N.C. State engineering students exceeded the national average for the Fundamentals of Engineering exam with the help of a valuable preparation course.

The 240 NCSU students who took the exam had a passing rate of 86 percent and exceeded the national passing rate of 70 percent. N.C. State is nationally known for its College of Engineering, and the results of the FE exam validated its reputation.

The FE is a huge step toward a career in the engineering field, and is similar to the bar exam taken by law students before becoming a lawyer.

It is typically taken by civil, mechanical and environmental engineers because it is often a job requirement.  

The course, Fundamentals of Engineering exam preparation, E 490, was established more than 15 years ago and has apparently payed off. For the past five years, the scores of N.C. State students have exceeded the national averages, according to the NCEES Institutional Report.  

J. Ben O’Neal, professor of electrical and computer engineering, teaches portions of the course, and stresses the exams importance.

“It helps the students get a better job, at least in the field where it is required for the job,” O’Neal said.

The course also allows room for improvement, according to O’Neal. After students take the exam, they modify the course based on the feedback they receive.  

Passing the exam also allows people to get a job in public safety, consulting and patent law because a professional engineer license is required.

At N.C. State, roughly 450 students take the exam per year compared to the 50,000 people who take it nationally.  

Nationally, civil engineering majors took the exam the most with more than 4,500 participants in Oct. 2012. Of the 240 test takers at N.C. State, mechanical engineering majors took the exam the most with 89 participants.

In Oct. 2012, 9,364 students took the FE exam nationally.

Environmental and mechanical engineering students did the best with a pass rate of 92 percent, beating the national average for those majors by 11 percent and 13 percent respectively.

According to the NCEES Institutional report, all engineering programs at N.C. State except for aeronautical engineering had a passing rate greater than the national average.  

The preparation course is pass/fail, and is offered during the fall and spring semesters to prepare for the exam in October and April. The class meets 13 times per semester.