PE Civil: Structural

Loads and structural analysis, plus steel, concrete, masonry, timber, and foundation design.

Practice questions: 1,200+
Study topics: 14
Study topics: …
Study concepts: 66
Difficulty levels: 3
Mock exams: Unlimited

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What's inside

14 study topics, weighted to the NCEES blueprint — tap any topic to drill it.

Gravity Loads & Load Paths

Dead, live, and construction loads; tributary areas and vertical and lateral load paths; live-load reduction; earth pressure and surcharge; and ASCE 7 strength and allowable-stress load combinations.Wind, Seismic & Environmental Loads

Wind pressures and forces, seismic base shear and vertical distribution of lateral force, snow, rain, and ice loads, impact and moving (vehicular and crane) loads, and their delivery to the lateral system.Structural Analysis

13%

Reactions and determinacy, shear and moment diagrams, axial force, internal forces in beams and frames, combined normal and shear stresses, and the behavior of statically indeterminate members.Deflection

Beam and frame deflections by double integration, moment-area, conjugate-beam, and virtual-work methods; standard deflection formulas for common loadings; and serviceability deflection limits.Buckling, Torsion & Special Effects

Euler and inelastic column buckling, effective length, torsion of shafts and members, fatigue, thermal deformation, bearing, and progressive-collapse considerations.Structural Materials & Testing

Engineering properties of concrete, steel, timber, and masonry; stress-strain behavior and modulus; concrete strength and mix; and material test methods (compression, tension, slump) and specification conformance.Soil Properties & Classification

Phase relationships and index properties, USCS and AASHTO classification, shear strength, permeability, compressibility and consolidation, lateral earth-pressure coefficients, and bearing-capacity parameters.Reinforced & Prestressed Concrete

ACI flexural and shear strength of beams and one-way slabs, reinforcement ratio limits and development length, short-column axial capacity, and prestressed-concrete service stresses and prestress losses.Structural Steel Design

AISC tension, compression, flexure, and shear member strength by LRFD and ASD, block shear, lateral-torsional buckling, beam-column interaction, and composite-beam behavior.Timber (Wood) Design

NDS allowable-stress design of sawn-lumber and glulam beams and columns, adjustment factors, bending and horizontal shear, bearing, stability, and combined bending and axial loads.Masonry Design

TMS allowable-stress design of reinforced and unreinforced CMU and brick: flexure, shear, axial and slender-wall capacity, reinforcement, and brick-veneer anchorage.Connections

Bolted and welded steel connections, bearing and slip-critical bolts, weld strength, block shear, and embedded, anchored, and post-installed anchors in concrete.Foundations & Retaining Walls

Bearing capacity and settlement of spread footings, combined footings and mats, pile and drilled-shaft capacity, and retaining-wall stability against sliding, overturning, and bearing.Temporary Structures & Safety

Formwork and falsework lateral pressures, shoring and reshoring, scaffolding and bracing, anchorage, special inspections and submittals, construction impact on adjacent facilities, and OSHA construction safety.

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Straight from the PE Civil: Structural bank — 1,200+ questions, every one with a full worked solution.

medium

Forces & Load Effects — diagrams, reactions, determinacy

The beam shown is pinned at A and supported on a roller at B,

L=16

ft apart, and overhangs B by

c=6

ft. It carries a uniform load

w=3

k/ft over its entire 22-ft length and a concentrated load

P=3

k at the free end. Neglect self-weight. The maximum shear magnitude in the beam is most nearly:

27.4 kip
28.5 kip (correct answer)
31.9 kip
49.5 kip

Worked solution

Superpose the overhanging-beam cases of handbook §4.1.7 (UDL over the whole length, and a load at the end of the overhang), or simply take

\Sigma M_A=0

R_B=\dfrac{w(L+c)^2/2+P(L+c)}{L}=\dfrac{3(22)^2/2+3(22)}{16}=49.5

k, and

R_A=w(L+c)+P-R_B=69-49.5=19.5

k. Shear diagram:

