Hi everyone,
It's been quite a while since I've been on here, my last exam was almost 2 years ago for CDS. With the clock ticking, and all the talk of 5.0 and transitioning, I decided to get back in gear. At first I wasn't going to take PPP, but the transition calculator convinced me otherwise. I gave myself about five weeks to study, got my pass notice last thursday, took it the week before that. Here's what I studied:
-Ballast
-Kaplan (& additional mock exam)
-NCARB PPP 4.0 Sample Questions (timed proportionately to number of questions)
-NCARB PD 3.1 Sample Questions (timed)
-Jenny's Notes
-Caroline's Notes (briefly, got them a little late in the game)
-Archiflash cards
-NCARB practice vignette (timed)
-Dorf Solutions
-skimmed Sec. of Interior/National Parks
I was confident on the vignette but was unsure about the MC, since there were definitely some WTF items. On the vignette I probably didn't make it easy for myself because sketch lines were everywhere, I wish I had made the grade line first and cleared them out. I used most of the screen to get the exact angle. The building profile couldn't always snap exactly but made sure I was a click below without going over when that was the case. On the MC I made sure to mark plenty, or answer then mark to give ample time to go back and see. I don't see a downside to using all your available time. I also found using the strike through tool was very helpful for eliminating answers.
I read many of the posts on this, and I definitely can't explain why this division varies from person to person, I probably got REALLY lucky. On to SPD next to try and get the big 3 out of the way before I make a choice on transitioning or powering through 4.0 within a year.
Best of luck to all of you, it seems like that's a huge part of this. Try not to get down on yourselves, your education, or what have you because of this seemingly random exam. We're all capable professionals and good at what we do. I'll try and help in any way I can, since it's hard for me to get on here with a toddler and puppy vying for all my attention.