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  • Episode 05 – Get Your Study Materials and Resources Together

    Posted on September 15th, 2009 arichardson 3 comments

    In order to effectively study for the PE Exam, you will need to get some study materials.  Here are 2 items you will need immediately.  This particular episode is geared towards materials for the Civil Engineering PE Exam.

    * Special Offer! -Get a 10% Discount off of materials bought from PPI.
    Many of the products listed in this checklist are provided on the PPI Publications website, and we have been given a special offer to pass on to you.  Go sign up to get the promo code in the pdf checklist.  This offer is good until January 2010.

    Study and Exam Resources

    A brief listing of some of the materials mentioned in the show is provided below.  A more detailed listing is provided in the free checklist that you can sign up for on this page.

    Books & Guides
    Civil Engineering Reference Manual by Michael Lindeburg
    Civil Engineering Quick Reference

    Problems
    101 solved civil engineering problems

    Sample exams
    Civil Engineering Sample Exam (by ppi)
    NCEES Sample Exam ( on NCEES website)

    Design Standards - The PE Civil modules of Transportation, Structural and Construction require you to have design standards.  You will need these for the afternoon session.

    Structural –

    IBC 2006  and referenced standards.
    ASCE 7-05
    ACI 318-05
    ACI 530 – 05
    AISC 13th edition
    AISC Seismic
    NDS 05
    PCI 2004
    AASHTO  LRFD Bridge Design Specifications

    Transportation -
    AASHTO  A Policy on Geometric Design of Highways and Streets, 2004
    edition (5th edition), American Association of State Highway &
    Transportation Officials, Washington, DC.

    AASHTO
    Roadside Design Guide, 3rd edition with 2006 Chapter 6 Update,
    American Association of State Highway & Transportation Officials,
    Washington, DC.

    HCM
    Highway Capacity Manual (HCM 2000), 2000 edition,
    Transportation Research Board—National Research Council,
    Washington, DC.

    MUTCD   Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, 2003, U.S.
    Department of Transportation—Federal Highway Administration,
    Washington, DC.

    PCA  Design and Control of Concrete Mixtures, 2002, 14th edition,
    Portland Cement Association, Skokie, IL.

    ITE  Traffic Engineering Handbook, 1999, 5th edition, Institute of
    Transportation Engineers, Washington, DC.

    Construction -
    ASCE 37-02 Design Loads on Structures During Construction, 2002, American
    Society of Civil Engineers, Reston, VA, www.asce.org.

    NDS National Design Specification for Wood Construction, 2005,
    American Forest & Paper Association/American Wood Council,
    Washington, DC, www.awc.org.

    CMWB Standard Practice for Bracing Masonry Walls During Construction,
    2001, Council for Masonry Wall Bracing, Mason Contractors
    Association of America, Lombard, IL, www.masoncontractors.org.

    AISC Steel Construction Manual, 13th ed., American Institute of Steel
    Construction, Inc., Chicago, IL, www.aisc.org.

    ACI 318-05  Building Code Requirements for Structural Concrete, 2005,
    American Concrete Institute, Farmington Hills, MI,
    www.concrete.org.

    ACI 347-04 Guide to Formwork for Concrete, 2004, American Concrete Institute,
    Farmington Hills, MI, www.concrete.org (in ACI SP-4, 7th edition
    appendix).

    ACI SP-4 Formwork for Concrete, 7th ed., 2005, American Concrete Institute,
    Farmington Hills, MI, www.concrete.org.

    OSHA Occupational Safety and Health Standards for the Construction
    Industry, 29 CFR Part 1926 (US federal version), US Department of
    Labor, Washington, DC.

    MUTCD-Pt 6 Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices – Part 6 Temporary
    Traffic Control, 2003, US Federal Highway Administration,
    www.fhwa.dot.gov.

    Water Resources & Environmental & Geotechnical – resources & texts from college.  A more detailed listing is on the free pdf checklist that you can sign up for.

    Note:
    For people taking the Structural I exam:
    Get the Structural Engineering Reference Manual by Alan Williams
    Also the Practice problems by Alan Williams

    What you do not need for the exam:
    Obsolete textbooks, mathematics, or calculus, etc.

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    3 responses to “Episode 05 – Get Your Study Materials and Resources Together”

    1. Hi Andy,
      Thanks for the list of study materials. I hope to be familiar with them before the exam.

      Pete

    2. Hi Andy,

      I am curious and scared of AASHTO.

      The price for one, and the shear size of it also.

      Do you suggest purchasing this reference for $495? What does the exam ask from it, and are there any general reference guides that could help to explain the massive manual.

      My experience is mostly residential and commercial building structures…so I have never opened it before.

      Best,
      Nate

    3. Nate,
      First try to borrow the manual from a friend.

      If you are taking the Civil exam with structural emphasis, then you can probably get by without it.

      If you are taking the Structural (SE) Exam, then you will not be able to pass without this manual. There are certain factors you may need from this manual. Of course we do not know until the exam though. But 20% of the exam is bridges, so you will need to know bridges to pass. I will say that the Structural Engineering Reference Manual has a good section on bridges, and you may be able to get by with that.

      The CERM has a short section on bridge girders. This will probably be sufficient for the Civil exam (espescially if not taking the structural emphasis).

      Which exam are you taking?

      Hope that helps.

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