I wanted to share the new direction for the RMSM Studio website, Facebook Group and YouTube page. Watch the video below for more details, but in brief:
From now on I’ll be posting less often, but trying to give you guys more complete and comprehensive content. So you can expect content about every two weeks.
After September 1st, 2022 I will be discontinuing all items in the RMSM Studio Gumroad store. They are all available still for free download, and they will be removed after the first. You can download the items here: https://rmsmstudio.gumroad.com/
Instead of offering smaller scale courses only dealing with a part of the exams, I will be creating comprehensive courses taking you through my entire detailed study process. These will be as close to my exact study plan as possible, taking you from start to finish, and providing reading lists, practice questions, study plans and several hours of audio and video content.
I will be continuing to offer the CE Studio online course until I create my CE full course next year, but I will be reducing the price to $80 until the new course is complete. https://rmsm-studio.teachable.com/p/ce-studio
We will be continuing with the ARE Studio Giveaway! I’ll share more details in a follow up post with the prize for the top contributor for the month of August!
You can also complete this quick survey to let me know which study materials and exam areas you are struggling with before the ARE 5.0 Material Management live session on September 10th. I’ll be addressing all the materials I used throughout my exam process. It only takes 3 minutes and I can answer specific questions you have about study materials in the sessions. https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/VXG3Z2F
Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you. All opinions remain my own.
Project Development and Documentation, or PDD was my final exam. This one was challenging in a lot of the ways that I was expecting, and I was not surprised when I failed my first attempt at this exam. The PPD/PDD combo is known for being one of the hardest exams in the entire ARE exam process.
I initially studied for this exam and the PPD exam at the same time, over 10 weeks as recommended by the Hyperfine guide. I passed PPD on the first try, but failed PDD. One out of two is not that bad, for exams with a 50% pass rate. Like I said, it was expected. I immediately rescheduled my exam, giving myself two months to start my study process again from scratch (for a full list of my exam timeline go to my Frequently Asked Questions page). I’ll do a separate post on my actual registration process and getting my official license.
I definitely had to take a different approach after my fail. In my initial take of the exam, I think I focused on systems. In my retake I focused more on the materials section, which is why the Fundamentals of Building Construction was one of the textbooks I reviewed the most.
Throughout studying for this retake, one of the aspects that was the most frustrating for me was the sheer volume of the content I had to get through. Even if you gave yourself 4 months to study for the ARE exams, you would still come to the exam center and wish you had just one more day. You never know exactly what each test will focus on, so you try to be as thorough as possible, and hope your hard work has not betrayed you. In retaking this exam, I also started my study clock again from zero, and studied 113 hours in total for the exam. To find out how I spent all that study time, read on.
Books
Fundamentals of Building Construction– This was one of the books I used most heavily for the PDD exam. I read from chapters 1-10, reading almost 18 hours in total. It covers a huge amount of material related to building materials, going into detail on classification and grades and installation techniques. From wood to metal, it has it all in this book.
This book (which I shorten to FBC to save time) is chock full of pictures showing all the steps of the fabrication process and how that specific material is used in construction. It also goes in depth on site information, which can be very helpful for those taking CE after this exam, instead of earlier in the process. I used the fifth edition of this book.
Mechanical and Electrical Equipment for Buildings 12th Edition – My approach for MEEB was a bit unusual, since it is an absolutely enormous book. I actually only reviewed the graphics as recommended in this guide from the NCARB ARE 5.0 Community (told you it was helpful!). So instead of reading thousands of pages, I reviewed the graphics and diagrams in detail, redrawing them in my sketchbook, and trying to understand the concepts they described, including consulting other resources to understand them more concretely.
This is similar to what I did when I was studying contracts, instead of putting them in my own words, I’m redrawing them for my own understanding. I also simplified the diagrams as much as I could so I could still understand the concept if it was described in a different way in a question.
I only used the 12th edition for my review, and I didn’t look at the thirteenth edition to see if the image references are still the same, let me know in the comments if it still applies.
Building Codes Illustrated– I didn’t spend as much time with this book as I did on the PA exam. I was also reading a lot of the actual code while I was doing practice questions or when discussing with my study group, just because it can be difficult to find specific code provisions. This is due to the visual nature of the book, it summarizes a lot of the code language, which practice questions can be very specific on, requiring you to check even the footnotes of the code.
