FE Exam

The Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) Exam is required of all Integrated Design Engineering students in order to graduate.

Important Steps

Plan ahead! As the May and November dates are close to the end of the semester, which may interfere with your ability to adequately prepare, you may want to take the FE exam earlier.

Attend our info session: This takes place in the spring semester and is geared toward juniors (but all are welcome). It is guided by people who have taken the FE; discusses logistics and what to expect on the test; and provides time for questions.

Prepare using our Canvas page: This page goes through logistics and includes review problems for the test.

Register for the FE Exam at least 3-4 months ahead of time, before spaces fill up, especially if you want to take a Saturday exam.

FE Quick Links

In order to take the FE exam you must bring a physical form of valid identification. Digital and expired IDs are not accepted.

  1. Log onto the to register and pay for the exam. The cost is $225.
  2. Find the
  3. Log onto the .
  4. Click Applications, then select - License by Exam and Endorsement (Apply Online). Complete the student application (EI Student application). The cost is $30.
  5. ​Bring or email yourIDE advisor your confirmation/receipt showing that you applied and paid for the exam.
  6. You will receive an “approval” email from NCEES once they have verified that you are approved by the state (DORA) to sit for the FE exam.
  7. Once you receive the “approval” email from NCEES, log back into your NCEES account on the NCEES website to register for a particular testing site, and the date/time to sit for the test. You will then receive an appointment confirmation.
    • NCEES administers the FE exam throughout the year at one of several approved Pearson VUE testing centers.
  8. Forward your NCEES appointment confirmation toIDE.advising@colorado.edu, to show that you scheduled the exam.

Frequently Asked Questions

You can take whichever FE test you prefer. For example, if your IDE emphasis is Mechanical Engineering, you can sign up for the Mechanical Engineering exam or the Other Disciplines exam.

You should look at the topics on the Other Disciplines exam and your emphasis (e.g., Civil Engineering) and calculate your best chance to pass. IDE has created a spreadsheet to help you decide, which can be found in our FE Exam Prep Canvas site. IDE students are automatically enrolled in the IDE FE Exam Prep Canvas site in the spring before their final year. If you’d like to be enrolled sooner, please emailIDE.advising@colorado.edu.

First, download a copy of the FE Reference Handbook from the Then review the topics that will be covered on the exam that you selected. Many IDE instructors have embedded example FE-style questions in our courses. IDE students are automatically enrolled in the IDE FE Exam Prep Canvas site in the spring before their final year. If you’d like to be enrolled sooner, please emailIDE.advising@colorado.edu.

More information on preparing for the FE exam.

Passing the FE exam sets you on the path to become a licensed professional engineer. The best time to take and successfully pass the exam is when the breadth of topics covered is fresh in your mind (such as calculus!). You don’t know where your career will take you - passing the FE exam will give you maximum flexibility in the future. The IDE program also uses the FE exam results as part of our accreditation.