Texas A&M University-Kingsville

Fundamentals of Engineering Exam

Fall 2013

Frank H. Dotterweich College of Engineering

Where will I take the FE Exam?

When you sign up for the FE

exam, you will request a testing
site. Your paperwork confirming
your registration should give you
details of when and where you
will take your exam.
We are offering the FE exam on

campus for a limited number of

students. Details are as follows:
Saturday, October 26th
Engineering Complex , Room
109
Testing begins at 8:00 am, but
show up by 7:15 am!
Dr. A. Pilhevari and an observer
from NCEES will proctor the
exam. Remember that the observer will be reporting back to
NCEES on any suspicious behavior.
Be sure to read your candidate
agreement carefully. There is
strict control over personal
items permitted in the room,
identification, and calculators.

Whats NCEES?

NCEES = National
Council of Examiners
for Engineering and
Surveying.

National non-profit
organization that
writes and oversees
the FE exam.

The exam is offered

locally but administered nationally!

Get started:
http://www.ncees.org

Dont miss our TBPE guest speaker!

Can I use my calculator?
Mr. David Howell, P.E., will speak on professional licensure in room 109 of the Engineering Complex on Thursday, September 19th. He will present twice, once from
12:30-1:30 pm and again from 4:00-5:00 pm.
Mr. Howell is the Director of Licensing for the Texas
Board of Professional Engineers.
Mr. Howell will discuss the process for becoming a professionally licensed engineer in the State of Texas. He
will also specifically address the FE exam. This is an excellent opportunity for you to learn whether professional
licensure should be a career goal for you and how to
make that goal a reality. Make plans to attend!

NCEES permits only the

following calculator models:
All Casio fx-115 models.
Hewlett Packard HP 33s
and HP 35s.
Texas Instruments TI
30X and TI-36X models.
Remember to practice with
your calculator before you
take the FE to ensure best
performance and reduce
stress anxiety! For more
information, go to:
http://ncees.org/exams/
calculator-policy

Page 2

Fundamentals of Engineering Exam

Time for a Pop Quiz!

The following basic content questions were submitted by College of Engineering faculty to give you an opportunity to
quiz yourself. You will find the answers to the quiz on page 4. To give you an even better idea of how youre performing, try answering in only 2 minutes per question (roughly the speed needed to complete morning questions).
THERMODYNAMICS
These problems have multiple parts. Give yourself extra time.

(1) The real (not ideal) turbine on the right takes superheated steam at T1 and P1 and discharges wet steam at P2. If its efficiency is increased without changing T1 , P1 , or P2:
A) Does T2 increase, decrease, or stay the same?
B) Does W T, the absolute value of the work, increase, decrease, or stay the same?
C) Does x2 increase, decrease, or stay the same?
D) Does H2 increase, decrease, or stay the same?
E) Does S2 increase, decrease, or stay the same?
(2) The machine on the right is a real (not ideal) gas compressor operating at P1, T1, and
P2. If its efficiency is increased without changing T1 , P1 , or P2:
A) Does T2 increase, decrease, or stay the same?
B) Does W c, the absolute value of the work, increase, decrease, or stay the same?
C) Does H2 increase, decrease, or stay the same?
D) Does S2 increase, decrease, or stay the same?
ETHICS
(3) Select the answer that best completes this sentence. Professional engineers are ethically required to:
A) Do what is best for their engineering society.
B) Take full responsibility to do their work.
C) Advance their careers with high standard of practice.
D) Perform their engineering service without conflicts of interest .

WT

1
WC

(4) Which of the following characteristics designate engineering as a profession rather than
an occupation?
A) Engineering requires special knowledge.
B) Engineers have special privileges.
C) Engineering is self-regulating.
D) Engineers have special responsibilities.
E) All of the above.
STATICS
(5) For the truss at right, what is the axial force in member BD?
A) 10 kips in compression
B) 7 kips in tension
C) 7 kips in compression
D) 0 kips

