Passed! ... And Done!

Hi everyone,

I passed my last exam (PDD) few days ago and I am officially done with ARE exams! :)

Here is the history of my tests, in case it will help anyone in this group:

I started studying exactly 1 year ago (September 2020) and passed my first exam (CE) in November.

I took PcM, PjM, PA after that and I passed them all in the first shot. (Got lucky I guess!)

Then I took PPD and PDD in spring and I failed both of them :(

But that didn't stop me from studying more and focusing on the areas which I knew I didn't have any clue during the test. (I am sure it happened to you when you see a question and you have not heard about that at all!)

So I scheduled those two tests for 2 months later (Per NCARB Guidelines) and passed them. I should be honest that for the last PDD test, I didn't study much and only reviewed my notes from before. (I am still in remodeling process of my house!)

The main study materials for me were PPI study and tests, Black Spectacles videos and its mock-up tests. I also had my old notes from old Ballast books (2014-2015) when I originally started my ARE 4.0, and I stopped finishing them after passing 4 of them. 

I strongly believe that my work experience, especially in construction and CA phase, helped me a lot to pass my exams. Also a common sense on how to eliminate the wrong answers in multiple choice exams is very helpful. Remember to read the question carefully, since there might be some small words in them that change the whole story. Don't rush! Read it twice. 

Also make sure to take enough breaks during your exam, especially for PPD and PDD. I usually took my first break after finishing the first 40 questions. I made sure to give enough time to review the questions before hitting the break button. You will be surprised how small things were missed while you answered them in the first try. I had to revise my answers at least for 5-6 of them. This is a game changing number!

Then do the next 40-ish questions to reach to Case Study questions and take another break. Make sure to repeat the reviewing the second 40 questions before taking the break.

(Obviously these were my thoughts and might or might not work for everybody.)

Now I am planning to take my California Supplementary Exams to be licensed in California too. I am also planning to take my GC exams too, since I am fresh!

So, my last advise for all of you would be "Don't Get Disappointed!" and "Try Hard for a Short Period and Put This Chapter of Your Life Aside Forever."

If I could do it, you all can do it too! 

Good Luck!