I was still using the 2015 version of this book, as I still don’t think the differences between 2018 and 2015 were big enough to justify buying it again. For the PPD exams, I focused more on chapter 3, and for PDD I focused mainly on Chapter 7 and Chapter 10.
Price:
Fifth Edition Kindle – $39.99
Sixth Edition Paperback – $38, one time purchase
Sixth Edition Paperback Rental per 3 month Semester – $19, with option to extend
Sixth Edition Kindle- $54, one-time purchase
Ballast Review Manual– I ended up reading all the PDD sections for this textbook, and I was able to go through it quickly using this technique:
List all the variables and units at the beginning of each chapter
Highlight all the variables with the same or similar units, for example, highlight all the variables with “pound per sf” units.
Read through the entire chapter, skipping all mathematical formulas
Go through the exam topics again from the ARE 5.0 Handbook, and look through the index to see if there is content you can go through in the other exam sections.
I read this book for over 16 hours, and I went through chapters 33 to 48. That comes out to around 1 hour per chapter on average, which is pretty fast considering how dense the material is in Ballast. Skipping the complex mathematic equations really helped with this.
Online Courses
Hyperfine PPD/PDD Course – I had originally based my study timeline on the 10 weeks recommended by the Hyperfine guide. This worked for my PPD exam (passed first try, see here), but not for PDD, which I wish I had taken more time to study, as it really is its’ own separate exam.
One of the biggest challenges for me was avoid memorizing the answers since I’d done them before. I started again from the beginning instead of skipping around the subjects to make sure that the assignments weren’t the ones I had most recently seen. One technique I also tried to use with the Hyperfine was to find additional resources separate from t
Similar to the PPD exam, since there were 10 weeks of assignments, I didn’t feel like printing them all out (save the trees!). So I completed the assignments digitally and worked from my computer. This was helpful in that I could directly click on the resource links in the PDF. I got the version without the additional case study.
Price: $45, one-time purchase, without 20 question case study
Pluralsight Prepare for the ARE Vol. 5: Project Development & Documentation – For the last few exams, I have been using the Pluralsight courses to do a general overview of the exam content. I really like the ones for the technical exams, as it goes into enough of a level of detail to allow you approach the rest of your study materials and know what you need to focus on.
In terms of the actual time spent, I try to complete each Pluralsight course in the first week that I start studying for a specific exam. This can be overlapped with other materials like Hyperfine, but I prefer to focus on getting though the entire Pluralsight course before I move onto other materials.
Price:
Standard Subscription $29 a month
Codes & Standards
The individual codes were reviewed as needed for practice questions and to supplement for other readings, but I had already read through them a bunch for PA and PPD. I mostly used Building Codes Illustrated for the code sections.
Quizlet – I have collected so many flash card decks over the course of all 6 of these exams, that I decided I didn’t need to collect new ones for PDD. Well, not many. Only 5. Very reasonable. For me. You can also look at my recommendations for using and creating your own flash card decks here.
C144 Grant Adams Video Lectures – I used these video lectures similar to the Schiff Hardin lectures in the professional practice exams (PcM, PjM, CE). I would listen to them as audio lectures in the background when I was at work, and also watch them as regular videos when I had time available.
These videos heavily reference the FBC, which allowed me to review the material twice in a way. I really liked the lecture style, which similarly to the Schiff Hardin lectures, described the materials and methods based on the lecturers experiences.
Price: Free
Karin’s Notes – This is one of the most comprehensive study guides I’ve found for the PPD/PDD exams, that address the topics in a very visual and efficient way. Though the notes are mostly drawings, there are also helpful lists, diagrams, and comparison charts. I read through the entire 17 page set of notes multiple times, highlighting and redrawing the tables and diagrams where necessary.
Another thing to remember for ARE content providers, do remember to provide product ratings and reviews where you can to help both the content creators and other test-takers that get value out of the review.
Price: Free with the option to donate
ARE 3.0 and 4.0 Study Guides – Unfortunately, I’m struggling to find the link for them, but the study guides for the ARE 3.0 and 4.0 exams were very helpful study resources as well. See if you can find a set to review. It is basically the same thing as the ARE 5.0 Handbook, just for earlier editions of the exams. Speaking of which….
ARE 5.0 Handbook – I like to review the ARE 5.0 Handbook when I start prepping to take an exam, so I can organize my study topics, materials and timeline. I have a video on how I use the ARE Handbook to guide my studying in the video below. I also use all the practice questions at the end of my exam study process, as an additional practice exam.
