Explore PE Civil Construction Exam Prep Course Options
The PE Civil Construction exam tests your base level understanding of civil construction engineering principles. It’s designed for professionals with at least four years of post-college work experience, and is one of the final steps you’ll take before earning your PE license.About the Live Online PE Civil Construction Course Bundle
New! Updated for the April 2024 Exam.
Updated to April 2024 exam specifications! Live Online courses are intended for those taking their PE Civil exam under the new April 2024 exam specifications. If you are looking for an instructor-guided review (with a passing guarantee!) for your NCEES PE Civil Construction Exam, the Live Online Course Bundle is for you.
PPI has recently revamped the instructional slides, the Qbank, and practice exams to add even greater content coverage and additional references to the closed book resources.
Why Enroll in a Course Now?
- Monthly Payment Options: Pay off your course over 3, 6, or 12 months with our convenient Affirm payment plans.
- Risk-Free Enrollment: We offer Risk-Free Enrollment should you need to transfer or cancel your enrollment because you are not able to sit for your exam.
- Secure Your Spot: Courses fill up fast! By enrolling now, you don’t have to worry about your course potentially being full closer to the start date.
What Sets PPI Apart?
- Our eLearning platform. The easy-to-navigate interface, exam-like features, and expert design of our new eLearning platform give you the best possible exam prep experience.
- Brand new courses for the CBT exam. Our PE Civil prep courses are brand new and fully prepare you to pass the PE Civil CBT closed-book exam.
- Our reputation as leaders in FE and PE exam prep. We have been preparing engineers for their FE and PE exams since 1975. Our courses are high quality and based on decades of experience.
- Instruction from professional engineers. Learn directly from industry experts with a unique mix of lectures, problem-solving demonstrations, exam strategy sessions, and office hours.
- Complete coverage of every topic on the NCEES PE Civil Construction Exam. Our lectures, course materials, and homework assignments thoroughly cover every topic you’ll see on exam day.
- Access to prep materials before and after your course. Start preparing right away with early access to study tools, plus access your course for one additional month after it ends to ensure you can study up to your exam date.
- Structured schedules that span 4 to 6 months. We want to ensure you can properly retain information and allow enough time for homework. With our decades of instructional design experience, you don't have to worry about “cramming” for your exam.
- The right amount of trusted exam prep materials designed to help you pass. We provide you with all the materials you need and nothing that you don’t. You'll receive reference materials, homework assignments, detailed class notes (plus NCEES handbook), as well as access to online quizzes, practice exams, flashcards, and more.
- Prep materials that are always updated. Our content is always updated to the most current NCEES exam specifications and codes.
- A passing guarantee. When you take a Live Online course, we guarantee you will pass, or you can take the OnDemand course for free.
Live Online Lecture Demo
Learning Platform Demo
What's Included:
Updated to the new NCEES April 2024 exam specifications
Interact with your instructor and other classmates during live online lectures. Live lectures on scheduled dates/times help provide structure throughout your course.
Connect with your instructor on discussion forums and by email. Your instructor is an expert with years of real-world professional experience and is here to guide you every step of the way.
Live office hours, strategically placed in the schedule, provide time for additional Q&A and problem solving with your instructor.
Updated to the new NCEES April 2024 exam specifications
All live online lectures are recorded and posted the next day for additional viewing in case you are unable to attend, or want to re-watch an important topic.
Interact with your classmates on forums and live lecture chats to discuss your exam prep experiences and talk through exam topics.
New Videos Available! Watch new, bite-sized video lectures to help understand key concepts for the exam.
Upon registration for your course, you will gain instant access to OnDemand lectures to get your exam prep started.
All presentation slides are downloadable, providing you the opportunity to take notes as you follow along with your instructor.
Updated to the new NCEES April 2024 exam specifications
The course syllabus and homework assignments help you stay on track and reinforce key concepts.
Proven test-taking and time-management tips from your instructor are provided throughout your course to prepare you for exam-day success.
Updated to the new NCEES April 2024 exam specifications
Create custom quizzes from a database of hundreds of exam-like problems to master problem-solving skills for each topic.
Updated to the new NCEES April 2024 exam specifications
Practice with two full NCEES-like exam simulations - with unique sets of problems.
Study key knowledge areas with access to review manuals that are current to exam specs, follow NCEES exam guidelines, and have helped over 4 million achieve licensure.
