Principles and Practice of Engineering Exam
Encyclopedia
The Principles and Practice of Engineering exam is the examination that is required to be passed before one can become a Professional Engineer
(PE) in the United States. It is the second exam required after the Fundamentals of Engineering exam
.
Upon passing the PE exam and meeting other eligibility requirements such as education and experience that vary by State, an engineer is then eligible to be registered in their State to stamp and sign engineering drawings and calculations as a PE.
While the PE itself is sufficient for most engineering fields, some states require a further certification for structural engineers. These require the passing of the Structural I exam
and/or the Structural II exam
.
The PE Exam is created and scored by the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES). NCEES is a national non-profit organization composed of engineering and surveying licensing boards representing all states and U.S. territories.
disciplines:
Exams are offered twice a year, once in April and once in October. Three disciplines offer a choice of concentration as of 2010, chiefly Civil(5), Mechanical(3), and Electrical and Computer (3).
Unlike the Fundamentals of Engineering Exam, outside reference sources are allowed for the PE Exam. The general rule is that any such materials must be in some sort of permanent binding (book, three-ring, spiral, etc.); loose papers and notes are prohibited. No writing tools or scratch paper may be brought in, and only calculators specifically approved by NCEES may be used. Examinees are provided with mechanical pencils, while the test booklet may be used for working problems.
Professional Engineer
Regulation of the engineering profession is established by various jurisdictions of the world to protect the safety, well-being and other interests of the general public, and to define the licensure process through which an engineer becomes authorized to provide professional services to the...
(PE) in the United States. It is the second exam required after the Fundamentals of Engineering exam
Fundamentals of Engineering exam
The Fundamentals of Engineering exam, also referred to as the Engineer in Training exam, and formerly in some states as the Engineering Intern exam, is the first of two examinations that engineers must pass in order to be licensed as a Professional Engineer in the United States...
.
Upon passing the PE exam and meeting other eligibility requirements such as education and experience that vary by State, an engineer is then eligible to be registered in their State to stamp and sign engineering drawings and calculations as a PE.
While the PE itself is sufficient for most engineering fields, some states require a further certification for structural engineers. These require the passing of the Structural I exam
Structural I exam
The Structural I exam is a written examination given by state licensing boards in the United States as part of the testing for licensing Civil engineers and Structural engineers. This exam is written by the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying. It encompasses structural...
and/or the Structural II exam
Structural II exam
The Structural II exam is a written examination given by state licensing boards in the United States as part of the testing for licensing Civil engineers and Structural engineers...
.
The PE Exam is created and scored by the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES). NCEES is a national non-profit organization composed of engineering and surveying licensing boards representing all states and U.S. territories.
Disciplines
PE exams are offered in the following engineeringEngineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
disciplines:
- Agricultural
- Architectural
- Chemical
- Civil
- Control Systems
- Electrical
- Computer
- Environmental
- Fire Protection
- Industrial
- Mechanical
- Metallurgical and Materials
- Mining and Mineral
- Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering
- Nuclear
- Petroleum
- Structural I
- Structural II
Exams are offered twice a year, once in April and once in October. Three disciplines offer a choice of concentration as of 2010, chiefly Civil(5), Mechanical(3), and Electrical and Computer (3).
Exam format
Each of the discipline-specific PE Exams is eight hours long and consists of two 4-hour sessions administered in a single day with a lunch break. The exam consists of 80 or 100 multiple choice questions, the only exception being the essay style responses of the PE Structural II Exam. Several disciplines require a common morning breadth exam which broadly covers the discipline and then a more detailed afternoon depth exam where the test taker selects a more detailed area of the discipline. Other disciplines essentially have morning and afternoon breadth exams.Unlike the Fundamentals of Engineering Exam, outside reference sources are allowed for the PE Exam. The general rule is that any such materials must be in some sort of permanent binding (book, three-ring, spiral, etc.); loose papers and notes are prohibited. No writing tools or scratch paper may be brought in, and only calculators specifically approved by NCEES may be used. Examinees are provided with mechanical pencils, while the test booklet may be used for working problems.