Obviously the questions would be a similar level of complexity as you would find on the exam, since they come directly from NCARB. Make sure you are using the most recent version of the Handbook, as it was updated for the new exam formats.
Price: Free
ARE 5.0 Community Page
NCARB Forum/ARE 5 Community – I highly recommend you check out recent pass information for the technical exams, especially in light of recent and upcoming changes to the exam format. Whenever I fail an exam, I mix my review of posts with those of people who passed on the first try, with people who have had to retake it. I feel like it’s important to get the point of view of people who have retaken the exams, because they can tell you which material was not actually helpful in the end. It’s all about being strategic.
ARE 5.0 PDD Mega Playlist– I made an entire blog post on this huge playlist that was the combination of two attempts at the PDD exam. I don’t recommend that you watch every single video in this playlist, I instead recommend that you approach this list as an encyclopedia of content and topics from my studying process.
Researching and creating this playlist was actually a part of my study process, because it was mainly formed by the topics I found on practice questions, and describe in my practice question process below.
Price: Free
Practice Exams
I have a specific method I use for practice questions, especially the fiull mock exams. You can check out my detailed practice question process here.
WEARE Website – For my second attempt at PDD, I didn’t focus on this resource, and mostly used it for unstructured study time. I definitely like these questions for their level of complexity. You just have to make sure, as I mentioned for Hyperfine, that you don’t get into the habit of memorizing the answers to the practice questions, after which point they become useless. This is why it’s helpful to do practice questions with study group members, so you have to verbally defend your answers and actually justify your answers with your knowledge.
Price: $34 per division, one-time purchase
ARE Questions – For me, these questions are at the same level of difficulty for me that Walking the ARE Exam by Erik Walker was for the PcM exam. Very challenging and with a large number of practice questions to go through so you feel like you’re doing a real exam. Another reason why these questions are popular is because there are very detailed explanations for why the answers are correct. I like to use these questions as my full practice run, using the NCARB demo exam and calculator to replicate an exam environment.
Price: $40, one-time purchase
Ballast Practice Exam – I went through this full practice exam for PDD at least once.
Ballast Practice Problem– I reviewed these questions with my study group pretty extensively throughout PPD and PDD.
Time Tracking Software
Clockify Website – I think I’ve mentioned Clockify in every single exam pass blog post I have made, because it has been absolutely essential to my process. I can track the amount of time I’ve spent on specific materials, and whether or not I am on track with my study goals. I will be creating a video soon on how I use Clockify to study for my exams. I always have a study goal of 100 hours per exam, and I definitely exceeded that for my PDD retake.
Price: Free
Resources I Did Not Use
Black Spectacles – Their Youtube videos were helpful, but I have not purchased their paid offerings. It was very expensive for me, and getting to use their Demo Exam wasn’t worth it for me. I have a lot of their videos in my PPD and PDD Youtube playlists.
AEP – Not enough reviews to purchase
Amberbooks – I didn’t get Amberbooks for this exam, as I created my own Mega Youtube playlist, which you can find here. I did include several Amber Book videos in my playlist. They also used to have 40 minutes of competence videos, which are available here.
Young Architect Bootcamp – I was thinking that I would invest in Bootcamp if I failed PDD 3 times, but I passed before that happened (barely).
Archizam – Not used by me for this exam.
Heating, Cooling and Lighting Book – Not used for this exam.
In Conclusion
I can barely believe that I am done with my exams, thank you to everyone who has supported me through this process! If you have additional questions for me, feel free to ask in the comments.
If you’re looking for additional tips on the ARE 5.0 for studying and staying motivated, join me at the ARE Studio | Study For and Pass the ARE Facebook Group . I will also be sharing new videos on a weekly basis at my YouTube channel, sharing content on my LinkedIn page, and continue creating tips, courses, free downloads and recommendations on this website. You can also join my email newsletter to get regular updates on what I’m doing next. Happy studying everyone!
Flashcards are an amazing tool for people working on gaining a better understanding of subjects and detailed information. However, creating them can be a time consuming task, almost bordering on procrastination if not approached with efficiency in mind.
Let me show you the ways that I use flash card decks to avoid wasting time and focus on the relevant information in my new video on YouTube.
Don’t forget to subscribe to my YouTube Channel and Facebook group to get access to more of my regular ARE content!
Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you. All opinions remain my own.