10 k

5 ft
A

D
5 ft

5 ft

Page 3

Frank H. Dotterweich College of Engineering

(6) An L-shaped cross-section (at right) is made of two 6 in by 1 in rectangles. What is the
centroid of this cross-section, as measured from the lower left corner of the shape?
A) (3.0,3.0) inches
B) (2.4, 3.0) inches
C) (1.9, 1.9) inches
D) (1.9, 3.4) inches
ENGINEERING ECONOMICS
(7) A local store sells a 60 Full HD plasma TV for $30 per week to be paid in 24 months. If the cash
value is $1,870 find the approximate effective interest rate per year charged on this purchase.
A) 0 %
B) 26 %
C) 52 %
D) 78 %
CIRCUITS
Use the circuit at right to answer questions (8) and (9).
(8) Find the current I1 and voltage V3.
A) 5 mA, 1V
B) 5 mA, 5V
C) 4 mA, 5V
D) None of the above
(9) Find the power dissipated across R2.
A) 75 W
B) 75 kW
C) 75 mW
D) None of the above
FLUIDS
(10) Water flows in a 5-cm-diameter pipe at a velocity of 0.75 m/s. The mass flow rate of
water in the pipe is:
A) 353 kg/min
B) 75 kg/min
C) 37.5 kg/min
D) 1.47 kg/min
E) 88.4 kg/min
(11)The coefficient of compressibility of a truly incompressible substance is:
A) 0
B) 0.5
C) 1
D) 100
E) Infinity
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Fluids questions from Cengel and Cimbala, Fluid Mechanics, 3rd edition. Thanks to Dr.
Murphy, Dr. Leelani, Dr. Aguiniga, Dr. McLauchlan, and Dr. Sai for their assistance in developing this quiz!

6 in

6 in

Fundamentals of Engineering Exam

Page 4

What resources can help me prepare?

Did You Know?

Practice, practice, practice! Nothing can better prepare you to take the
FE exam than to work lots of engineering problems. Students who take
the time to study together in small groups and meet at a regular time to
practice tend to be more successful on the FE than students who rely on
last-minute cramming. There are lots of resources to help you prepare for
the FE exam.
STUFF THAT COSTS MONEY:
Kaplan Engineering Education has several resources, including an
online diagnostic test (about $40), a complete online review course, and
review books for purchase. Visit: http://
www.kaplanaecengineering.com/kaplanAECengineering/family_id%
60114%60menu_id%601194%60product_list.aspx
Testmasters offers review courses in a classroom setting. The course
is expensive but discounts are offered for full-time students. See: http://
www.testmasters.com/eit-fe.html
EIT Exam is a website offering online access to test questions for a
monthly registration fee. It is a cost-effective way to prepare. See:
http://www.eitexam.com/
PPI offers manuals that include brief reviews of a course plus lots of
problems to work. They also offer online review courses. Visit: http://
ppi2pass.com/shop/fe-eit-exam
STUFF YOU CAN USE FOR FREE:
Your Texas A&M University-Kingsville faculty! Many professors are
willing to hold informal review sessions with students serious about preparing for the FE.
Faculty at Texas A&M University have videotaped a number of review
sessions. These can be downloaded in MP4 format or viewed as
streaming video. This resource is available for free at: http://
engineeringregistration.tamu.edu/tapedreviews/
The College of Engineering has purchased several NCEES sample
question books (see below). These may be borrowed from the JESSC!
AND DONT FORGET THE NCEES WEBSITE:
You should also spend some time getting to know the NCEES website,
http://ncees.org/exams/fe-exam/. This website is a treasure trove of information about the FE, such as:
Detailed outlines of topics covered in morning and afternoon exams.
Copies of the FE reference manual you can download for free in PDF
format. (Hardcopies cost $14.)
Sample question and answer books (cost $35). These books contain
half an FE exam, both morning and afternoon sessions, and are available for both discipline specific and other disciplines exams. These
may also be checked out in the JESSC!
More information about calculators, scoring, format, etc. Much of the
resources in this newsletter have come from NCEES directly!

(1) The FE exam is 8 hours long. The 4

hour morning session has 120
questions, and the 4 hour afternoon
session has 60 questions.
(2) There is a common morning session,
but you may take the Chemical, Civil,
Electrical, Environmental, Industrial,
Mechanical, or Other Disciplines
section in the afternoon.
(3) Guessing doesnt hurt you! Wrong and
blank answers are scored the same, so
why leave any spots blank?
(4) Because you have to move through the
exam so quickly (two minutes per
question in the morning and four in the
afternoon), FE questions are designed
to be answered quickly. Many of them
cover simple conceptual information.
(5) You will be given a copy of the FE
supplied reference manual at the
exam. Be sure to familiarize yourself
with the reference manual so you know
where equations are on exam day.
And if an equation is in the reference
manual, its there for a purpose. Look
it up if you dont recognize it!
(6) Taking the FE exam just to see how it
goes doesnt make you (or our school)
look good to potential employers.
There are lots of other tools, such as
the resources at left, that can let you
know if you are really ready. So make
use of them, rather than gambling on
the outcome of your exam.
(7) Last minute cramming does more harm
than good. Get a good nights sleep,
eat a healthy breakfast, and show up
sharp and ready to work.

GOOD LUCK, JAVELINA ENGINEERS!

Quiz Answers:
(1) a Same; b & c
Increase; d & e
Decrease.
(2) a to dDecrease.
(3) B
(4) E

(5) D
(6) C
(7) C
(8) B
(9) C
(10) E
(11) E