Build a deck around decisions, not isolated formulas

PE Exam questions call for more than recalling an equation: you need to choose a suitable model, use the problem data, keep units consistent, and check whether the result makes sense. Flashcards work best when they train those habits alongside the facts. A card should prompt you to name an equation and its conditions, perform a short calculation, or catch a unit error.

The PE Exam covers different engineering disciplines, so no short deck can substitute for the specifications and references for your own discipline. The deck below is a cross-discipline set of calculation and checking skills. Use it to practise a repeatable solution routine, then add cards drawn from your own notes, applicable standards, and discipline-specific problems. For any code limits or requirements, verify the applicable edition and wording in the source required for your preparation.

Work through this 16-card deck

In MySummaries, a cross-discipline PE fundamentals deck might look like this:

Cards — PE Exam — Engineering Calculation Fundamentals16 due

What pressure unit is equivalent to 1 kN/m²?

1 kPa, because 1 kN/m² = 1,000 N/m² = 1,000 Pa.

All 16 cards
What pressure unit is equivalent to 1 kN/m²?1 kPa, because 1 kN/m² = 1,000 N/m² = 1,000 Pa.
What is 1 MPa in N/mm²?1 MPa = 1 N/mm². Both equal 1,000,000 N/m².
Convert 1 kN·m to N·mm.1 kN·m = 1,000 N × 1,000 mm = 1,000,000 N·mm.
A 12 kN axial force acts on an area of 600 mm². What is the average normal stress?σ = F/A = 12,000 N / 600 mm² = 20 N/mm² = 20 MPa.
A force of 2 kN moves at 0.5 m/s in the force direction. What is the mechanical power?P = Fv = 2,000 N × 0.5 m/s = 1,000 W = 1 kW.
For steady incompressible flow through a section of area 0.02 m² at 3 m/s, what is the volume flow rate?Q = Av = 0.02 m² × 3 m/s = 0.06 m³/s.
What gauge pressure is produced by 2 m of water, using ρ = 1,000 kg/m³ and g = 9.81 m/s²?p = ρgh = 1,000 × 9.81 × 2 = 19,620 Pa, or 19.6 kPa gauge.
A uniform, linearly elastic bar has P = 20 kN, L = 2,000 mm, A = 200 mm², and E = 200,000 N/mm². What is its axial elongation?δ = PL/AE = (20,000 × 2,000)/(200 × 200,000) mm = 1.0 mm.
A simply supported beam carries a 12 kN point load at midspan over a 4 m span. What is its maximum bending moment?For this loading, Mmax = PL/4 = 12 × 4 / 4 = 12 kN·m.
A simply supported beam carries a uniform load of 3 kN/m over a 4 m span. What is its maximum bending moment?For this loading, Mmax = wL²/8 = 3 × 4² / 8 = 6 kN·m.
A 24 V source is connected across an 8 Ω resistor. What current flows?I = V/R = 24/8 = 3 A.
What is the equivalent resistance of 6 Ω and 3 Ω resistors in parallel?1/R = 1/6 + 1/3 = 1/2, so R = 2 Ω.
For a balanced three-phase system using line-to-line voltage, what equation gives real power?P = √3 Vₗ Iₗ PF, where Vₗ and Iₗ are line-to-line voltage and line current, and PF is power factor.
How many megajoules are in 1 kWh?1 kWh = 3.6 MJ, since 1,000 W × 3,600 s = 3,600,000 J.
A device takes 8 kW of input power and delivers 6 kW of useful output power. What is its efficiency?η = output/input × 100% = 6/8 × 100% = 75%.
Round 2.347 to three significant figures.2.35. The fourth significant digit is 7, so the third digit rounds up.

That is a MySummaries deck, filled with PE Exam material. Yours is written from your own notes. Start free

Study the deck as a retrieval drill, not as a page to reread. Start with the first prompt. Before turning it, state the answer and, for a calculation, say the equation and units as well. Then reveal the answer and compare it with yours. Use the grade that matches your recall: a correct answer reached promptly is different from one guessed after hesitation. Continue card by card, including the cards you already know; the purpose is to establish which facts are ready for use under time pressure.

Pay attention to the conditions written into the prompts. The beam equations apply to the stated simple supports and loading patterns; they are not interchangeable formulas for any beam. The bar calculation assumes uniform, linearly elastic axial behavior and consistent units. The flow-rate equation here is for steady incompressible flow. If you recall a formula but cannot identify when it applies, grade the card as uncertain and add the missing condition to your own notes.

Make the deck useful for your discipline

Use the results to decide what to add. For each weak card, write a new prompt based on a real problem or reference you are studying. A useful calculation card gives enough information to select and use a method, but does not put the method in the question. On the reverse, include the result, units, a key assumption, and a short check. Avoid cards that ask only “What is the formula?” when the harder task is deciding whether that formula fits.

The source checklist for this deck is:

Must not miss corePE Exam — Engineering Calculation Fundamentals
Convert units before substituting: for example, 1 MPa = 1 N/mm² and 1 kN·m = 1,000,000 N·mm.
Select the governing model and state its applicability: for example, the stated support and loading conditions for beam moment equations.
Carry units through the calculation and check dimensional consistency: stress is force/area, and power is force × velocity.
Check the final value for reasonable magnitude, then report it with units and sensible significant figures.

When you make a discipline-specific card, preserve that sequence: identify givens and the quantity sought; state assumptions; select a method and check its limits; calculate with units; then test and report the result. For standards-based questions, make the prompt identify the relevant subject or design condition, and keep the answer tied to a verified reference. Do not rely on a flashcard to stand in for checking the governing standard or project constraints.

Repair repeated misses

A card you miss twice needs a diagnosis, not just another immediate repetition. Was the equation forgotten, was a unit conversion wrong, or did you select a model outside its assumptions? Write the cause in a phrase, then edit the card so that the prompt tests the missing decision. If you repeatedly confuse gauge and absolute pressure, for example, build a card that asks which pressure the stated relation produces and include the reference pressure in the answer.

A repeated-miss prompt can be sent back into the next review cycle like this:

Remediation tray

You lost this mark twice: for p = ρgh with h measured below a liquid’s free surface, is the result gauge pressure or absolute pressure, and what reference pressure must be added to obtain absolute pressure?

Add cardDismiss

Answer: the relation gives gauge pressure relative to the free surface. To obtain absolute pressure, add the pressure at the free surface, commonly atmospheric pressure when the surface is exposed to the atmosphere. Keep the conditions explicit in your card; the reference is not interchangeable in a problem that specifies a different surface pressure.

Keep the review connected to problem solving

After a review session, take one missed or uncertain card and apply it to a full problem from your discipline. Practise stating the givens and assumptions before calculating. Check the units at each step, not only at the end, and compare the result with a rough independent estimate. This turns a memorised relationship into a usable method.

Keep cards short enough to answer quickly, but do not strip away the details that determine whether an answer is valid. Retire or rewrite cards that repeatedly test the wrong thing. Add requirements from your own specification and verified references as you study, and check those sources when a question depends on a particular code or standard. The aim is a deck that helps you select, execute, and check a method—not one that asks you to recall equations without context.

How MySummaries helps

Build a revision board from your PE study material, then turn its equations, assumptions, and reference notes into flashcards for spaced review. Use MySummaries to keep the cards connected to the material you are revising.