How the April '24 Changes Impact Your PE Prep...And Career ??
Civil Engineering Academy
Helping you on your journey to becoming a professional engineer and beyond.
Ever since the big change hit the Civil PE Exam in April, things haven’t been the same for civil engineers prepping for this thing.
The shift towards a more depth-focused exam shook the rules of the exam prep game a little bit, and the question is… ??
Was this change a good thing, really? ??
In this article, we'll dive into the upsides of that change that certainly make your journey to become a licensed PE a lot easier…
…as well as the potential pitfalls of this new format that can make your exam prep a tad more difficult. ??
First…Why on Earth Did the Exam Change? ??
Since this change was not one of the small tweaks we’re used to every five years or so, you’re probably asking yourself…
“Why did they do this? ??”
Well, they did that for a reason.
And that reason means a huge shift that’s happening in the civil engineering profession as a whole…and will be the “industry standard” in the future. ??
Here’s the thing… ??
The NCEES aligns the exam content with what’s happening in the field.
They survey licensed PEs working in various sectors of the industry — from government to private practice to academia — to get to know what knowledge areas and skills are being required from civil engineers in the real world.
Then, they use the results of these surveys to update the specifications and the exam content to test you on those topics you need to be competent in at your workplace. ??
In this case, the April 2024 changes to the specs say a lot about where the civil engineering profession is headed…
In short, the general civil engineer is dead.
Rather, it seems like the industry is trending towards “specialization.”
That is, the industry is demanding civil engineers to be subject matter experts in their chosen specialty area, instead of a rounded engineer who knows the basics of all disciplines.
So, the exam now is kind of shifting to test you in the particular discipline you plan to make a career out of.
Here’s an example. ??
If you’re in Water Resources Engineering, you probably won’t have to dive into Structural Engineering topics for your PE exam.
This has both pros and cons, both from a test-taker and practicing civil engineer perspective. Let’s dive into them.
4 Pros That Make Your PE Journey Easier ?
Let’s start with the upsides of this massive change, and what it means to you. ??
1. “Easier” Exam
Given that all the 80 questions on your exam are now related to your particular discipline, you don’t need to study topics that are way out of your specialty area. (Did I hear an Amem? ??)
This makes your exam prep easier and more enjoyable since you don’t have to force yourself to study things that don’t come easy to you…or that you simply don’t like.
Sure, there are still some breadth topics thrown in there. But all those topics somehow relate to your particular discipline and you need them for your day-to-day job in your discipline as well.
This is what makes this April 2024 change a good thing for the (vast) majority of civil engineers I’ve talked to and heard from out there.
It provides a better opportunity for those who are strong in their depth discipline but weak in other areas…but still need the PE license.
In an interview by the ASCE, a lady civil engineer went even further to say “(...) finally, the Transportation exam is now a Transportation exam.”
Can’t blame her, right? ??
2. Simpler Exam Prep
By focusing on the depth topics for your discipline, and a few breadth topics that are relevant to it, the specs for each PE exam have fewer topics you’ll need to study.
This saves you time on studying because you now have about 10 to 12 topics to cover (and the Structural PE Exam has only five!) instead of 18 or more…
…as it used to be the case for the old breadth-and-depth format. ??
Even though the number of questions increased for each topic, fewer topics to study means more time to devote to each one so you get all those additional questions right on exam day. ?
3. Work Experience Gives You a Leg up
As I’ve already mentioned in one of our Quick Tip Videos , what you do for work is the first factor you need to consider when choosing which Civil PE Exam to take.
Now…
With the April 2024 changes…
This becomes even more important!
Why?
Since they’ll not test you on general civil engineering topics anymore, the discipline-specific questions are now more in-depth…
…and closer to the real practice of engineering in the real world. ?? ?? ??
This means that, if you go with the exam that aligns with what you do for work, you’ll have a surreal advantage. ??
All this familiarity can give you a leg up, keep you sane throughout your prep, save you some time, and make the exam a lot less intimidating. ??
4. You’ll Become an Expert in Your Field
This point is more from a career perspective than from an exam standpoint. But let’s be real. ??
Most civil engineers tend to dive into their depth disciplines after they start working…and they’ll laugh if you ask something out of their field after so long, right? ??
So, the new exam format will make sure you’re competent in your field. Not only to a point of passing an exam, but to tackle, sign, and seal real-world engineering projects within your discipline. ???