Michael R. Lindeburg, PE's PE Civil Practice Problems, 16th Edition web book offers the most comprehensive practice on the market for the PE Civil exam. Containing over 900 exam-like problems covering breadth and depth topics, this web book features easy-to-follow, step-by-step solutions, and is designed to reinforce your knowledge of the topics presented in the PE Civil Reference Manual to build exam day confidence.
Updated to the new NCEES April 2024 exam specifications
Begin your studies efficiently by assessing your knowledge of NCEES exam topics. Use this information to focus your studies.Purchase Options
May - August Course
If you are looking for an in-depth and instructor-guided review for your PE exam, the PPI Live Online Course Bundle is for you. We leverage over 45 years of exam prep experience, offering you a thorough review of every NCEES PE Civil Construction exam topic. Our professional engineers have real-world experience and will guide you through each step of your exam prep. Utilizing your live instructor, a community of other students, and the bounty of PE study resources included, this is the best possible path to pass your exam the first time.
July - December Course
If you are looking for an in-depth and instructor-guided review for your PE exam, the PPI Live Online Course Bundle is for you. We leverage over 45 years of exam prep experience, offering you a thorough review of every NCEES PE Civil Construction exam topic. Our professional engineers have real-world experience and will guide you through each step of your exam prep. Utilizing your live instructor, a community of other students, and the bounty of PE study resources included, this is the best possible path to pass your exam the first time.
September - December Course
We leverage 50+ years of exam prep experience when designing our Live Online Course Bundle, offering you a thorough review of every NCEES exam topic. Our professional engineers have real-world experience and will guide you through each step of your exam prep. Your live online review covers all NCEES PE Civil Construction exam topics.
- Instruction from professional engineers. Includes 70+ hours of lectures, problem-solving demonstrations, exam strategy sessions, and office hours.
- Trusted exam prep materials designed to help you pass. You'll receive reference materials, homework assignments, detailed class notes plus NCEES handbook, as well as access to PPI’s Learning Hub for quizzes, practice exams, flashcards, and more.
- A passing guarantee. When you take a Live Online course, we guarantee you will pass, or you can take the OnDemand course for free.
About the OnDemand PE Civil Construction Course Bundle
New! Updated for the April 2024 Exam.
Updated to April 2024 exam specifications! This OnDemand Course Bundle was created to help you study at your own pace, but also choose the course time frame that works best for you. We leverage 50 years of PE exam prep experience when designing our OnDemand courses, offering you a thorough review of every NCEES PE Civil Construction exam topic. Our professional engineers have real-world experience and will guide you through each step of your exam prep. Choose between the 3-month, 6-month, or 1-year options. Our courses have been completely updated to prepare you for the closed-book PE Civil CBT exam.
Your PPI OnDemand course comes with:
- Current and up-to-date content. Our PE Civil prep courses fully prepare you to pass the PE Civil CBT closed-book exam.
- Instruction from professional engineers. Includes 45+ hours of recorded lectures, problem-solving demonstrations, and exam strategy sessions.
- Trusted exam prep materials designed to help you pass. You'll receive reference materials, homework assignments, detailed class notes, and access to PPI's Learning Hub.
- PPI’s Learning Hub with a study plan, practice exams, quiz generator, and so much more!
Access Time
Access to your OnDemand Course begins immediately upon purchase. For 3-month, 6-month, and 1-year courses, access ends automatically at the end of your chosen duration. For monthly and weekly courses, access renews monthly or weekly until you cancel the subscription.
What's Included:
New Videos Available! Watch new, bite-sized video lectures to help understand key concepts for the exam.
Upon registration for your course, you will gain instant access to OnDemand lectures to get your exam prep started.
All presentation slides are downloadable, providing you the opportunity to take notes as you follow along with your instructor.
Updated to the new NCEES April 2024 exam specifications
The course syllabus and homework assignments help you stay on track and reinforce key concepts.
Proven test-taking and time-management tips from your instructor are provided throughout your course to prepare you for exam-day success.
Updated to the new NCEES April 2024 exam specifications
Practice with two full NCEES-like exam simulations - with unique sets of problems.
Study key knowledge areas with access to review manuals that are current to exam specs, follow NCEES exam guidelines, and have helped over 4 million achieve licensure.