I just finished my last exam PDD! The blog post for the materials I used is coming shortly, but I did a short post on it within the ARE Studio Facebook Group if you want to take a sneak peek. If you are not a member of the ARE Studio | Study For & Pass the ARE group yet, make sure to answer all the membership questions to get accepted.
This new PDD Mega Playlist is the result of my two attempts at PDD, with over 450 videos! I created this playlist for my first take of the exam, and after I failed, I kept adding on to it with the new material I learned to fill in my gaps. Some of these videos are very comprehensive, such as the ones from the Construction Specifications Institute (CSI), from 45 minutes to an hour long. I really like using long videos while I work, as they become like Schiff Hardin Lectures for me.
Another video medium that I made use of, which is not included in the YouTube Playlist, are the Construction 144 Grant Adams lectures that you can find on Vimeo. Again, I used these as Schiff Hardin lectures, and listened to them in the background all day. These videos are basically a building materials and structures course, broken down by the different material types, and I think a lot of the content comes from the Fundamentals of Building Construction: Material and Methods textbook.
I hope you find these resources helpful, and make sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel to get more updates on ARE 5.0 content like this. Good luck on your exams!
If you’re interested in learning some of the methods I used to pass the ARE 5.0 Practice Management (PcM) exam, you don’t want to miss tomorrow’s live Facebook session. In the Q& A Tuesday: Free Training on How To Use the PcM Study Guide, I’ll be taking you through my free One-Page ARE 5.0 PcM Study Guide, with resources, and study tips, as well as giving a Live Q&A on the PcM exam, and questions on starting your exam journey.
This live event will be taking place today, March 30th at 8:00pm EST, and is free to attend. There will also be a Live Q&A with me at the end, for any questions you may have related to the ARE 5.0.
Bonus!
I’ve also decided to provide a giveaway opportunity for those participating in today’s session. In order to be eligible, all you have to do is watch the session till the end, and post your hourly study goal for the PcM exam.
I will select one person to receive a gift of the Walking the ARE PcM exam, which you can check out here, so make sure to comment and engage to be eligible.
This group is for support, providing information, doing live webinars, live Q&A, exclusive free live training (like this one), and study resources. This group is a community both for those just starting out on their exams, or those who have a few passes under their belts.
ARE Studio Facebook Group Goals
Look forward to seeing you all today, and happy studying!
*P.S.*
If you miss this session, you can still watch the recording inside the ARE Studio Facebook Group! Just go to the Guide/Unit for Practice Management after the session is over, and you will find the recording.
The seconds are ticking down for my first attempt at PDD. I’m currently going through HVAC systems with my ARE Study Group (hi guys!) and I said I would come up with some questions on HVAC selection for different building types. I used the Architect’s Studio Companion to put these questions together.
Question 01
Brad Pitt is currently searching for a small two bedroom bungalow in a climate where the main heat loss is through the building skin in the winter. He is a big advocate for going green and wants a system that is sustainable. What system should he select to heat the building?
Question 02
The Tavares Continental Hotel Suites wants a new HVAC unit to service their kitchen and laundry spaces in an existing hotel that they are renovating. This system should provide heating and cooling, and plenty of fresh air. They want an enclosed system that can utilize the overheated areas to heat the underheated areas of the hotel. Cost is not a primary concern. Which system should the hotelier go for?
Question 03
Torrential Inc. is looking to expand their research campus with a new laboratory. They are looking for an HVAC system which provides heating and cooling, with good humidity control and efficiency. They would prefer a quiet system that won’t interfere with their research work, with a reduced risk of mold which could contaminate their samples, and can provide them with lower ceiling to floor heights. To save on energy costs this system will be tied into a geothermal exchange. What system should they choose?
Question 04
You have been engaged by a developer, the Yu Chen & Associates Construction Group, to provide a design for a hotel. The system needs to have low intial costs, with no central equipment, piping or ductwork. Due to the nature of the building operations, they would prefer to have lower operating costs as well. Which HVAC system should the architect select?
Question 05
The American University Washington would like to create a new 6 story Economics Building dedicated to one of their alumni, Ms. Manisha Singh, the current Assistant Secretary, Economic & Business Affairs in the U.S. Department of State. American University has stressed the need for a quite system, so as not to interfere with the lectures. The university has requested that system provide a low first cost with low maintenance requirements to provide room in their budget for higher quality finishes. What HVAC system would you recommend?