This is one of the reasons we believe you should not switch to a different Civil PE Exam if you’ve already failed this thing a couple times before.
You need as many reps as possible on the same thing to not only pass the exam, but become that expert in your chosen field. ??
4 Downsides That Hold You Back ??
Now, as with everything in life, there’s always the other side of the coin. ??
Here are the negative sides of the April 2024 changes that make your prep a tad more demanding. ??
1. Steep (And New) Learning Curve
The first thing that comes to my mind is that we lose pretty much everything we know about the exam simply from the history of it being around for years.
Here’s what I mean… ??
First, the study resources we used to rely on have become a bit outdated.
It doesn’t mean they’re all useless now; just the opposite. But how you use them did change a bit since you don’t need the breadth topics they cover anymore.
(Check out our Quick Tip Videos on the best Construction and Water Resources study materials to use…and how to use them)
Second, all the content out there with tips to prepare for the Civil PE Exam was created for the old format.
That is, it’s hard to find up-to-date tips and information on how to pull this off since all of those videos and blog articles with exam prep tips were created for the old exam. ??
As the years go by, we’ll naturally fix both problems and all the content and resources out there will be specific to this new format. But until we get there…
…it’s a matter of making the best with what we have. ??
2. More Conceptual Exam
As a direct consequence of all 80 the exam questions being more in-depth, you can for sure expect it to be a lot more conceptual.
That is, with the shift, you really need to know your depth stuff to pass.
They’re testing your knowledge on your particular discipline, so you need a good understanding of the topics at a conceptual level, with way less calculation you can use to get away with.
That’s what Kim Truong , another CEA alumni, found to be true in her Water Resources PE Exam. In her own words… ??
“It was not a surprise. I kind of expected it. ‘If they’re going to test what you really know, it’s not just going to be calculations. They’re really going to test a lot of theory.”
This is a downside because it’s very hard to prepare for theory questions. ??
They can literally ask you anything, and they can ask the same thing in different ways.
The only thing you can do here is to get a really good grasp of the topics and understand what’s happening in the given scenario from a qualitative perspective...first.
That’s why we created the 100 Bonus Theory Questions for each one of the five civil PE exams.
The goal is to give you exposure to this type of question so you're ready when the time comes. ??
3. Decoupling May Be Tricky
As I mentioned before, work experience in your depth discipline can help you big time with the new format.
If you have been out of school for some time with 4-5 years of hands-on work experience in your field, the new exam can be “easier” for you. However…
If you’re a recent grad who just passed the Civil FE Exam and want to take advantage of decoupling, I say go for it by all means, but…
Know that you may have a more difficult time getting familiar with all the codes and standards, as well as really understanding all the theory.
?? Warning ?? I do believe you should take the PE as soon as you’re allowed to after the FE. That way you keep the “study momentum” going. Just keep in mind the PE exam is a whole different beast and it may take you more time and effort. ??
4. The Danger of the Specialized Civil Engineer
While specialization has its perks, there’s a downside to the profession as well. ??
No civil engineering project happens in a vacuum. Any discipline interfaces with other disciplines in the real world.
So, you need to know how your work affects the work of another civil engineer who’s gonna take what you did and use it to complete the next phase of the project.
Kiene Koga , a Construction Engineer in Hawaii, illustrated this point by talking about his own relationship with Structural Engineers.
They can design structures that look awesome on a 3D model…but are impossible to build in the real world.
In his own words, “You have all these rebar details and all this congestion. And then, you bring the Structural Engineer out and you tell him, ‘Tell me how I'm supposed to vibrate this wall properly.’”
What’s Your Take on this Industry Change? ??
Those are the pros and cons we could think of regarding the latest changes to the PE Exam. And if you pay close attention…
You’ll notice it’s more than just a change in the exam itself. ??
The industry is really going that route, with more and more firms being specialized firms, when in the past we used to have firms who would offer “general” civil engineering services. ???
But what do you think of this change? Do you think the exam is better now that it’s depth-focused?
What about the profession? Do you think the specialization route is good? ??
Different civil engineers have different opinions on this topic, so we'd love to hear your perspective!
Leave a comment below, and don't forget to follow Civil Engineering Academy for more content and tips on how to prepare and pass your professional civil engineering exams! ??