V=19.5

k just right of A, falling at

w

19.5-3(16)=-28.5

k just left of B; the reaction lifts it to

wc+P=21

k just right of B, which then falls to

P=3

k at the tip. The largest magnitude is 28.5 kip, just left of B. Distractors: took the larger reaction (

R_B=49.5

k) as the maximum shear, the simple-span habit, but at an overhang support

R_B

is shared between the shear just left of B and the shear just right of it; left the end load

P

out, so the shear just left of B is the uniform load's alone (27.4 k) and misses

P

's share there,

Pc/L=1.13

k; and placed the UDL resultant

w(L+c)

L/2

from A instead of at the middle of the loaded length,

(L+c)/2

Difficulty mix

How this bank splits by our own difficulty rating, from quick wins to multi-step problems.

Easy26%
Medium49%
Hard25%

Study handbook

66 concepts — worked theory, key equations, and common pitfalls for every topic.

Sample concept

ASCE 7 Load Combinations (LRFD & ASD)

The ASCE 7-16 strength (LRFD) and allowable-stress (ASD) load combinations, how to find the one that governs a member, and the 1.0W wind factor.

Almost every PE Civil Structural design problem begins by turning a list of nominal loads — dead, live, roof live, snow, wind, seismic, rain, earth — into the single factored demand a member must resist. That step is the load combination, and it is where points quietly leak away: examinees pick the…

U = 1.2D + 1.6L + 0.5(L_r\ \text{or}\ S\ \text{or}\ R)

Open the study handbook

The PE Civil: Structural exam at a glance

Sourced from NCEES — the numbers, not the folklore.

Questions: 80; scored and pretest, one sitting
Exam time: 8h; in a 9h appointment · about 6 min per question
First-time pass rate: 61%; 42% for repeat takers · NCEES Squared 2025 (FY2024-25)
NCEES fee: $400; per attempt, paid to NCEES; your state board's fees are separate
Retakes: 3 per 12 months; at most one attempt per testing window
Reference on screen: PE Civil Reference Handbook + ASCE 7-16, ACI 318-14, AISC Manual 15th ed., IBC 2018, AASHTO LRFD 8th ed., NDS 2018, TMS 402/602-16, PCI 7th ed., OSHA 29 CFR, for exams through March 2027; closed book: no notes or references of your own

What NCEES says is on it

Every knowledge area in the official PE Civil: Structural specification, with the number of questions NCEES says each one gets. The three heaviest are about 78% of the exam. Share is our arithmetic, not an NCEES figure: each range's midpoint as a percentage of all the midpoints.

Knowledge area	Questions	Share
Design and Details of Structures – Component Design and Detailing	26–39	37%
Analysis of Structures – Forces and Load Effects	17–26	24%
Analysis of Structures – Loads and Load Applications	12–18	17%
Design and Details of Structures – Materials and Material Properties	10–15	14%
Temporary Structures and Other Topics	5–8	7%

Sources: NCEES PE Civil: Structural exam specification (April 2024) · pass rate: NCEES Squared 2025 (FY2024-25) · fee and retake policy: ncees.org, read 2026-09-15. Your state board sets its own fees and deadlines.

How to prepare for PE Civil — Structural

Four steps, in the order that pays off — each one built from this exam's own blueprint.

1
Study to the blueprint, not the textbook
Design and Details of Structures – Component Design and Detailing, Analysis of Structures – Forces and Load Effects, and Analysis of Structures – Loads and Load Applications are about 78% of the exam. Give them that share of your hours — Temporary Structures and Other Topics is only 5–8 questions.
See every area's question range
2
Practice one area at a time, then mix
Work a knowledge area until its worked solutions stop surprising you, then switch to mixed sets so recognizing the problem type becomes the skill.
Practice PE Civil — Structural questions
3
Sit timed mock exams at the real pace
The real exam gives you about 6 minutes per question. Full-length timed mocks are the only way to find out whether you can hold that pace for 8h.
Take a mock exam (with a pass)
4
Read what the exam actually asks
NCEES's own pass rates for all five PE Civil depths, what each specification actually weights, and how to pick your depth from the numbers rather than the folklore.
How hard is the PE Civil exam? Structural vs Transportation vs Water Resources

Questions, answered

How hard is the PE Civil: Structural exam?

