FE Chemical exam, checked against the current spec
FE Chemical is the Fundamentals of Engineering exam for chemical engineers: 110 questions in 5 h 20 min of exam time, graded pass/fail and written to the July 2020 specification. Passing it leads to EI/EIT certification from your state board, the first step toward a PE license.
Engineer intern (EI) or engineer-in-training (EIT) certification from a state boardNCEES writes and scores the exam; the state licensing board issues the EI/EIT certificate.
NCEES: FE exam · NCEES Examinee Guide, May 2026 (PDF) [1][2]
Questions
110 questionsIncludes unscored pretest questions that are not marked.
NCEES: FE exam · NCEES Examinee Guide, May 2026 (PDF) [1][2]
Exam time
5 hours 20 minutes
NCEES: FE exam · NCEES Examinee Guide, May 2026 (PDF) [1][2]
Appointment
6 hoursNondisclosure agreement 2 min, tutorial 8 min, exam 5 h 20 min, scheduled break 25 min (the guide table sums it as 5 h 55 min).
NCEES: FE exam · NCEES Examinee Guide, May 2026 (PDF) [1][2]
Delivery
Computer-based at Pearson VUE test centersNo online or at-home option.
NCEES: FE exam · NCEES Examinee Guide, May 2026 (PDF) [1][2]
Units
SI and USCS
NCEES: FE Chemical specifications, July 2020 (PDF) [3]
Reference supplied
FE Reference Handbook, on screen as a searchable PDFThe current version is free in your MyNCEES account; on exam day search with the box on the left (Ctrl+F does not work); no personal copies.
NCEES Examinee Guide, May 2026 (PDF) · NCEES: FE exam [1][2]
Exam fee
$225 to NCEESFor each attempt, registrations from January 1, 2024 ($175 before).
NCEES: FE exam · NCEES Examinee Guide, May 2026 (PDF) · NCEES: new exam prices effective January 1, 2024 [1][2][4]
First-time pass rate
68%First-time takers from EAC/ABET programs within 12 months of graduation, Jan–Jun 2026 (743 takers; NCEES table updated July 2026).
July 2020 editionNo FE change appears in the NCEES notice of July 20, 2026, which lists exam changes through fall 2027; NCEES gives boards at least one year of notice.
NCEES: FE Chemical specifications, July 2020 (PDF) · NCEES memo to member boards, July 20, 2026: changes through fall 2027 (PDF, Virginia board copy) [3][5]
PE exams in this field
PE ChemicalPE exams NCEES offers in this field (examinee guide exam table).
The specification gives each area a range of questions, not a percentage. Material/Energy Balances is the largest at 10–15 questions, and four more sit at 8–12: fluids, thermodynamics, heat transfer and mass transfer. Mathematics, statistics, economics and ethics appear on every FE discipline’s outline, so each has one page for the whole site.
What changed:The July 2020 outline replaced the January 2014 one, dropped Computational Tools, renamed Chemistry to Chemistry and Biology, split Process Design and Economics in two, added Solids Handling and raised Material/Energy Balances from 8–12 to 10–15. A study guide that still lists "Process Design and Economics" as one area, or a Computational Tools section, was written for the January 2014 specification.
Do chemical engineers need the FE?
Only if your license path or your employer asks for it. The exam is written and scored by NCEES, but the state board decides who may sit and what a PE license requires, and the employer decides whether a role needs a licensed engineer. NCEES does not say which chemical engineering jobs need one.
Who may sit:Set by your state board; the exam is designed for students close to finishing and recent graduates of EAC/ABET-accredited engineering programs. First sittings go far better: first-time takers passed at 68% in fiscal 2025, repeat takers at 35% (pass rate).
The licensing exam that follows in the same field is PE Chemical. It has no pages here yet; for the steps in between, see how to become a PE.
Chemical or Other Disciplines?
FE Other Disciplines is the general exam for degrees without their own FE. It is not a softer option for a chemical engineer: its first-time pass rate was 61% in Jan–Jun 2026 against 68% here, and it gives 9–14 questions each to statics, dynamics and strength of materials, subjects FE Chemical touches only inside Engineering Sciences (4–6 questions).
The NCEES FE page also splits that rate by degree program, 41–83% in the same half-year. NCEES lists only degrees with more than 25 first-time takers, and chemical engineering is not among them. Check your board’s rules before you register.
Side by side with FE Other Disciplines
Checked Oct 29, 2026. Sources are numbered and listed under Source notes.
