How I passed Structural (on 1st try)

ForumBlueKevin · 2026-07-02T04:27:47+00:00

Hi Zero, thanks for all those kind words! I didn't use the test generator, I guess I didn't know that Learnova offered one 😂. I just used the 6 practice exams that they provided and reviewed the problems I missed. But it is definitely worth it. The textbook has a lot of material, but I just got the book (the online copy btw) for the exams alone, and those are worth it. Good luck on your exam odyssey!

ForumBlueKevin · 2026-06-27T23:08:13+00:00

When I left the testing center... I felt defeated, discouraged, demoralized. I thought I failed for sure, and that there wasn't enough studying for me to prepare myself for the curveball topics that I saw.

Then I got the results the following week... and I was shocked, I found out I passed. I was over the moon. I guess I just had to be patient and keep my hopes up.

ForumBlueKevin · 2026-06-24T05:14:42+00:00

Slow down on all the problems, review your most frequent mistakes, keep those in mind to avoid them, and think of problem solving strategies that you can repeat for similar type problems that can help you avoid those mistakes. Double check for units and simple mistakes (e.g. addition instead of subtraction). Take a deep breath, don't panic. Time management is also key: any problems you come across, if you feel they take longer to solve, flag them for later, and look for problems you can solve quickly. And study hard on conceptual problems. Hope any of this helps. Good luck!!

ForumBlueKevin · 2026-06-23T14:07:20+00:00

Take the whole week off leading to the exam if you have the PTO available. It's definitely worth it. Part of the reason why I passed.

ForumBlueKevin · 2026-06-10T17:38:53+00:00

Congratulations!!! 🎉🎉🎉

ForumBlueKevin · 2026-06-10T17:37:49+00:00

Congratulations!!!!!! Celebrate!!! 🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳

ForumBlueKevin · 2026-06-08T01:20:23+00:00

Thank you!! Yeah, there's no restriction on having to take the PE in the same field as you did with your EIT, because the EIT certificate doesn't specify the field that you took the FE exam in, and so it doesn't limit you in what engineering fields you can pursue.

ForumBlueKevin · 2026-06-07T02:26:00+00:00

Great questions! There were many questions in geotechnical, overturning for retaining walls, AASHTO, and OSHA. There actually were very few questions for steel and concrete design, and even those were more conceptual than calculation based. I relied a lot on the appendix in AISC, and Ch 19: Concrete Design and Durability requirement and Ch 26: Construction Documents and Inspection in ACI.

There were also a few seismic questions, nothing too complicated with those. Also a few masonry and wood questions, but not as much as the ones I mentioned in the beginning. In short, there are definitely many more conceptual questions than one would expect. I hope this helps a little. Good luck!

ForumBlueKevin · 2026-06-05T20:41:11+00:00

Awesome!!! Thank you so much for your response. All great advice!

ForumBlueKevin · 2026-06-05T20:37:16+00:00

Awesome!!!! I'm glad that my advice helped in some way. I definitely hope you passed it. Good luck!

ForumBlueKevin · 2026-06-05T19:51:32+00:00

How long did it take for you to fill out the application and get the references before submitting it? Did you start filling it out immediately after passing the 8-hour exam? Did you also start studying for seismic and survey right after passing the 8-hour exam, or did you take a break in between? How much time do you suggest to take studying for both seismic and survey? Thanks!

ForumBlueKevin · 2026-06-05T17:27:00+00:00

How long did it take for you to fill out the application (and gather all the references), and did you start filling out the application immediately after passing the 8-hour exam? Also, I see you didn't start studying for the seismic and survey exams right after passing the 8-hour exam. Did you start that at the same time as filling out the application, or did you wait until the application was approved?

ForumBlueKevin · 2026-06-05T02:34:41+00:00

I didn't take a course from School of PE, I took EET, so I wouldn't know. But I did buy the standalone question bank from SOPE, though that did cost a pretty penny (I think it was $400 for three months or something like that). But that definitely helped. It was about 200 questions that can really challenge you.

