Partner Up: The Power of Having a PE Exam Study Buddy

Note: This is a second post in a series about tips for taking the PE exam. Read the first one here.

Don’t go it alone. While mighty in itself, the PE exam shouldn’t make you feel like you’re tackling the world by yourself.

We talked with Amanda Johnson, PE, and Stephen Johnson, PE, Freese and Nichols engineers who met while attending Texas A&M University and later married. Stephen started working at Freese and Nichols in 2014, and Amanda joined the firm two years later after finishing her master’s. They studied for the PE exam together, took the test during the same time and both were granted licenses in August. (Ask if your employer will pay for your fees and study materials, along with giving you time off the day of the exam – Freese and Nichols does.)

The Johnsons said there are many benefits to having a “study buddy” as you embark on conquering the PE exam — even if that sidekick isn’t your spouse.

1. Hold each other accountable. There will be days when you don’t feel like studying or doing practice problems. Having someone else on the journey can push you to stay focused.
2. Get stumped? Ask for help. If you can’t figure out the answer to a problem, your study partner can help explain the answer or how he/she found the solution.
3. Talk it out. Your studying partner knows you and ways to calm you down. If you get stressed out, talk it through. They’re also going through the same process as you, so they can easily relate to you.
4. Take a studying course and sample tests together. In the same way it helps to have a friend in your college classes, it helps having someone to compare PE exam study notes.