In order to obtain an engineering license, aspiring professional engineers must frequently take the Fundamentals of Engineering, or FE, exam. This challenging test lasts eight hours and is divided into two parts: morning and afternoon. Both test segments may contain a variety of different types of FE exam questions. FE exam questions in the morning segment focus on general engineering principles, whereas FE exam questions in the afternoon segment are discipline-specific.
There are 120 multiple choice questions on the morning portion of the test. Students have four hours to complete this section of the test, and they are allowed to use certain exam-approved calculators during this time. Morning FE exam questions cover the same topics for all test takers and cover a number of fundamental knowledge areas. Geometry, calculus, matrices, and vector analysis are some of the topics covered in mathematics-based FE-exam questions. Chemistry, material properties such as chemical and electric makeup, engineering mechanics, and fluid mechanics are all possible areas of inquiry. Computers, as well as business and ethical practices, are covered in detail.
The morning portion of the test has twelve sections of FE exam questions in total. Despite the fact that each test-questions taker’s may differ, each section will be roughly the same length for each test. For example, in recent versions of the test, mathematical problems accounted for 15% of morning session FE exam questions, while engineering economics accounted for 7%. Because these percentages may change with each new version of the test, it’s a good idea to ask about the specific breakdown each year.
The afternoon FE exam questions will vary depending on the test taker’s major or area of specialization. Chemical, civil, and industrial engineering questions are among the seven types of afternoon exams. While the afternoon test has only 60 questions, each question is worth two points, whereas the morning FE exam questions are worth one point each. Regardless of which type of test is taken, the afternoon section is given four hours to complete. The afternoon segment’s questions are all multiple choice problems, just like the morning segment’s.
Each afternoon exam contains questions pertaining to a specific engineering discipline. Though there may be some overlap between disciplines, a chemical engineer will be tested on different topics than an environmental engineer. The afternoon exam, like the morning exam, is divided into several weighted sections that account for a set percentage of the total score; for example, in the environmental engineering version, questions about water and wastewater account for 30% of the total score. Afternoon questions are usually more difficult than morning questions, and they may require more advanced calculations and knowledge.