Correct Answers
For all answers, reference the Architect’s Studio Companion sections on HVAC selection. This is one of my favorite books on this topic, as it deals with system selection in a very straightforward way.
Passive Solar Heating, refer to page 228
Closed Loop Heat Pump System, refer to page 181
Active Chilled Beam System, refer to page 178
Packaged Terminal Unit Systems, refer to page 184
Variable Air Ventilation System, page 174
Let me know how you did on this question, or share your alternative answers in the ARE Studio Facebook Group, and make sure to follow RMSM Studios on Facebook and Instagram!
If you’re interested in learning some of the methods I used to pass the Construction & Evaluation exam, you don’t want to miss tomorrow’s live Facebook session. In How To Use the CE Study Guide, I’ll be taking you through my free One-Page ARE 5.0 CE Study Guide, but also how I used the methods I used to get the most out of each material/technique.
This live event will be taking place tomorrow, February 3rd at 6:00pm EST, and is free to attend. There will also be a Live Q&A with me at the end, for any questions you may have related to the ARE 5.0.
This group is for support, providing information, doing live webinars, live Q&A, exclusive free live training (like this one), and study resources. This group will be a community both for those just starting out on their exams, or those who have a few passes under their belts.
Look forward to seeing you all tomorrow, and happy studying!
*Update*
If you missed this session, you can still watch the recording inside the ARE Studio Facebook Group! Just go to the Guide/Unit for Construction & Evaluation Exam, and you will find the recording.
Learn what study materials and methods I used to pass ARE 5.0 CE exam from NCARB on my second try.
Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you. All opinions remain my own.
CE was the first and only exam that I failed, so I thought this would be a great opportunity to share with you the differences between the first and second time that I took it. I believe that failing an exam doesn’t mean that you don’t know the material, but maybe you need to refocus your attention to fill you gaps.
As I shared in my CE Pass announcement there were many aspects of the exam that I was frustrated with, especially the lack of emphasis in the NCARB Handbook on the importance of studying construction details. I hope that you all can learn from my experience and that it helps move you forward in your exams.
There is also now a free one-page ARE 5.0 CE Study Guide, available here. I have also created a comprehensive online course to help those taking their CE exams, called CE Studio. If you’re interested in finding out more, check it out here.
Now let’s jump into the study materials…
Books
Kaplan ARE 4.0 Construction Documents and Services: For my first try, the major book that I used is actually the Kaplan CDS study guide. It explains a lot of basic concepts very well, some diagrams and is very good at explaining construction administration concepts. I purchased this textbook, along with the Questions and Answers, which I purchased from someone in the ARE Facebook Group.
Price: My version doesn’t appear to be for sale on Amazon, maybe check in the Facebook groups or Forums.
Architect’s Handbook of Professional Practice– I read this book mainly during my first try, focusing on chapter 9 and 10. here’s the Wiley Guide for the AHPP for Construction & Evaluation. I barely looked at the AHPP during my second attempt at this exam. I didn’t read as much AHPP as I did in ARE 5.0 Practice Management or Project Management. During my second attempt I spent a lot of time trying to focus on the contracts and construction details instead. I was able to get this book for free through my office.
Price:
$147 to rent hardcover per semester, subscription with extension option
$210 to buy hardcover, one time purchase
$208 to buy Kindle/e-book, one time purchase
Building Construction Illustrated Textbook – I only glanced at this book for my first try, like maybe a couple of hours which is definitely not enough for this exam. I went through the book and I had the digital version for that so what I would do is I would highlight all the relevant parts of the book which is very handy because then I could if I wanted to review a specific section all the important parts are already highlighted for me and it being a digital a resource you don’t have to worry about you know reselling the book or anything if you highlight and no one cares so that was very helpful tool for me another thing I also did to help with the sort of masterformat portions of the exam is building construction Illustrated also mentions the masked magicians each each section of the book so and it shows you something at all so tell you what part of masterformat it belongs to us I would highlight those as well so I get really familiar with how those things are organized what they look like.
Price:
Fifth Edition – $60
Sixth Edition Paperback – $36, one time purchase
Sixth Edition E-book – $42, one-time purchase
Hyperfine CE Course – My main technique for using this course for CE was to print it out and do the assignment by hand because it’s easier for me to go back and forth. This resource comes as digital files, but trying to do it as a digital assignment wasn’t working well for me.
Price: $30, one-time purchase
Contracts
NCARB covers a lot of contracts for the CE exam as you can see below. This exam actually includes the most contracts for you to review. I read through all of them. Don’t be intimidated by the number, since several of them are one-page documents.
