PE-M&M Pass Rate 2026: What the Data Shows

What the Published Numbers Actually Say

If you are weighing whether to sit for the PE Metallurgical and Materials exam, the pass rate is probably the first statistic you look up. NCEES, the exam's issuer and administrator, publishes a dated table of examinee performance for each PE discipline. For Metallurgical and Materials, the table (updated January 2026) reports:

Two things are worth stating plainly. First, these figures come from the prior October administration, not the upcoming October 2026 sitting. No pass rate exists yet for the exam you may be preparing for, and anyone quoting one is guessing. Second, the exam is offered once per year, so each data point represents an entire year's cohort rather than a rolling average across multiple testing windows.

For a broader look at how this exam compares to other engineering licensure tests, see our guide on how hard the PE-M&M exam is.

Why 43 Examinees Changes How You Read 49%

Most PE disciplines, such as civil or electrical, test thousands of candidates a year. Metallurgical and Materials is a niche discipline. A cohort of 43 first-time examinees is small enough that a handful of people passing or failing moves the percentage by several points. If five more candidates had passed, the rate would look noticeably different; if five fewer had, it would look worse.

The repeat-taker figure is even thinner: 50% across 8 examinees means four people passed. That is far too few to conclude that retaking improves or hurts your odds. Do not build a strategy on it.

First-Time vs. Repeat Takers

In many exam programs, repeat takers pass at noticeably lower rates than first-timers, because the repeat pool is enriched with candidates who struggled the first time. Here the two rates are essentially level (49% vs. 50%), but with only 8 repeat examinees you cannot draw a firm conclusion either way.

What you can say is that failing once does not appear to doom a candidate. The more useful question is why a first attempt falls short, and the blueprint offers clues (covered below). Practical reasons candidates miss a first attempt on a once-a-year exam tend to include:

• Underestimating how broad the material coverage is across ferrous, nonferrous, polymer, and ceramic systems
• Relying on a single specialty (for example, steel heat treatment) from day-to-day work while the exam samples the whole field
• Not rehearsing with the supplied searchable electronic reference handbook, which differs from a printed reference you may be used to
• Running short of stamina or time across a very long testing day

If you are planning your first attempt, our PE-M&M study guide lays out a full preparation approach.

How Scoring Works (and Why There Is No Published Cut Score)

Many candidates ask what raw percentage they need to answer correctly. NCEES does not publish a numerical passing score for this exam. Instead, results are reported as pass or fail, based on a scaled score that must meet the NCEES minimum-competence standard. Several scoring details matter for how you test:

• No deduction for wrong answers. Always answer every question; a blank can never beat a guess.
• No partial credit. Scored items receive correct or incorrect credit only, including multiple-correct and drag-and-drop items. Getting two of three required selections right earns nothing.
• Unscored pretest items. The 85 questions include pretest items that are not identified, so you cannot tell which questions count. Treat every item seriously.
• Same question set for everyone. All examinees in the annual administration receive the same questions, which is why NCEES uses scaling to hold the standard constant.

Because the standard is competence-based rather than curved against other examinees, the pass rate is an outcome, not a target. For more on what the scoring standard means in practice, read our breakdown of the PE-M&M passing score.

Where Candidates Lose Points: The Four Domains

The current NCEES specification (effective with the October 2024 exam) organizes content into four numbered objectives. NCEES publishes question-count ranges rather than fixed percentage weights, so the ranges below are the authoritative guide to emphasis.

Together, Performance and Processing account for the bulk of scored content. A candidate who is strong in Structure and Characterization but thin in Performance has the least margin for error. Our complete guide to the four exam domains goes deeper on each area.

The Material Mix: Ferrous Dominates

Separate from the four domains, NCEES publishes an approximate distribution of material-specific questions. These are not domain weights, and the exam also contains material-independent and multi-material questions, but the distribution reveals where material-specific knowledge pays off:

If you work in a polymer or ceramics environment, the reverse applies: ferrous content is the largest block, and skipping it is the riskiest shortcut. Our PE-M&M cheat sheet summarizes the must-know facts in a compact format.

Format and Endurance Factors

The pass rate reflects not just knowledge but the experience of the exam itself. Know what you are walking into:

• 85 questions in a computer-based format at an approved Pearson VUE test center, in person
• 8 hours 30 minutes of testing time within a 9-hour-30-minute appointment, which includes a 2-minute nondisclosure agreement, an 8-minute tutorial, and a 50-minute scheduled break
• Two sections sharing one testing clock, and a submitted section cannot be reopened
• Mixed item types: multiple-choice plus multiple-correct, point-and-click, drag-and-drop, and numerical fill-in
• Closed book with the supplied searchable electronic reference handbook; personal reference materials are prohibited
• One NCEES-approved calculator, with questions presented in both SI and USCS units

The shared clock and the no-reopen rule are easy to overlook. Because you cannot return to a submitted section, any time you leave on the table in the first section cannot be recovered there, and budgeting across both sections is a skill worth practicing before test day.

Sequencing Your Prep by Domain

Rather than treating the four domains equally, weight your calendar toward the question-count ranges. One sensible ordering, given how the domains build on each other:

Schedule Performance last so it is freshest and so you can integrate everything learned earlier into service-failure scenarios. Do not skip a domain because it is smaller; the minimum-competence standard applies to the exam as a whole, and a weak domain drags the total.

The Cost of a Retake

The exam fee is US$400 per attempt through NCEES, and separate board application fees can apply depending on your jurisdiction. Because the exam is offered only once a year, a miss means a full year's wait before the next sitting in addition to the fee. For a full pricing picture, see our PE-M&M cost breakdown.

On the earnings side, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a median annual wage of $112,860 for materials engineers (May 2025). That figure is occupation-wide; it is not a PE-specific salary and does not measure any licensure premium. Whether licensure pays off depends on your sector and goals, which our ROI analysis examines. Eligibility itself is set by your state or territorial board, so check the PE-M&M requirements guide and confirm your board's rules before registering. When you are ready to test your readiness against realistic questions, try the PE-M&M practice tests.

Frequently Asked Questions