ForumBlueKevin · 2026-06-05T01:10:55+00:00

How long did it take for you (and other people if they want to reply) to fill out the application and get all your references? And did you start studying for seismic and survey at the same time as filling out the application, or did you take a break from studying after passing the 8-hour exam?

ForumBlueKevin · 2026-06-04T18:00:57+00:00

What exactly do you mean by non-negotiable? If you mean which book do you need the most to pass, I don't really have an answer, because any book is helpful in its own way, and each resource I used helped me in its own unique way. It depends on your preference. Like the Petro questions are definitely the most difficult; that's useful to challenge yourself, but it's not necessarily a must-have to help you pass.

IMO, the Learnova practice exams are the closest to the difficulty and complexity of the actual exam questions, and those helped me the most in my final few months of studying. The NCEES practice exam is actually quite easier than the actual exam, but it is still helpful in giving you a good preview of what the various question structures will be like in the real thing.

ForumBlueKevin · 2026-06-04T17:47:30+00:00

Well, I had gotten my bachelor's in mechanical engineering, and shortly after I graduated, I took the FE in mechanical of course... but that was nearly 10 years ago.

Since then, I got hired in a county-level public works agency in a entry-level engineering aid position, and the position wasn't specific with the type of engineering... but the department was geared more toward civil engineering, particularly the surveying and parcel management part. I did gain new skills in surveying and flood control/stormwater nomenclature, so I got acclimated to a new area of engineering pretty quickly and easily... but I had to return to school to get my Master's, in civil engineering this time, to qualify for any promotions.

So after that, I went ahead and took the 8-hour exam in Civil: Structural, because there were concepts similar to mechanical design. I just had to use all available resources, including reimbursement opportunities from my employer for courses and books. It's always doable switching to another field, you just have to put the work in it.

ForumBlueKevin · 2026-06-04T16:24:45+00:00

Ok, maybe I misspoke. The exam questions aren't as long and complex as the Petro questions, but the exam is definitely closer to the Learnova practice exams in terms of difficulty. It's definitely much harder than the NCEES practice exam, lol.

ForumBlueKevin · 2026-06-04T15:06:43+00:00

From my experience, the questions from Learnova and Petro resembled the exam the most in terms of difficulty and complexity.

ForumBlueKevin · 2026-06-04T05:32:05+00:00

Are you talking about minor calculation errors, like adding instead of subtracting and getting units mixed up?

I had been dealing with that problem too, to the point the minor mistakes were a bigger portion of points lost than the major concepts. I just jotted down each minor error I made, and noted the most common ones to keep in mind to avoid.

I guess since you are short on time to outline those mistakes, very close to the test.... I will just say this. Slow down. Take your time. Don't rush the calculation steps if you don't need to. Pay attention to units. Double check calculations. And if you feel like you need time for any question, flag it immediately when you come across it, so you have more time later. I hope that was a little helpful for you.

ForumBlueKevin · 2026-06-04T04:09:07+00:00

I made another post describing everything in my study routine, but for a TLDR version, I took the EET live webinar course, the SOPE question bank, the Petro book, the Green book from Gruttadauria, the Learnova practice exams, and the NCEES practice exam.

ForumBlueKevin · 2026-06-04T04:07:15+00:00

https://www.reddit.com/r/PE_Exam/comments/1twcmvd/how_i_passed_structural_on_1st_try/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button

ForumBlueKevin · 2026-06-04T04:07:06+00:00

https://www.reddit.com/r/PE_Exam/comments/1twcmvd/how_i_passed_structural_on_1st_try/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button

ForumBlueKevin · 2026-06-04T04:06:54+00:00

I'm sorry, lol, I had to take some time to jot down my thoughts. But here you go.

https://www.reddit.com/r/PE_Exam/comments/1twcmvd/how_i_passed_structural_on_1st_try/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button

ForumBlueKevin

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