PE Exam 2026: test dates, format, how to book and free practice tests
The NCEES Principles and Practice of Engineering (PE) exam is the licensing exam for engineers who already have the experience their state board requires. Each discipline is a separate exam, and PE Civil has been five separate exams since April 2024. There is no single PE exam date for PE Civil: it runs year-round at Pearson test centres, and you book your own day through MyNCEES once your board's rules allow it. This guide explains booking, the exam pattern, the PE Civil: Transportation syllabus, the reference changes coming in April 2027, and a plan for the weeks you have left.
PE Civil exam at a glance
| Conducting body | NCEES (National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying) |
| What it is for | One of the requirements state boards use to license a professional engineer |
| Mode | Computer-based, closed book, at an NCEES-approved Pearson test centre |
| Questions | 80 (PE Civil disciplines) |
| Time | 8 hours of exam time in a 9-hour appointment |
| Marking | One point per correct answer; no negative marking, no partial credit |
| Result | Pass or fail, typically 7 to 10 days after the exam |
| Language | English |
| How often | Year-round for the five PE Civil exams |
| Official website | ncees.org/exams/pe-exam/civil |
Test dates and booking
As of 20 October 2026, the NCEES PE Civil page says the five Civil exams (Construction, Geotechnical, Structural, Transportation, and Water Resources and Environmental) are given year-round at NCEES-approved Pearson test centres. You register by logging in to MyNCEES and following the on-screen instructions, then choose an open date.
Two things to know before you plan a date:
- Board approval. Some licensing boards require a separate application and fee before you can book. Check your board first; NCEES does not issue the licence.
- Fee. The NCEES page shows a $400 exam fee, paid to NCEES (checked 20 October 2026). A board may charge its own fee on top.
Some PE disciplines outside Civil are not year-round. The depth exams of PE Structural (a separate exam from PE Civil: Structural) are offered on set dates; their schedule is on the NCEES site.
The NCEES Examinee Guide gives an approved examinee 12 months to test, with at most one attempt in a testing window and three in 12 months, unless the board is stricter.
How to book
- Read your state board's requirements on the NCEES PE Civil page and apply to the board if it asks you to.
- Sign in to MyNCEES and register for your discipline, for example Civil: Transportation.
- Pay the NCEES fee.
- Choose a Pearson test centre and an open date.
- Read the NCEES Examinee Guide for ID, calculator and break rules.
Keep ready: your board approval (if needed), a government photo ID that matches your MyNCEES name, and one approved handheld calculator. A TI-30XS is also available on screen.
Exam pattern
| Part | Time |
|---|---|
| Nondisclosure agreement | 2 minutes |
| Tutorial | 8 minutes |
| Exam (all 80 questions, one clock) | 8 hours |
| Scheduled break | 50 minutes |
- One clock, two halves. About halfway through you review and submit the first half, and you cannot go back to it. Unused break time does not add to the second half, and returning late shortens it.
- Closed book. The searchable NCEES PE Civil Reference Handbook and the design standards named in the specification are on screen.
- Question types. Mostly single-answer multiple choice, plus multiple-correct, numeric entry, point-and-click and drag-and-drop. All are right or wrong.
- No deduction for a wrong answer. Answer everything.
- Units. Both SI and US customary units appear.
Syllabus (PE Civil: Transportation)
| Knowledge area | Questions |
|---|---|
| Project management | 6–9 |
| Traffic engineering | 10–15 |
| Roadside and cross-section design | 7–11 |
| Horizontal design | 8–12 |
| Vertical design | 8–12 |
| Intersection geometry | 7–11 |
| Traffic signals | 5–8 |
| Traffic control design | 5–8 |
| Geotechnical and pavement | 6–9 |
| Drainage | 8–12 |
April 2027 change. The NCEES page lists specifications "effective beginning April 2027" with updated design standards for all five Civil disciplines. For Transportation, the knowledge areas stay as published in April 2024, and three references change: the MEPDG Manual of Practice (3rd edition, August 2022), the Highway Capacity Manual (7th edition, 2022) and the MUTCD (11th edition, 2023). If you will test after April 2027, practise with those editions. Our PE syllabus page lists the subtopics.
A plan for the weeks before your date
The PE is an experience exam: most questions are about applying a design standard quickly. Book a date ten to twelve weeks out and work backwards.
Weeks 1–3: the references. Learn your way around the PE Civil Reference Handbook and the standards for your test date, especially the Highway Capacity Manual, the AASHTO GDHS and the MUTCD. Time spent finding a table on exam day is time lost.
Weeks 4–7: knowledge areas. Work the largest areas first (traffic engineering, horizontal and vertical design, drainage), then the smaller ones. Do timed sets at about 6 minutes per question, which is the exam's average pace (480 minutes for 80 questions).
Weeks 8–10: full mocks. Sit a full PE Civil: Transportation mock test on one 8-hour clock with a submit point at 40 questions. Then spend a day on the review: which knowledge areas, and whether you lost marks to the method, the reference lookup or the arithmetic. Our article on analysing a mock test gives a method.
Last week: light review, check your calculator against the NCEES policy, and confirm ID and test-centre details.
Useful links
- NCEES PE Civil exam page: registration, fee, specifications
- PE Civil: Transportation specification, April 2024 (PDF)
- PE Civil: Transportation specification with April 2027 standards (PDF)
- Free PE Civil: Transportation mock test
- PE exam syllabus
- PE exam dates
- FE exam 2026: test dates, format and how to book
Frequently asked questions
When is the PE Civil exam in 2026?
There is no single date. The five PE Civil exams run year-round at Pearson test centres, and you choose a date in MyNCEES after any board approval you need.
What is the PE exam pass mark?
NCEES does not publish one. Your raw score is converted to a scaled score and compared with a standard set by subject-matter experts. The result is pass or fail, and there is no quota.
Is there negative marking in the PE exam?
No. Each question is one mark if right and zero if wrong or blank, with no partial credit.
Is the PE exam open book?
No. It is closed book, but the PE Civil Reference Handbook and the design standards in the specification are on screen as searchable PDFs.
How many times can I take the PE exam?
The NCEES Examinee Guide allows at most one attempt in a testing window and three in 12 months, within 12 months of approval, unless your board is stricter.
Do I need to pass the FE before the PE?
The FE is the usual first exam on the path, but each board sets its own requirements. Check your board's rules on the NCEES site.