Skip to content
Civil Engineering Academy
  • About
    • About Us
    • CEA Partners
    • Join Our Newsletter
    • Contact
  • Practice Exams
    • FE Civil Exam
    • PE Civil Exam
    • Certified Floodplain Manager Exam
    • PE Environmental Exam
    • Exams Errata
  • Review Courses
    • Civil FE Review Course
    • Civil PE Review Courses
    • Floodplain Manager Review Course
    • CA Seismic Review Course
    • CA Survey Review Course
    • SE Review Course
  • Resources
    • The CEA Podcast
    • CEA Blog
    • CEA Quick Tip Videos
    • Approved Calculators
    • Civil FE Resources
    • Civil PE Resources
      • Construction
      • Geotechnical
      • Structural
      • Transportation
      • Water Resources
    • CA Seismic Resources
    • FE and PE Study Groups
    • PE Stamp & CEU’s
  • Practice Problems
    • Civil FE
    • Civil PE Construction
    • Civil PE Structural
    • Civil PE Transportation
    • Civil PE Geotechnical
    • Civil PE Water Resources
    • Floodplain Manager Exam
Menu

Blog

Top 5 Things to Do After Taking the Civil PE Exam | Civil Engineering Academy

Posted in Blog

Top 5 Things to Do After Taking the Civil PE Exam

Top 5 Things to Do After Taking the Civil PE Exam

There you are - you've just taken, quite possibly, the hardest exam in your life.  You've sweated it out, studied for months, sacrificed time, family, and all kinds of fun stuff you wanted to do.  All to take an exam.  You never want to see the word PE and Exam again in the same sentence.  

After 8 hours of grueling test taking and number crunching you're ready for a break.  What do you do? What' the first thing civil engineers do after wrapping up this massive milestone in their life?  You might be surprised and you might not.  Either way, today we are going to break down the top 5 things civil engineers do after just finishing the civil PE exam.  Let's check it out.

More...

Relax

This one has to be obvious, right?  You are brain dead and you deserve to decompress and relax.  Because this is a given we won't dwell on it.  You know what to do.  In fact, I'm sure all of these have to do with relaxing in your own way.  Let's move on.

Netflix Binge

You've put off your favorite shows for weeks, maybe even months.  It's time to catch up!  Take your brain off of exam mode and binge your favorite shows.  Does anyone like Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events?  It's good - check it out.

via GIPHY

Family Time

Your family has been neglected for months.  Yes, you've been around, but it's been a shadow of yourself and now it's time to up your game and get back to spending time with the wife and kids.  If you don't have those then I'm sure you have other family that would like to see your face.  In fact, many of them have sacrificed so you can have your time to study.  Think of some fun ways to pay them back and spend some time together.

Exercise

Look, we didn't want to say it but we will.  You've been sitting on your butt for months.  When this exam is over its time to get the body moving.  If running isn't your thing then go take a 30 minute walk every day.  It keeps your mind in a good spot.  Go hit the gym and start getting those endorphins flowing.  Exercising isn't just good physically but it's good for your mind and your soul.  Get out there and move. 

via GIPHY

Vacation

There's nothing that says 'relaxing' quite like a nice vacation.  Putting off that trip to Bora Bora?  Or maybe it is just a place close to home?  Either way, you deserve a nice vacation.  I promise you're family will love it and you'll love it too.

To Be Continued?

Wait a minute.  What if I fail the exam!  What if I have to take it again?!  Well, that's a possibility, but you've already put in a TON of time into studying and taking the exam.  Let yourself have a break.  The results won't come in the mail for about 8 weeks.  If you have to take it again you'll end up doing the same things after the exam anyway.  So get out there and give yourself a break after the civil PE exam.  You deserve it.

What do you think?  What did you do after the PE exam?  Let us know on twitter or shoot us an email at [email protected]!

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

keep up with us

@theceacademy
Ready to crush your FE or PE this year? Ready to crush your FE or PE this year?
Want to build stronger relationships—at work and a Want to build stronger relationships—at work and at home?

Try the power of the 3 C’s:
✔️ Congratulate
✔️ Compliment
✔️ Console

It’s simple, but it sticks. Whether you're leading a team, working with clients, or just being a better human—these three habits go a long way.

Master this, and you'll naturally become a better coworker, leader, friend, and entrepreneur.

Relationships drive results. Start with the 3 C’s.
From the Stage to the Exam Room: What James and th From the Stage to the Exam Room: What James and the Giant Peach Taught Me About the FE and PE

Today, I got to watch my daughter shine in her school play (OK it was just a practice), James and the Giant Peach. She crushed it (yes, I'm a proud dad), and while I was there, something clicked.

Every performance like this takes weeks of rehearsal, repetition, and nerves. It's all about showing up, putting in the work, and eventually stepping out under the lights, even if you're not 100% sure how it'll go.

Kind of like preparing for the FE or PE exam, right?

You don’t pass these exams by luck. You pass them by practicing the problems, knowing your lines (aka the equations), and having the guts to show up and give it your best—even when the nerves hit.

So whether you're studying late nights or heading into your first attempt (or third!), remember this: progress takes practice—and you’re not alone in the performance.

Break a leg.

#FEExam #PEExam #DadLife
Ever thought of building buildings overseas for th Ever thought of building buildings overseas for the US Government? 🤔 That’s one route you can take as a civil engineer as well! Here’s John Pitts, P.E., PMP, on what it’s like to do exactly that!
  • ABOUT
  • COURSES
  • PRACTICE EXAMS
  • PODCAST
  • FREE RESOURCES
  • VIDEOS
  • CONTACT
Civil Engineering Academy

Stay connected with CEA and crush your exam and career goals

    Civil Engineering Academy
    • Twitter
    • linkedin
    • Insta
    • youtube
    • FB
    © 2026 CEA all rights reserved | Privacy Policy | Terms of Use | want a website like mine? check out Brandup
    Manage Consent
    To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
    Functional Always active
    The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
    Preferences
    The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
    Statistics
    The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
    Marketing
    The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
    • Manage options
    • Manage services
    • Manage {vendor_count} vendors
    • Read more about these purposes
    View preferences
    • {title}
    • {title}
    • {title}