Laying the Foundation: How Clifton Heatlie Took On the Fundamentals of Engineering Exam

In the spring of 2026, Clifton Heatlie, a fourth-year civil engineering major at the University of California, Davis, entered an exam room to take a test that would be pivotal to begin his professional career. A few days later, Heatlie would receive a passing score, encapsulating his four years of hard work.

The Fundamentals of Engineering, or FE, exam is a notable accomplishment for any engineering student who seeks to become licensed and bolster their resume as they enter the working world. First offered in 1965 by the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying, or NCEES, the FE exam initially encompassed only general engineering exam questions before delving into more disciplinary emphasis in the 1990s. 

We spoke with Heatlie about his experience taking the exam, what made him successful and his advice for interested engineering students.

Congratulations on passing the Fundamentals of Engineering exam! What is the FE exam, and why is it important?

The certification is really important for civil engineers, because we have to deal with [a lot of] liability. Civil engineers inherently work on public projects, so our creations are used by the public, and they affect a lot of people. The FE is required to obtain Principles and Practice of Engineering, or PE, licensure, which is what you need to stamp documents. It’s required for civil and environmental engineering majors. 

It is recommended for other engineering majors as well. The Fundamentals of Engineering exam is the minimum requirement to say you are an engineer in training. It is the first step towards getting your professional engineering license, which is what you obtain after years of experience and passing multiple exams in California. 

When should students start to prepare for the FE exam?

I didn't know about it until my third year. I don't think you really have to start thinking about it too much until the start of your third year. You most likely haven't taken the classes yet, and you probably don’t really know the material yet. 

So, I think you should consider taking it any time halfway through your third year to the end of your senior year. Best to have it done before you graduate, because it makes applying for jobs that makes you more competitive. And whenever you start looking at it, I would say start assessing what you know and assessing what you don't know. 

How did you prepare for the FE exam, and what are some FE exam study tips?

I actually planned out my studying. I put it in my Google calendar — what I'm going to study on what days — and made a plan for myself so I wouldn't fall behind. That worked as I started studying a month and a half before the exam. 

I was using the Mark Mattson FE exam prep videos on YouTube. They're free for everyone, and they cover everything in the exam — stuff you've seen before, classes you haven't taken before. They're all very useful for recap and even learning new material. I would say I watched roughly 45 hours of those videos. It's about 16 videos, two hours each. On the weekends and a couple times during the week, I would just watch a couple videos for review. 

Then you should give yourself time to take two or three practice exams. I took two practice exams. One, the actual NCEES exam that they sell, had 55 questions. I was given a practice exam by a friend, which had 100 questions. I would recommend taking a 100-question exam or a 110-question exam. Time yourself and make it feel like the actual process, so you get used to the pressure when you're taking the exam. It also helps to see the type of questions and concepts that appear on the actual exam.

I was studying up until the day before. I wouldn't recommend [this], but I was a little behind on my schedule, so I did, and it was fine. But make sure to get good rest the night before. 

What was the FE exam format like, and how was it?

You get five hours and 20 minutes in two portions. 

First portion, I'd recommend spending two hours and 20 minutes to two hours and 40 minutes on it, but they don't actually stop you, so you have time for it yourself. Make sure to leave yourself enough room for the second portion, because the first portion is your general courses like math, physics and statics. The second portion is more in-depth. It contains structural engineering, geotechnical, water resources, environmental, transportation, surveying and construction. 

It's 55 questions on the first part and 55 questions on the second part, give or take. During the exam, just kind of limit yourself to an average of about three minutes per question. Some are going to be really fast, and others are going to take a little longer. They also give you this 500-page handbook of equations and constants that you can use on the exam. That's your only material, but it has everything in there. About 200-300 pages are civil engineering, and then the rest is chemical engineering, mechanical and environmental engineering.

What makes UC Davis conducive to engineering success? 

I feel like UC Davis is a really good community. Davis is good for engineering because student teams are competitive and involved. The curriculum is designed to give students a well-rounded engineering experience with their specific major.

Was there anything during your time at UC Davis that was surprisingly helpful to you on your exam? 

Being part of the American Society of Civil Engineers, or ASCE, gave me a fundamental concept of what's going on with the ASCE competitive teams. I participated in the water treatment team this year for the environmental project, which helped me understand the sort of things you look at regarding water quality, such as turbidity and effluence, which came up on the exam and maybe otherwise wouldn't have been so natural to me. Any chance I can say to join the ASCE project teams, I will say, because they're awesome!