I just tested yesterday... this was a retake for me and it was tough. I failed on the Stair Vignette (level 3) and Materials (level 2) on the last one.
The MC is what you would expect; several WTF questions, some straight out of the text book questions (that make studying for this exam actually worth it), and others straight out of experience. The ramp and roof were very straightforward but the stair was TOUGH. I ran out of time and might have forgotten a handrail. Really, really, really hoping this is not the case.
What I studied:
- FBC (cover to cover). It made me realize what a great resource it is, not only for studying but for future practice. It explains things in a logical manner and made studying enjoyable. However, I don't think it should be used as a sole resource.
- Jenny's notes (based heavily on FBC; again, not to be used on it's own).
- Carolines' notes for Code and ADA. I find it the most comprehensive and the diagrams are great.
- Caroline's notes for Project and Practice Management
- NALSA Flashcards (invaluable!)
- Ballast chapters Vertical Transportation and Site Work
- Ballast Questions
- Reviewed Ballast Text (based on weak topics); reviewed diagrams several times
- Kaplan Questions
- Reviewed Kaplan; reviewed diagrams several times
- Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation Guidelines
https://www.nps.gov/tps/standards/rehab ... /guide.htm
- Practiced the vignettes 3-4 times each; 3.1 and 4.0. No Alts. Posted both on the forum.
It helped me to organize all the material based on subject, straight out of the NCARB exam outline, as Jenny does. I had folders with study material for each topic, so I could easily keep track of how much I was studying for each subject. I'm an organizational fiend, but I find this strategy helpful with exams that have a variety of topics, like BS and BDCS.
Things I wish I had done (or will do, if I don't get a pass):
- Reviewed Building Systems,
- Reviewed Structures in regards to deflections Rules of Thumb and spans for a variety of materials
- Practiced stair vignette in more complex situations, where headroom is an issue. The NCARB vignettes allow you to dodge this situation but it is NOT always the case and you sometimes have no choice. Definitely practice where you are placing stairs above openings below and include that strategizing in your time frame.
- Not get caught up in the details with perfecting things until all vignettes are somewhat completed. The roof and ramp were very straightforward, but I still ended up with only an hour for the stair vignette. I left it until the end, and it was the toughest out of the three. I would have skimmed through all three and allocated time appropriately based on the vignettes presented.
- Look into doing Coach's stair vignette; clearly it's my weakest vignette
- Review again and again the material I have and not introduce anything new at this point. Too much study material is not a good thing.
***As an aside, it seems like the number of scrap pages provided has been reduced! It used to be a booklet of 5-6 pages, it is now only 4 (an 11x17 folded in half; it used to be two). And this is for both the MC and the Vignettes! You will be provided more if you hand in what's already been used, but if you have already started note taking or if you want to save notes from a previous vignette to double check later, this is a problem! Anyone else encounter this? Maybe I'm writing too many notes... I just want to avoid swapping to instructions if i don't have to. I think I'll be contacting NCARB or Prometric about this.
Crossing fingers I make it through this one!!! I'm fighting the rolling clock as well... SD next week and then SS in a month!