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PDD Pass - 3 weeks after PPD

PostPosted: Tue May 22, 2018 12:29 pm
by kungpowchick
Hey Everyone,

I did a pretty detailed post on what I studied for PPD here: http://arecoach.com/coachforum/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=53024 end essentially I did 3 weeks of reviewing before going into PDD.

I over-studied for PPD, and then kind of ran out of material for PDD. I was panicking because I was sure I missed something.

The only materials I added from that previous post for PDD were the FEMA wind primer, and a run-through of the Ballast PDD chapters. I then went through my notes, note cards, and reread chapters I thought I should brush up on. We also had a lunch session at work about the idea of the continuous line in securing the building envelope. That concept helped me out a lot as I puzzled through this.

This exam was hard. I had to seriously think about every question. There were several things I don't think I could have ever studied for - I just had to use problem solving and draw on my experience to figure it out. I also had several points where my brain overloaded, so I just put my head down and breathed for a minute.

If you don't have a lot of experience, make sure you take the time to thoroughly go through a set of drawings. NCARB says a big part of this exam is understanding and putting together a drawing set, and I don't know if anything other than that experience could prepare you for it. There were several points where I felt like I was at work- except I couldn't google or ask a colleague to check my answer!

Good luck! It's a doable test- just keep your eye on the prize and keep at it!

Re: PDD Pass - 3 weeks after PPD

PostPosted: Wed May 23, 2018 1:16 pm
by Sarcasmo
kungpowchick -- that's awesome. Nice job.

3 weeks between them was my schedule as well -- similar to you, I'm not sure I did much during that 3 weeks that was ultimately all that productive...

I'd also agree that the exam was pretty challenging. Also similar to you, with PDD being my last exam, I definitely felt a big wave of holy $#%& with about 10 questions left... I felt some genuine stress there toward the end.... I also put my head down for a minute.... Funny, I sort of peeked at the screen between my fingers when I hit the preliminary results button!

Great job!

Re: PDD Pass - 3 weeks after PPD

PostPosted: Wed May 23, 2018 1:34 pm
by kungpowchick
Funny, I sort of peeked at the screen between my fingers when I hit the preliminary results button!
[/quote]

Thanks Sarcasmo! I did the exact same thing. I closed my eyes and hit "view results" then slowly peeked through my fingers. Then I seriously cried. :? Oh well! It's all over!

Re: PDD Pass - 3 weeks after PPD

PostPosted: Wed May 23, 2018 1:52 pm
by Sarcasmo
Kungpowchick -- oh, I hear you. I had procrastinated taking the ARE, and it was really an overwhelming feeling to see that PASS... followed by an almost unjustifiably long period of celebration involving snooty craft beer.

Re: PDD Pass - 3 weeks after PPD

PostPosted: Sat Jul 07, 2018 3:57 pm
by Anob
kungpowchick

I'm a big believer of doing a lot of practice questions. Did you do any practice books?

Re: PDD Pass - 3 weeks after PPD

PostPosted: Thu Oct 04, 2018 7:20 am
by kungpowchick
Anob wrote:kungpowchick

I'm a big believer of doing a lot of practice questions. Did you do any practice books?


I used the Ballast Quiz's and quizzed myself with flash cards. I couldn't find a good practice exam that wasn't too expensive or just a 4.0 repackaging.