PASS - 1ST TRY

[sofiasalvat]

Here is what I studied:

-Ballast - PPP & SPD chapters then skimmed through SS BS BDCS chapters because I heard this exam was a mix and wanted to be fully prepared
-Kaplan - PPP & SPD Quizzes
-Caroline's Notes
-Jenny's Notes
-PPP - Whole Enchilada (Some people swore by this, in the end there wasn't any information here that I couldn't find in Ballast, Jenny or Caroline's notes but the audio was useful to use while going for a run, etc.)
-Rudger's Vignette Tutorial (Coach would probably disagree with me, but this was the only vignette I practiced pre-exam)
-Problem Solving by William Pena
-Archiflash flash cards
-FEMA Designing for Earthquakes

It's a lot of material but doable if you dedicate the time. I kept reading on this forum, and other sources, that PPP was a mix of different content so I tried to cover as much as I could and it paid off. I did not feel like I got any "WTH" questions because I read the study material MULTIPLE TIMES, thoroughly, and felt prepared. (Someone on this forum had advised to just sit and READ and understand the material. Put down the pen, don't take notes, just read, understand it and then read it again. This was probably the most effective thing I did.)

Another really helpful piece of advice that I got was when a friend told me to study seismic design concepts (hence the FEMA) and I am so happy I did because I got a LOT of questions on seismic design. Skim through it, understand the basic concepts and you'll be fine.

With the vignette, I listened to everyone on here and drew the Grade Line first, which helped a lot. With everything else on this list, don't fret about small details (except with ADA, I always get fill in the blank questions on this so know your ADA). Understanding the big picture will really help you in the long run. Best of luck!

[vrcat25]

That's great, but it sounds like you had a different test than me...I took the test 4 times and had WTF questions no matter how much i studied. I didn't read the whole enchilada or FEMA chapters, but everything else was pretty much the same besides i ALSO studied The Architects Handbook of Professional Practice and MEEB on my 4th attempt, which was probably the difference since questions popped up from both sources. That's REALLY strange that you had so many fema/seismic questions...I don't think i had a single one on any of the 4 tests...You will also be more prepared for SS, since that's what test the Fema docs are geared towards...Thanks for sharing though. What test do you plan on taking next?

[sofiasalvat]

From what I am gathering from this forum, everyone's exam experience is so different that it makes it really hard to tell what you can expect. I thought I would get more questions on billing methods, project delivery, and office management (AKA "practice") but I didn't get any.

I passed CDS end of March so next I have SPD booked for June 12. This weekend Thaddeus is in town so I will be attending his SS lecture series and then deciding whether to transition to 5.0 or not. You?

[vrcat25]

You are exactly right. There seems to be a pretty high level of discontinuity between tests from one person to the next.

I've passed CDS, SPD and PPP and have transitioned to 5.0 and am taking PPD next week and PDD the week after.

[sofiasalvat]

Congrats! That's very exciting. Please keep us posted on your 5.0 experience

[coracerv]

Good afternoon,

I will be taking my PPP exam in June 10, I do not want to reschedule it because last year I took it. I don't want to keep postponing it. I have about three weeks to get ready.

Your advice is greatly appreciated.

[sofiasalvat]

Hi coracerv,

All the advice I have is what I posted above. As with all of the exams, make sure to do a thorough review of all the material and practice the vignette. Best of luck!