Attribute
5FE Chemical
FE Other Disciplines
Source
Checked
First-time pass rateLatest half-year on the NCEES exam page. FE: first-time takers from EAC/ABET programs within 12 months of graduation. PE: all first-time takers under member boards.
68%First-time takers from EAC/ABET programs within 12 months of graduation, Jan–Jun 2026 (743 takers; NCEES table updated July 2026).
61%First-time takers from EAC/ABET programs within 12 months of graduation, Jan–Jun 2026 (921 takers; NCEES table updated July 2026).
Question 1 of 4 · Mass Transfer and Separation · 8–12 items
The McCabe-Thiele method for distillation column design assumes:
Solution
McCabe-Thiele: constant molar overflow (equal molar latent heats, negligible heat of mixing and heat loss) → L and V constant per section → straight operating lines on the x-y diagram.
McCabe-Thiele uses a fixed reflux ratio for each construction; the operating lines are drawn for one R.
Equal molar heats of vaporization make liquid and vapor flows constant in each section, so the operating lines are straight.
The method works with any equilibrium curve, ideal or not; non-ideality is not an assumption.
Constant α is not required: the equilibrium curve can be drawn from any data, which is the method's strength.
Question 2 of 4 · Heat Transfer · 8–12 items
A heat exchanger has a fouling factor of 0.0002 (m²·K)/W on both the hot and cold sides. If the clean heat transfer coefficient would be 400 W/(m²·K), what is the actual overall heat transfer coefficient?
476.2 subtracts the two fouling resistances from 1/Uclean instead of adding them (1/400 − 0.0004).
400.0 is the clean coefficient; fouling always lowers U.
370.4 counts the fouling resistance on one side only; the factor applies to both the hot and the cold side.
1/U = 1/400 + 0.0002 + 0.0002 = 0.0029 m2·K/W, so U = 344.8 W/(m2·K).
Question 3 of 4 · Process Control · 4–6 items
In cascade control, what is the relationship between the primary and secondary controllers?
Solution
Cascade: primary controller (e.g. reactor temperature) → set point of secondary controller (e.g. jacket temperature or coolant flow) → valve. The inner loop corrects its disturbances before they reach the primary variable.
Cascade nests the loops: the primary (master) controller's output becomes the set point of the faster secondary (slave) loop.
The secondary controller moves the final element to hold the secondary variable; it reaches the primary variable only through the process.
Adjusting another controller's gain is gain scheduling or adaptive control, not cascade.
In cascade the two controllers are nested, not independent; the outer one drives the inner one.
Question 4 of 4 · Chemistry and Biology · 7–11 items
A saturated solution of CaF2 is prepared at 25 °C, and the measured concentration of Ca2+ is 1.2 × 10−4 M. Assuming the dissolution CaF2 → Ca2+ + 2F−, what is the solubility product Ksp of CaF2?
Given
Measured concentration [Ca2+] = 1.2×10−4 M
Dissolution CaF2 → Ca2+ + 2F−
Find
Solubility product Ksp
Solution
s = [Ca2+] = 1.2 × 10−4 M, [F−] = 2s = 2.4 × 10−4 M
Ksp = s(2s)2 = 4s3 = 6.91 × 10−12
5.76 × 10−8 is [F−]2 alone; it still has to be multiplied by [Ca2+].
2.88 × 10−8 forgets to square the fluoride term: s × 2s.
A pass gets you EI/EIT certification from your board; the PE comes after supervised experience and a second exam. For the board-by-board sequence, read how to become a PE and EIT certification; FE vs PE puts the two exams side by side.
Everything on FE Chemical
FE Chemical practice testProblems weighted like the July 2020 Chemical outline, every option explained
How long is the Chemical exam, in questions and hours?
110 questions, some of them unscored pretest items that are not marked. Exam time is 5 h 20 min inside a 6 h appointment.
What share of chemical engineers pass on the first try?
About two in three first-time takers pass: 68% of 743 EAC/ABET graduates in Jan–Jun 2026. Over eight half-years it has stayed within 68–78%; each half-year group is a few hundred takers (full series).
With a ChemE degree, is the Chemical exam the natural pick?
Check your board’s rules first. Its areas follow a ChemE curriculum (balances, unit operations, reactors), which is the practical reason to take it rather than FE Other Disciplines.
Is a new Chemical outline on the way?
No FE change appears in the NCEES notice of July 20, 2026, which lists exam changes through fall 2027; NCEES gives boards at least one year of notice.
Chemical problems in your pocket
FE Chemical questions, answers and worked solutions in a study app.