Who has taken the FE exam?

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seanjuan

Senior Member
I graduated from the U of M (Minnesota) last spring with a BS in Mechanical Engineering... I had about a 3.0 so by no means am I one of the smartest guys in my field but in the months since I have graduated I believe I am becoming even more stupider (bad gramar on purpose)

I was going to take the FE last spring but decided it would be too much work to study for that along with finishing up my degree so I decided I would take it some time this winter or next spring.... so I need to start studying now and was wondering if anyone on here has any tips on studying for this test or good resources to use when studying
can you get old copies of the test anywhere to take as practice exams?

does anyone have a FE study guide or book they would want to sell me?

does anyone work somewhere that needs a mech E? I kinda need a job right now too

thanks guys
Sean
 
I took it right before I graduated...

I don't know how it is in Minnesota, but here in Texas it's really an extremely biased test- biased towards MEs. You have several sections. One EE section, one Chem E, one Aero, one thermo, one kinematics, one fluids- you get the idea. Basically half of my test was all ME stuff.

I didn't study anything at all except for the first page of the book, and I still pulled a 77. You only need a 50 to pass (I think). If you want a book, I can dig mine up for you and send it your way for not too much.
 
I might take you up on the book Calesta
I'm going to talk to a couple of my buddies around here and see what they used to study and if they have a book lyin around I could borrow then you wouldn't have to go through the hassle of shipping it... I'll let you know

what was your major?

the reason this came up today is that there is a company I'm applying for and they want someone with a PE or who has at least taken the FE, but I think as long as they know that I am planning on taking it in the next few months it shouldn't hurt my chances much
 
for those of us who are not so scholastically inclined what is the FE?
 
Yeah it's not like you can just go up and take a test and receive your PE certification. It takes a few years.

:)

My degree was Mechanical Engineering from UT here in Austin. Top 10 school baby!

:lol:

I'll look for the book later this week.

xy- the FE exam is the Fundamentals of Engineering exam. It used to be referred to as the EIT (Engineer in Training, I think). You take the FE exam to start your PE (Professional Engineer) training. After you take the FE exam, you work for a few years as someone's apprentice (sorta), and take another exam later to earn your PE certification. Once you have your PE, you can work on all kinds of cool stuff like government contracts, construction etc. It's basically a certification that helps you out if you're an engineer and have to do anything related to public works or have to do anything that has to be approved by a licensed engineer.
 
ahh i see. im formiliar with the GRE and LSAT(?) but have never heard of the FE and PE. im sure ill hear of them soon though because i have about 10 different friends in undergrad engineering.
 
The GRE and LSAT are different from the FE exam... the GRE and LSAT are grad school entrance exams like the SAT is an undergrad thing- but the FE is more to see if you're worthy to start earning your PE certification. I guess it would be something like a pre-bar exam for lawyers if something like that existed.
 
I took the EIT/FE my last semester of undergrad. You need a raw score of 50 which is curved to a 70 to pass. Basically, about 50% pass the first time.

It's a long test, 2 four hour sections, but you can mark C on a bunch and skip the last couple hours, that's my advice.

What kind of work do you want to do?
Controls/Mechanisms/Structures/Packaging/Process/Etc?
I work for Harris in FL and we do all of the above and are hiring.
 
I am currently doing building systems/HVAC work. Not very exciting, but it pays the bills. I sorta ended up in it because I got an internship doing it my first year of college and then got trapped into it. I'm trying to find a job in a more technical area, tooling design, mechanisms, or anything that is more interesting than HVAC.

msummer- where is Harris located, what kinda starting salary could a young engineer expect? I'm willing to relocate but only if the price would be right. I have a pre-interview interview next week for a tooling design position with Seagate in Denver (actually Longmont CO, but denver is close)

I'm working at Seagate in MN right now doing HVAC/facilities stuff for them.... I'm basically their bitch, but they pay pretty well so I'm not complaining
 
Harris is in Melbourne, FL which is a smallish town on the Atlantic coast. One hour from Orlando, 2.5 hours from Miami, 5 mins from the beach.
Check out the our website (www.harris.com) and submit a resume, can't hurt.

As a BSME newgrad (3 yrs or less) you would probably start around $50k +/-
Florida is about as cheap as it gets though cost of living wise, no state income tax.

Unfortunately, the job market is not in your favor right now. I've been interviewing quite a few MEs lately. Most have a Master's and are from pretty big schools like MIT, UF, VT, and GaTech (my homeland). However, personalitly and common sense will get you the job.
 
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