Good Evening,
I will taking the FS Exam in Early 2021. Was looking to see if anyone has any tips. In my book collection, I have 1001 Surveying Solved Problems, Brown’s Boundary Control, and looking to buy the writing legal descriptions. My question is what are they best exam prep courses? I have heard good and bad things about Nettlemen’s prep course but great things about PPI course...
Thanks!!
What about all those textbooks you used in getting your survey education? The test is about book learning, do hope you have it. In other words the best way to study for the FS test is to work on a degree in surveying. Without out that no amount of advice will do you much good.
Paul in PA
what are they best exam prep courses?.?ÿ
Try searching this forum for previous threads. Similar questions come up often.
Buy the PPI2Pass bundle & spend a good 4-6hours reviewing what the specs are for each exam and which books cover what topics. Then I??d say at a minimum take 1-2 months & study the practice problems for at least 1 hour or so every other day. Know your calculator well
Do some quick research on efficient study techniques.?ÿ
Clump definitions into groups of five. Learn five, then move on to the next clump.?ÿ Study a tiny bit longer than you want to then do something physical.?ÿ
With some basic understanding of how humans learn, you can get more out of study sessions.
I took a exam prep course in florida done by lss seminars and the instructor was Ted Madson. He gives you a programmed hp35s calculator and shows you how to use it which is a big help. There is also a company called easy cogo that sells programmed calculators but I like the lss seminar calculator better. I took the test two years ago. First half of the test is all math and second half is some math and some misc questions concerning boundary law among other topics. I would get a programmed calc and some surveying prep books and solve the problems untill you are sick of it and then do some more. If you put in the work you will pass
Don't buy Writing Legal Descriptions for the FS. Boundary Control and Legal Principals provides more than enough information on those topics. Work all of the 1001 Solved Problems if possible. Know all of the content of the NCEES FS Reference Handbook. The FS Exam Specifications are vague, but be sure to have knowledge of every item on that list. The Surveyor Reference Manual can be useful and it also has problems to work. The number of GIS questions on the exam surprised me...I still believe that GIS is not survey-related :). Take the NCEES Practice Exam (and PPI FS Practice Exam) one month before actual test for an assessment of preparation and then spend a couple of weeks working to address deficiencies. Know how to use the statistics functions on your chosen calculator. Good luck!
@morganwa Why is this not helpful??ÿ It points to a source of useful information.?ÿ See for example, https://surveyorconnect.com/community/?wpfs=fs+exam&wpfin=titles-only&wpfd=0&wpfob=relevancy&wpfo=desc
