In the United States, the Fundamentals of Engineering exam (also known as the FE exam) is the first of two examinations engineers must pass in order to be certified. Another short term for the exam, EIT, comes from the former official name for the exam, Engineer In Training. It is open to anyone who has a degree in engineering, or is in their last year of engineering at an accredited university. It is administered by the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES).
The exam is eight hours, and is split into a four-hour morning session and a four-hour afternoon session. All examinees take the same morning half. A test taker can choose which section to take in the afternoon from among: chemical engineering, civil engineering, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, industrial engineering, or general engineering (similar in content to the morning exam).
The topics covered by the general exam are supposed to be covered in the "fundamental" courses taken by all engineering students, and include (as of 2004):
A test taker must get a score of 70 (approximately 50% correct) to pass.
The sections are scored independently. One can correctly answer all the questions in the morning section, but score only a 65 in the afternoon -- this would be a failure.
Those who pass the exam are considered to be engineers in training, and are partway done with the certification process. After a 5 year apprenticeship, they qualify to take the Professional Engineer (PE) exam. Certification is awarded upon successful completion of the PE exam.
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