Michael R. Lindeburg, PE's PE Civil Practice Problems, 16th Edition web book offers the most comprehensive practice on the market for the PE Civil exam. Containing over 900 exam-like problems covering breadth and depth topics, this web book features easy-to-follow, step-by-step solutions, and is designed to reinforce your knowledge of the topics presented in the PE Civil Reference Manual to build exam day confidence.
Updated to the new NCEES April 2024 exam specifications
Begin your studies efficiently by assessing your knowledge of NCEES exam topics. Use this information to focus your studies.Updated to the new NCEES April 2024 exam specifications
Create custom quizzes from a database of hundreds of exam-like problems to master problem-solving skills for each topic.
Purchase Options
New PE Civil Exam
Study at your own pace with PPI’s OnDemand Prep Course. Our OnDemand courses contain the same great learning content from our Learning Hub offering, plus hours of OnDemand lecture recording to help you thoroughly understand every topic on the exam.
PE Civil Construction Prep Course Overview:
- Provides focused review of all topics on the NCEES PE Civil Construction exam for all topics
- Includes 45+ hours of lectures, problem solving demonstrations, exam strategy sessions, and office hours
- Gives you everything you need to pass—from reference materials to homework assignments to detailed class note
Benefits Include:
- Watch lectures and problem solving demonstrations on your own schedule
- Stay on track with structured and focused reading and problem assignments
- Download presentation slides for easy note-taking
- Assess your exam readiness with digital resources in the PPI Learning Hub
- Learn tips and tricks for how to use your Casio FX-115 ES Plus Calculator
- Hone your test-taking and time management skills
This course is a monthly renewing subscription that will automatically renew each month until canceled.
About the Self-Study: Learning Hub and Print Bundle
New! Updated for the April 2024 Exam.
Updated to April 2024 exam specifications! The Learning Hub and Print Bundle is perfect for those who need a refresher before the exam. The review materials in this bundle are updated to the current exam specs, contain thorough coverage of civil engineering principles and codes, and include numerous practice problems to challenge your knowledge of the concepts. This curated bundle includes CERM, the #1 reference manual in the industry, practice problems, and the most realistic practice exams on the market. PPI’s time-tested, detailed instructional design provides you with the most efficient and effective practice available.
PPI Learning Hub is the go-to destination for PE Civil exam prep. The Learning Hub is more than an eLearning platform—it is a time-tested program that guides examinees through their exam prep from start to finish. Our philosophy has a simple framework: kick-off your studies with a personalized PPI Study Plan, then “Assess, Review, Practice” until you are ready for exam day.
PPI Learning Hub is ideal if you need to review key knowledge areas and would like extensive practice to be part of your exam preparation.
Access Time
Access to Learning Hub begins immediately upon purchase. For 3-month, 6-month, and 1-year Learning Hub products, access ends automatically at the end of your chosen duration. For monthly and weekly Learning Hub products, access renews monthly or weekly until you cancel the subscription.
What's Included:
Updated to the new NCEES April 2024 exam specifications
Practice with two full NCEES-like exam simulations - with unique sets of problems.
Study key knowledge areas with access to review manuals that are current to exam specs, follow NCEES exam guidelines, and have helped over 4 million achieve licensure.
Michael R. Lindeburg, PE's PE Civil Practice Problems, 16th Edition web book offers the most comprehensive practice on the market for the PE Civil exam. Containing over 900 exam-like problems covering breadth and depth topics, this web book features easy-to-follow, step-by-step solutions, and is designed to reinforce your knowledge of the topics presented in the PE Civil Reference Manual to build exam day confidence.
Updated to the new NCEES April 2024 exam specifications
Begin your studies efficiently by assessing your knowledge of NCEES exam topics. Use this information to focus your studies.Updated to the new NCEES April 2024 exam specifications
Create custom quizzes from a database of hundreds of exam-like problems to master problem-solving skills for each topic.
Purchase Options
New PE Civil Exam
This monthly renewing subscription is the ideal choice if you are seeking flexibility or do not know when your exam date is quite yet.
PE Civil Construction Learning Hub Includes:
- PE Civil Construction Study Learning Path Calendar acts as a central hub, assigning tasks and connecting directly to digital products, to keep you on track for your exam date.
- Diagnostic Exams in each knowledge area with exam-like questions that will test your knowledge and assess your skill level.