NCEES reports a 61% pass rate for first-time takers of PE Civil: Structural and 42% for repeat takers in NCEES Squared 2025 (FY2024-25). It is 80 questions in 8h, about 6 minutes per question, so pacing matters as much as knowledge. The heaviest areas are Design and Details of Structures – Component Design and Detailing, Analysis of Structures – Forces and Load Effects, and Analysis of Structures – Loads and Load Applications.

What topics are on the PE Civil: Structural exam?

NCEES's PE Civil: Structural specification lists 5 knowledge areas with a question range for each. The heaviest are Design and Details of Structures – Component Design and Detailing (26–39 questions), Analysis of Structures – Forces and Load Effects (17–26 questions), and Analysis of Structures – Loads and Load Applications (12–18 questions) — together about 78% of the exam. The full list is in the exam-at-a-glance table on this page.

How long is the PE Civil: Structural exam?

The PE Civil: Structural exam is 80 questions in 8h of exam time, inside a 9h appointment that also covers the nondisclosure agreement, the tutorial and a scheduled break. It is a closed-book, computer-based test offered year-round at Pearson VUE test centers.

What reference material do you get on PE Civil: Structural exam day?

The PE Civil: Structural exam is closed book. NCEES provides an electronic reference on screen (PE Civil Reference Handbook + ASCE 7-16, ACI 318-14, AISC Manual 15th ed., IBC 2018, AASHTO LRFD 8th ed., NDS 2018, TMS 402/602-16, PCI 7th ed., OSHA 29 CFR, for exams through March 2027). NCEES has posted updated design standards for exams from April 2027. No notes, books or references of your own come into the room; you may bring one NCEES-approved calculator, and an on-screen TI-30XS calculator is also available during the exam. Practicing with that same reference in front of you, so you already know where each method lives, is half the preparation.

How much does the PE Civil: Structural exam cost, and can you retake it?

The NCEES fee for the PE Civil: Structural exam is $400, paid per attempt when you register through your MyNCEES account; some state licensing boards also charge their own application fee. NCEES allows one attempt per testing window and no more than three attempts in a 12-month period.

What do I get with PE Civil: Structural on FE → PE Prep?

1,200+ PE Civil: Structural practice questions, every one with a step-by-step worked solution; unlimited full-length timed mock exams weighted to the NCEES blueprint; a 66-concept study handbook, 590+ flashcards, and an AI tutor. Access is a one-time pass for 1, 3, 6 or 12 months — no subscription, no auto-renew — and the free sample questions need no account. Within 7 days, with little or no paid content used, you can ask for a refund, which we consider under the Refund Policy.

Can you help with the PE experience requirement?

Yes — a built-in PE Experience Tracker helps you record and organize the qualifying engineering experience and references your state board needs for licensure, right alongside your exam prep.

Free reading for PE Civil — Structural

No account needed — pass rates, worked problems, and what the exam actually asks.

Free PE Civil — Structural practice problemsReal questions from the bank, with the figures and full worked solutions.Free PE Civil — Structural formula sheet136 key equations by exam topic, each with what it is for and its handbook reference.How hard is the PE Civil exam? Structural vs Transportation vs Water ResourcesNCEES's own pass rates for all five PE Civil depths, what each specification actually weights, and how to pick your depth from the numbers rather than the folklore.Do you need a prep course to pass the FE or PE?Nothing in NCEES's rules asks for one, and the handbook is free. What a course adds, who gains from one, and a ten-problem test to run before paying anyone.Failed the PE exam? Plan the retake from your reportOne attempt per testing window, three in any 12 months. Repeat pass rates for the PE exams we cover, what the NCEES diagnostic report shows, and a free planner built from it.

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