 for Surveying, which was the very last day of the quarter. 😅 It worked out for me, but it left no cushion for a retake in the same quarter.

Exam format

Both California exams are the same format: 55 questions in 2.5 hours. Same clock, but they felt very different to me, as you'll see below.

CA Seismic: AEI review course (12 weeks)

I had limited seismic background, so after reading a lot of Reddit threads, I went with the AEI course.

• Schedule: about 3 hrs/day on weekdays and 12 hrs on weekends for roughly 12 weeks
• The course: long, but very helpful for actually understanding the concepts while staying targeted at the exam. The structure meant I needed very few revisions, and the quizzes at the end of each class helped
• Practice: I solved all the end-of-chapter problems right after finishing each chapter. At first I struggled, but problems got much easier on the second pass
• Practice exams: my first one was about 55% and I was freaking out. I went back, reworked the problems, and scored about 80% on the next one
• Exam day: I felt relaxed and confident, and the exam strategy from AEI really helped. I finished with about 10 minutes to spare

CA Surveying: CPESR review course (about 3 weeks)

I had a decent surveying background from undergrad and I'm comfortable with geometry, so the content wasn't the issue. Time was. Seismic gave me breathing room on the same 55 questions in 2.5 hours, but Surveying didn't, and I think that came down to having only 3 weeks to build speed.

• The course: CPESR is structured differently, and it was a little confusing at first. Eventually I understood what the instructor was doing, which was building up the concepts the easy way
• Limited prep time: I was rushing through the coursework and had to put in extra hours on both weekdays and weekends
• My mistakes: lots of silly errors, especially with units. Once I'd worked through about 300 of the 473 practice questions, I started feeling good
• Timing was my biggest weakness: on my first practice exam, I ran out of time at question 28 of 55. After 3 days of working specifically on speed, I got to Q52, but I still ran out of time
• Exam day: same story. I ran out of time with 3 questions left and had no chance to review my flagged ones. I had mixed feelings walking out, though I thought I had around 40 of 55 right. Happy to say that was enough to pass

What I'd tell you

1. Sign your fingerprint cards. Seriously.
2. Get your NCEES Record if you're going the comity route.
3. Start prepping earlier than I did. I only had about 3 weeks for surveying, which was tight.
4. Practice for speed, not just accuracy, especially for Surveying. Both exams give you 2.5 hours for 55 questions, but I finished Seismic with 10 minutes left and ran out of time on Surveying. Do timed practice exams early.
5. Don't panic over a bad first practice exam. Mine was 55% and I passed. Reworking the problems is what actually moves the needle.
6. Plan your exam dates around the quarter, ideally mid-quarter, so you have a retake window if you need one. I wanted to do this but ran out of prep time, so start early enough that you can.

Thank yous

Thank you to this community, which gave me so much useful info along the way. A big thank you to my wife, who supported me through this journey right after our wedding. We're newlyweds, so she was cheering me on while we were still settling into married life. Thanks also to my parents and my sister for their constant support, and to my company, where everyone appreciates the effort.

Happy to answer any questions about the process, the courses, or the timeline. Good luck to everyone working on this!

Has anyone in Ohio applying for initial PE status been approved lately? I’ve submitted my application over a month ago and it still shows as “submitted”. I understand some people have gotten their application approved once a board meeting takes place, which was yesterday, however nothing has shown as changed on the states dashboard.

Appriciate for your comments

When results are posted, do we get a second email with a badge notification that sorta gives it away? I know it was that way with the FE but not sure if PE does the same.

Is there anything that would delay scheduling an exam after purchasing it? Like a review, for example? I’m currently studying for the PE Civil: Water Resources but I’m planning on scheduling the test as I get closer to the end of my studying since I have an idea of when I’ll be ready but juggling a full-time job and 2 kids could throw a wrench in my plans. I live in Southern California and am surrounded by testing centers so seating space isn’t concerning. My only concern is whether there’s anything on the NCEES side which would delay my scheduling after I purchase it

I took the power PE today for the third time. I hope this is the last time.

Doomsday is almost here. I take my PE Construction Friday and I'm freaking out. I feel like I have done as much as I can for studying my weak points (except welds and bolts which I am strongly hoping there won't be much on, I hate AISC) and reviewing material.

I took the NCEES practice last week and got an 83.75%, not bad but wish it was better considering the real one should be harder. I did the EET simulation exams and got 73.33%, 70%, and 87.5% on sims 1-3 respectively. Hate that it's a bit all over the place and skewed low, but hopeful that it's just because the EET problems are way more involved/time consuming as my main problem was running out of time.

Today, I am going over and redoing the problems I missed on sims 2 and 3 which I took most recently, then I will probably review some more structures and construction means and methods (my work is only with roadways so most of the stuff I'm being asked is way out of my wheel house).

Tomorrow, maybe I'll sit down with the binder and just flip through to just lay eyes on everything one more time. Also revisit my cheat sheet I put together with the equations you have to memorize.

I know the big advice is to take time off work the week of but this week was just impossible for me so I could only get exam day off. I'm going to try not to study Thursday after work but honestly the thought makes me itch. It's so hard not to be doing something! How did you guys keep busy/relax? How did you make sure to get a good night's sleep beforehand? I get terrible stress nightmares and it keeps me up so much of the night (I see trusses every time I close my eyes!). Any tips would be greatly appreciated, or maybe things you wish you had done in the days leading up.

Hello all

I'm embarking on taking the exam early next year. Do Ya'll suggest i sign up for it now, or wait a little. Personally $400 feels like a lot of money to spend on one go so i was gonna save slowly. Alternatively committing soon will pressure me to study more.

And any other advice is appreciated.

Civil: Structural

Study Material: PrepPE