My method for the contracts was:
Reading through the all actual contracts above at least once
Rewriting the contracts in shorthand as described in Christopher Richardson’s NCARB forum post
The Young Architect Contracts course was an essential reference for me for the Project Management exam. One of the biggest advantages of this course is that it goes through all of the contracts that are listed in the NCARB matrix, not just the B101 and A201. You can purchase this course separately from the CE exam, but I had purchased it for my previous exam.
The main contracts that I focused on were the A201 and the B101. The way that I studied them was both trying to write the contract out in my own words, and using the Schiff Hardin lectures. The lectures were the main way that I studied contracts at work. I don’t get much time doing my day to look at material, so I mostly focused on listening to the contracts.
I mainly focused on Schiff Hardin during my first attempt at this exam. I felt very comfortable with the contracts when I failed, so I didn’t use Schiff Hardin as much the second time. The other contracts I focused on for this exam were the G704, A305, the C401
Price:
Contracts: free on AIA website
Schiff Hardin Lectures: Free
Contract shorthand: free
Young Architects Contracts Course individually ($85), one-time purchase
Digital Resources
Quizlet – Full disclosure, I am not a big fan of physical flashcard decks. They’re a hassle to write and organize. I greatly prefer using digital flash cards for easy portability, I can save my spot in learning and test myself all within one app.
CSI Divisions Deck – It is important to be familiar with the common CSI divisions for this exam.
Building Construction Deck- This monster deck comes with pictures on over 400 cards, that allow you to study many different types of construction techniques and construction administration concepts.
ADA Flashcard Deck – It is important to be able to study ADA violations and measurements for this exam.
Price for all decks: Free
NCARB Forum – I also used the forum a lot for this exam. I always try to look at what other people have done, and what has or has not worked of the forums. However the element mentioned in the forum that I didn’t take it seriously was the construction portion of the exam. I thought it wasn’t as big of a part as it eventually ended up being. I thought I could just look at construction details for a couple of hours to get a general idea and I would be okay. That was not the case. So when someone says it something’s going to be on in the exam, that means it’s really important.
Young Architect Academy Construction & Evaluation 101 – this resource was helpful in terms of helping me understand Construction Administration and Project Management for this exam. This was studied in tandem with the Young Architect Academy AIA Contracts 101 course. The CE course is broken down to cover the specific objectives of this exam. The video format was very helpful and allowed me to study while I was working, or I can listen to it in the car. In addition to the audio from the videos, the course also has assigned readings and case studies.
Like all YAA courses, this course has a flat one-time fee and you can access it for as long as you like as opposed to paying for ongoing subscriptions if you fail. I only got this course for my second attempt at this exam.
Price: For CE 101 only, $99
Hammer & Hand Website– I didn’t spend as much time as I would have liked to on this resource on my first attempt at this exam. I really like the way that this website takes you through the creation of each detail, and shows you how the object is being built and layered. The overlapping of some items for example window details for sheathing, which are kind of difficult to understand in a regular section. So I really like the way that it’s done in 3D for better comprehension. This website was really great for understanding thermal protection and Foundation Construction. if you’re not familiar with these details I would say this is an essential reference.
XQ for ARE 5.0 App– This app was created by Kevin Griendling from Pluralsight. I really like using this for my second run of CE, because it allows you to answer questions in all four of exam formats, including hot spot and multiple choice. This is a subscription-based service so you have to decide how long you want to use the subscription for but I felt like this resource filled in a lot of the gaps in terms of tests addressing a construction detail questions so I thought it was very helpful for that reason. Many tests are good at talking about the construction Administration side not many practice exams focus on the construction detail side of course it makes it highly portable which is another great feature.
Price: $19.99, monthly subscription
YouTube Videos – This was another essential resource for me to understand details, construction administration, tests, common building practices, site safety, construction materials, and ADA information. I created an entire playlist just for the CE exam that you can access from this article or my YouTube page. Make sure to subscribe for more of my latest video content.
Price: Free
Practice Exams
Designer Hacks PjM Exam – I asked my office to purchase the full Designer Hacks practice questions for all 6 exams, since they were the same price as one physical textbook. Designer Hacks is super portable, with its mobile version, along with multiple levels from pop quizzes to full length timed exams. You can find my one-minute review for this resource here.
