Complete exam guide
PE Mechanical Machine Design & Materials
The broadest and most demanding of the three Mechanical depths — six areas spanning stress analysis to fasteners to manufacturing. It's the right one if your work is machine and product design, mechanical components, manufacturing, or materials. Here's what it covers, where the points are, and exam-real practice with a grounded AI tutor — go in knowing it rewards breadth.
7 days free · no card · cancel anytime.
What this depth is — and who should take it
Machine Design & Materials is the broadest depth (six areas, 34 subtopics) and the most demanding by the numbers. It's built for engineers in machine design, mechanical components and assemblies, product development, manufacturing, and materials. You pass one depth to get licensed — sit the one that matches your work, and know this one rewards breadth.
Comparing depths? See which depth to take and the pass rates by depth.
Exam at a glance
- Questions
- 80, one depth
- Testing time
- 8 hours (~9-hour appointment)
- Format
- Computer-based, year-round (Pearson VUE)
- Reference
- Closed-book — NCEES Handbook on-screen
- Units
- both SI and U.S. customary
- Calculator
- NCEES-approved model
- First-time pass
- ~64–67%
- Repeat-taker pass
- ~35–45% — the gap is preparation, not ability
The lowest first-time pass of the three — by the numbers, the most demanding. NCEES scores against a scaled cut score — there's no published passing percentage. Expect standard multiple choice plus alternative item types (drag-and-drop, point-and-click, multiple-correct, fill-in). Areas and weights follow the NCEES specification effective October 2025. Pass rates shown are the most recent NCEES figures; NCEES refreshes them mid-2026.
What's on the exam — and where we put your reps
6 areas. NCEES gives each a question range, not a fixed count, and every form totals 80 (official area titles + ranges per the NCEES specification).
Mechanics of Materials
17–26 of 80Where points go — The spine — about a quarter of the exam: axial, shear, bending, torsion, buckling, combined loading, static and fatigue failure, thermal/interference stress. It compounds — combined loading, failure theories, and fatigue all build on the fundamentals, so lock the foundation first and the rest follows.
Your reps — Build the spine in the order that makes the chain automatic; the tutor walks the failure theories step by step — the area that decides the most points.
Mechanical Components and Assemblies
16–24 of 80Where points go — Pressure vessels and piping, springs, vibrating systems, beams/trusses/frames, hydraulic/pneumatic systems, and basic mechatronics — a wide block where breadth is the risk.
Your reps — Tagged per subtopic across the breadth so practice matches the real spread.
Basic Engineering Practice
11–17 of 80Where points go — Drawings and GD&T, design methodology, economic analysis, and material properties — cheap points if you've touched them.
Your reps — Covered, with worked solutions you can rehearse.
Mechanical Attachments
9–14 of 80Your reps — Bonds/adhesives and threaded & non-threaded fasteners — discrete, learnable point sources the bank drills directly.
Power Transmission
9–14 of 80Your reps — Gears and gear trains, bearings, shafts and keys, belts/chains/clutches/brakes/power screws, motors and engines — discrete, learnable, and reps-rewarding.
Supportive Knowledge (Machine Design and Materials)
8–12 of 80Your reps — Manufacturing methods, fits and tolerances, codes and standards, computational/FEA, inspection/testing/quality, and chemical processes — covered so the small block isn't a blind spot.
Area titles and question ranges per the NCEES specification (eff. October 2025).
How to prepare for this depth
Don't study the areas evenly — weight your time to where the points and the difficulty are.
- 1
Build the mechanics-of-materials spine first — combined loading, failure theories, and fatigue build on each other.
- 2
Master the discrete components: pressure vessels, fasteners and welds, power transmission.
- 3
Get fluent in both unit systems so conversions never cost you time.
- 4
Cover basic engineering practice and supportive knowledge for cheap points.
- 5
Manage the breadth deliberately with a diagnostic — map it and drill the thin spots first.
- 6
Rehearse the closed-book Handbook — the mechanical-design and materials sections.
- 7
Practice timed, then finish with full-length mocks. Budget toward the higher end of study time — it's the broadest depth.
Drill the high-yield topics:
That's the problem-first method applied to this depth; for the calendar, see how long to study.
How CastorPrep helps
Practice
Exam-real problems
Tagged to all 6 areas and their 34 subtopics, so practice matches the real exam weighting.
Tutor
Grounded AI tutor
Names the step you missed and explains why — citing the Handbook section you'd use on exam day.
Mocks
Full-length mocks
Blueprint-weighted to this depth, so you rehearse your eight-hour pace on a realistic mix.
Diagnose
The diagnostic
Maps your weak areas to the blueprint and ranks what to drill first.
One plan, everything included. 7-day free trial, no card — see pricing.
Going deeper
About the exam
How to prepare
Or browse all resources.
Frequently asked
How is the Machine Design & Materials depth structured?
80 questions over a nine-hour appointment (~8 hours of testing), closed-book with the on-screen NCEES Reference Handbook, computer-based and offered year-round at Pearson VUE. Standard multiple choice plus alternative item types (drag-and-drop, point-and-click, multiple-correct, fill-in).
What units does this depth use?
Both SI and U.S. customary — be fluent in both.
What score do I need to pass?
NCEES uses a scaled cut score and doesn't publish a fixed passing percentage — the goal is mastery of the tested areas, not a magic number.
Is Machine Design & Materials the right depth for me?
It's the right one if your work is machine and product design, mechanical components, manufacturing, or materials. It's the broadest depth, so it rewards breadth — sit it if it matches your day-to-day.
How long should I study?
Most candidates need ~200–300 hours over about four months; budget toward the higher end here, since it's the broadest depth.
What if it takes more than one attempt?
It's offered year-round, within NCEES/state-board attempt limits. A retake plan that changes the method — not just the hours — is what moves the score.
See whether it clicks before you pay a cent.
7 days free · no card · cancel anytime.