- Michael R. Lindeburg, PE’s PE Civil Reference Manual Web Book offers comprehensive review in key exam topics. It follows NCEES exam topics and is up-to-date with current exam design standards.
- Michael R. Lindeburg, PE’s PE Civil Practice Problems Web Book contains over 900 exam-like problems with easy-to-follow, step-by-step solutions. It is paired with the PE Civil Reference Manual Web Book so that you can solve questions side-by-side with the relevant reading materials.
- Construction Depth Reference Manual for the Civil PE Exam Web Book covers all of the discipline-specific topics with example problems to demonstrate the application of concepts and equations.
- Qbank lets examinees create custom quizzes with unique problems from a database of over 500 problems to master problem-solving skills for each topic.
- Two Full Civil PE Practice Exams each with 80 multiple-choice problems consistent with NCEES exam format, scope of topics, number of problems, and level of difficulty.
Additional Features:
- Performance reports that let you track your weakness and strengths for each section
- Take your review on-the- go with access anytime, anywhere on your computer, tablet, or phone
This subscription is for 1 month and begins on the date of purchase. It will renew each month until canceled.
Class Options for the Live Online Course Bundle
Expand the list below to show all available Live Online class dates and information.
PE Civil Construction Exam Details
- The PE Civil Construction exam is one of the last steps you’ll take before earning your PE license. It’s a closed-book, computer-based exam and includes 80 questions. The exam appointment is 9 hours long and includes:
- Nondisclosure agreement (2 minutes)
- Tutorial (8 minutes)
- Exam (8 hours)
- Optional scheduled break (50 minutes)
- The only resources you will have on exam day are digital versions of the NCEES PE Civil Reference Handbook and design standards.
- The exam is administered year-round at NCEES-approved Pearson VUE test centers.
- The average pass rate of a first-time taker of the PE Civil Construction exam is 55% as of July 2024.*
- The exam fee is $400.
Prerequisites and requirements before taking the exam vary by state. Visit the NCEES website for more information.
Topics covered include:
Civil Breadth
- Layout and control (e.g., staking, benchmarks, elevations)
- Basic horizontal and vertical curve elements (e.g., middle ordinate, length, chord, radius)
- Site investigations (e.g., adjacent structures and properties, utilities)
- Soil, rock, and aggregates (e.g., boring log interpretation, classification, strength, permeability, compressibility)
- Concrete (e.g., mix design, admixtures, proportioning)
- Steel (e.g., structural, reinforcement, prestressed)
- Wood (e.g., sawn, engineered)
- Stormwater collection and drainage (e.g., open-channel flow, culvert, storm sewer, watersheds)
- Storm characteristics and runoff analysis (e.g., rational and SCS/NRCS methods, types of flow, flow characteristics, hydrographic application, erosion control, runoff time of concentration, storm frequency, rainfall measurement and distribution)
- Detention/retention ponds
- Loads (e.g., dead, live, construction, wind, preloading)
- Statics and stresses (e.g., bending, shear, axial, combined, deflection)
- Structural members (e.g., beams, columns, one-way slabs)
- Structural systems (e.g., foundations, retaining walls, trusses, frames, two-way slabs, slab-on-grade)
- Lateral earth pressure
- Soil consolidation and settlement
- Effective and total stresses
- Bearing capacity
- Slope stability
- Construction sequencing
- Activity time analysis
- Project schedule analysis (e.g., network analysis, critical path method, linear schedules)
- Resource scheduling and leveling
- Time–cost trade-off
Construction Depth
- OSHA construction and industry regulations and safety management
- Work zone and public safety including maintenance of traffic
- Formwork
- Falsework and scaffolding
- Shoring and reshoring
- Bracing and anchorage
- Support of excavation
- Construction loads on permanent structures (e.g., erection analysis, equipment loading)
- Material test methods and specification conformance
- Weld and bolt installation
- Quality control process (QA/QC)
- Concrete placement
- Concrete maturity and early strength evaluation
- Compaction (e.g., soils, asphalt, aggregates)
- Lifting and rigging
- Cranes (e.g., stability, outrigger loads, lifting capacity, crane types)
- Dewatering and pumping
- Equipment selection and operations
- Deep foundation installation
- Excavation and embankment (e.g., cut and fill analysis, borrow pit volume, haul distances)
- Quantity take-off methods
- Cost estimating
- Engineering economic analysis (e.g., cost analysis for resource selection, break-even, net-present value, life-cycle costing)
- Work measurement and productivity (e.g., earned value)
For more information on the exam specifications, please visit NCEES.
