Taking PE Exam, AASHTO question 1

[Loui1]

I'll be taking my StructI exam in October and have no experience in bridge design, nor does my firm do it. What would you recommend me do? Skip all the AASHTO questions? Shell out $200+ for a manual? Just wondering how critical its going to be. All the PE's here havent taken an exam in awhile and have ancient AASHTO manuals that are probably worthless.

 

[daysinn]

Keep in mind there are 20% bridge related questions in SE1.
Many of them are code questions.
You will have to force yourself to do pretty well on other subjects if you opt to abandon bridge.

 

[Galambos]

i agree with daysinn. with a 38% pass rate, you need every question you can get. i would get the SERM from alan williams that has a chapter on bridges. there are few easy bridge problems that you could solve if you just study the SERM. I also remember referring to the AASHTO manual for a few probs. try getting a used manual or make friends with someone who does design bridges.

good luck, i was in the same spot your in last year. i would hate to get to the exam and realize that you didnt study something that you were 100% sure would be on the exam ahead of time, because it cant be any fun taking it twice.

ted

 

[theonlynamenottaken]

I'll bet that if you ask around you could find someone with an AASHTO code they'd let you borrow for the exam (like me, if you're close by). If you don't know anyone around that does have it search your state's licensure log for people that just passed the Structural PE... or look around the forums on ppi2pass.com Most engineers are more than willing to help aspiring engineers.

By the way, I took and passed the Structural I in April and the AASHTO questions were by far the easiest. Almost all of the AASHTO questions were straight code with no calculations. I had no experience in bridges and I didn't know the AASHTO code at all, but it has the very best index of just about any book, let alone code, that I've ever seen. You can find ANYTHING very quickly in that monster of a code.

 

[DaveVikingPE]

I took structural PM portion of the civil pe. I had a copy of the AASHTO code with me... Two answers came out of the code.

I knew where to get 'em (prestressed concrete questions) because I had read the code.

If you can, try and buy it on eBay, otherwise, well, bite the bullet.

 

[rholder98]

Another option is to check your local library. Even if they don't have it, they can obtain it from a library that does. That's how I finally obtained the ACI 530 for my exam.

 

[jimaitken]

I would not recommend skipping questions as previously stated . The average time per question is 6 min so the questions won't be that in depth, but if you don't have a clue how to solve it or where to look you will probably not be able figure it out in 6 min. When I took the SE I exam, my strategy for questions I was not familiar with how to solve was either an educated guess (if I had some idea but was still not confident in my solution) or a standard guess (in my case I chose answer c.)

You definately need a copy of the AASHTO Specifications . The exam is in October so you have plenty of time to familiarize yourself with the AASHTO basics, but a reference manual/guide will help. I have heard there are refernce manuals that are for the SE exam (they were not available when I took the exam six yrs ago) I think Lindeburg has one. Check out

http://ppi2pass.com/ppi/PPIShop?pr=STRM3&ct=STRUCTURAL

Also the NCEES study guide and practice test is a great example of the type of questions that will be asked. I think one question on my exam actually was in the guide (differnt numbers, same solution)

Good luck

 

[zestructural]

I will take SE1 in October too. I don't have a chance to take Bridge Design course or design bridges. I have questions to ask to ones who took SE1 or PE exam before. Do I need to have an AASHTO manual with me in the exam room? How depth I need to understand the AASHTO? Thank you all in advance.

 

[Loui1]

Yes, I'm pretty sure you need the AASHTO book with you. Im' thinking most of the questions are pretty much plug and chug out of the book.

 

[archeng59]

I borrowed a copy of the AASHTO code from a local firm that does bridge design. I obtained a copy of the sample exams from the civil PE exam, studied a couple of bridge design texts that I found in the university library, studied as much as I could to familiarize myself with the code book. passed the SE1 exam first try, so apparently did ok on the bridge questions that it didn't hurt the score.

 

[Loui1]

Ok, I may be able to get my company to purchase it, but it's freaking impossible to determine what version of the code my state has accepted. The exam requires the 2002 version. Anyone know where to find the current AASHTO codes for particular states???

 

[Galambos]

if your state is an NCEES state, then they will be using the latest required by the NCEES at their website,

http://www.ncees.org

 

[jimaitken]

AASHTO is not a state by state code, but it is the guideline that most states use to develop their specs. You will not be required to use a specific state for AASHTO related questions.

AASHTO is now either the Standard Specs or LRFD codes. The 2002 Standard Specs are the 17th and final edition. There will be no more updates to this spec because AASHTO is moving toward LRFD and will only provide updates to this code. The test used to give the questions in either LFD or LRFD whichever method you were most familiar with.

For AASHTO Standard Specs the latest version is the 17th Ed., 2002.

For AASHTO LRFD Specs latest version is the 3rd edition, 2004.

Double check with your board and NCEES to make sure this is what they require.

Good Luck.