So i'm sure this question has been beatin' to the ground by everyone on the 5 exam plan or just find themselves at the fork road between the 2 versions. So I would like to share my story here, and see if I can get some feedback to my plan to finish this thing.
Just a quick background on my current situation. I'm currently based in Hong Kong, being a father to a 12 month boy and sole provider to my family, I really don't get any opportunity to study at night when I go home. So I usually get to work by 7am and study for a good 2 hours before work starts, then get another hour during my lunch break. At night, if i have any energy left after putting my boy to bed, i'll go over my flashcards or the material I've studied for that day. On weekends I usually try to study around 6am - 10am. Once my boy is up it's pretty hard to keep my study going.
So far, I've passed everything except for PPP, BS, and BDCS.
I've started studying since September for my sixth attempt on PPP coming up in mid November. Depending on my result i'm still pondering if I should transition to 5.0 after I pass PPP.
Scenario 1: If I pass PPP in November 2017
If i pass PPP in November, i have only BS and BDCS to pass before next June to finish my ARE, this is totally doable but it means i'll have to take 1 exam/month from January to April in order to allow 2 attempts per exam. The only problem is, i've tried this strategy last year and I've burnt myself out. So, would I want to transition after i pass PPP?
Scenario 2: If i fail PPP in November 2017
If i fail this exam in November, there's still hope. I'll have to pass BS on the first try in January, and pass BDCS on the first try in March, then i'll have 2 month to study for my last chance for PPP in May 2018. This sounds like it's possible, but for every exam in the past, i've only passed them with a minimum of 2 attempts. So it sounds less feasible than Scenario 1. Would I want to just save my money and just focus on passing PPP in May 2018?
lots going on in my head now, but most and foremost i'll need to nail this PPP in November.