Looking for Additional PE Civil Construction Exam Prep Products?
Featured Instructors
Josh has a broad range of experience. He is currently a licensed structural engineer and Project Manager for a premier structural engineering firm, Dunn Associates, Inc., located in Salt Lake City, Utah which specializes in building design. He has worked on numerous building projects that do not fit typical design standards and loves every minute of it.
After graduating with a bachelor’s degree from Brigham Young University and a master’s degree from the University of California, Davis in Civil Engineering he went on to help open up a new office for his previous firm. While in Los Angeles, California he prepared for the PE exam. He passed the Civil PE Exam (Structural Depth) along with the California Specific Exams (Seismic and Surveying), and he wants you to pass too!
She has over six years of experience in construction engineering, surveying, hydrology and hydraulics, geometry control and site development for residential, commercial and public works projects. Elena holds a professional engineer license in the State of California.
PE Civil Construction Exam FAQs
To register for the new option for the construction depth exam, you will need to select the "Construction - Design and Construction of Buildings and Structures" option when you register for the exam.
PPI is launching new courses in January 2024 to respond to these changes. The new courses contain:
- New qbank questions to increase topic coverage of the exams.
- New instructional materials for the live class to ensure thorough coverage of topics.
- Revamped practice exams and diagnostic exams to match the content of the new exams.
- A new learning path that is focused on the topic coverage of the new exams.
- For PE Civil Structural and PE Civil Construction, all design standards have been updated to the new design standards such as IBC 2018.
No, the PE Civil exam is now a closed-book CBT exam. October 2021 was the last exam in the open-book format. In 2022, the exam transitioned to a closed book Computer-Based Test (CBT) that is available to take year-round. You will not be able to bring any books into the exam. Your only reference will be an electronic reference supplied by NCEES.
You should consider taking the exam on or after April 2024 if these situations apply to you:
- You previously took the exam and performed better on the afternoon or depth topics.
- You have a lot of experience as a practicing engineer and would be best able to take an exam that is specific to one discipline.
- You have not yet started studying for your exam and will need approximately six months to study. Taking the exam after April 2024 will give you adequate time to study for the exam.
You should consider taking the on or before March 2024 if these situations apply to you:
- You are a recent graduate who has a lot of knowledge about different breadth topics as well as depth topics.
- You have already started studying and are ready to take your exam before March 2024.
- You already took the exam and performed better on the morning or breadth portion of the exam.
If you are taking the exam on or before March 2024, PPI’s OnDemand or Learning Hub materials are still available for your study. These cover all breadth and depth topics for the exam prior to the exam change. You will not need to worry about the exam changes if you are taking the exam prior to April.
Pass rates for the last PE Civil Construction exam were:
- First-time test takers: 61%
- Repeat test takers: 35%
- Earthwork Construction and Layout
- Estimating Quantities and Costs
- Construction Operations and Methods
- Scheduling
- Material Quality Control and Production
- Temporary Structures
- Health and Safety
The exam will still consist of 80 questions. The new exam will be focused on discipline-specific topics, so the number of questions per topic will increase.
Similar closed-book references will still be available. For PE Civil Structural, the design standards are changing to IBC 2018.
For the PE Civil Water Resources and Environmental exam specifically, there have been fewer changes to the exam compared to other exam disciplines. A few breadth topics are still in that particular exam.
Certain codes and design standards will need to be obtained from the respective code publishers. PPI refers to closed-book references throughout our own study materials; however, due to copyright, PPI is not able to provide the design standards or codes themselves.
NCEES provides a Reference Handbook free of charge. To download for personal use, navigate to ncees.org and select ”MyNCEES”. You will need to create an account with NCEES to receive the Handbook. PPI does not publish the NCEES Handbook, but we do have the capability to view questions side-by-side with your own personal copy of the Handbook.
If you are deciding between two PE Civil disciplines, such as choosing between Construction and Transportation, you should consider which exam you are more likely to pass based on your experience. Take a look at the exam topics for each and consider which you are more familiar with. Another consideration is where you would like to focus on for your future career. If there is one discipline you are more interested in for your future career, prioritize taking that discipline’s exam.