I like that I can break it into smaller portions. These questions are pretty easy so if you can’t take these questions then more complicated questions will not be possible, so these are always a good starting point. I really like using these questions when I have an extra bit of time like if I’m waiting in line or if I just have time to kill and I can whip it out on my phone and start doing practice questions.
Price: This item was free for me as described above, but for this course alone it is $39.
WEARE Website – I’ve found that this exam is slightly more difficult than the Designer Hacks, and allows me to cross-train with different questions. They are available in digital form, making them highly portable. One of my favorite parts of this resource is that they can be done as smaller portions, including short quizzes, and tests that can be separated into specific exam divisions. They also provide free versions of these questions, so you can see whether you are interested before you purchase.
Price: $34 per division, one-time purchase
Time Tracking Software
Clockify Website – I have really come to love this website, and it has been really helpful for me in seeing the difference between my two attempts at this exam. I use it to track my hours spent studying every day, and then can show you your total progress for your exam, and your progress for the week. You can use my study material tracker to list your hourly study goals for each resource
Price: Free
Flora App – This is a time tracking app that functions similar to a Pomodoro Timer, in that it tries to reduce distractions. While you have this app running, you can’t run other apps on your phone, which removes a major source of distraction for me. One of the great functions of Flora, is that for each section of time that you remain undistracted, you can grow a tree or flower, and create a garden, which I found to be really fun. This app also allows you to bet money against running your time undistracted, which goes towards tree planting if you fail.
Other Resources
I used the Ballast Practice Exam and Review Manual.
I read real specifications and project manuals to help me understand the Master Format Divisions
I downloaded full Construction Drawing set examples and went over them with my study group members. You need to look at every drawing individually in the set, and become familiar with them. This is especially critical for those who don’t have a lot of Construction Document experience.
Practice drawing actual build sections, like parapet walls, foundation details, column sections, window and door details.
Resources I Did Not Use
Black Spectacles – Not a lot of positive reviews and extremely expensive. I wish they broke their program into the individual parts as it would be useful to try their demo exam independent of their other offerings.
Pluralsight – since Pluralsight’s PjM course is mostly contracts, I didn’t want to purchase both this and the YA Contracts course.
AEP – expensive, and not enough positive reviews to purchase
Amberbooks – I didn’t get Amberbooks for this exam, but I may use it if I don’t pass my upcoming PPD and PDD exams.
Young Architect Bootcamp – If I am thinking of possibly investing in this for the final 3 technical exams, if I don’t pass my two technical exams. I’m still trying to remain mostly self-guided for as long as I can.
In Conclusion
I was so nervous when I went into my second attempt at this exam, but I felt very confident with the amount of work I had done to catch up on my construction detail sections. If you want to find out more of my impressions immediately after my exam, you can see my article on it here.
Streamline Your Study Process and Focus On What’s Important
Learn Ways to Study Construction Details and Contracts
Track Your Study Time
Build Confidence by Testing Your Knowledge
Gain Understanding of the Testing Software
Construction & Evaluation was the first exam that I failed, and I wanted to share a method for studying for it to help you avoid the same mistakes I made. I’ll be sharing this one-page study guide for Construction & Evaluation for free. This guide is an excellent start for those getting ready to take this exam.
Hey everyone, I wanted to share these playlists with everyone, since I have finally been able to upload all the videos into my official YouTube study playlists for the Construction & Evaluation and Programming & Analysis exams.
I was able to pass PA on the first try this week, and doing so finally gave me the free time to catch up on some items I’ve had on the backburner.
Both of these playlists are based on the actual videos I used to study for and pass both ARE 5.0 CE & PA recently. There are over 100 videos in each, from a variety of lecturers, companies, ARE test prep providers, and more, explaining essential concepts for these exams.
Construction & Evaluation Playlist
I took CE twice because I was unclear on what exactly the scope of the exam was. They always say that the ARE is the best practice exam. Once I had a better grasp on what the exam involved, I felt better able to conquer my gaps, and redirect my studying. Here are the videos that helped me pass this exam on my second try.
RMSM Studio ARE 5.0 CE Playlist
If you are currently struggling with CE, stay tuned for my upcoming live course, featuring 4 week training series, going through essential concepts for studying for the CE exam. It will feature at least 4 live one hour in-depth training sessions followed by Q&A, with recordings sent to you after every session. If this is something you are interested in make sure to sign up for my mailing list.
Programming & Analysis Playlist
I am so excited about passing PA this week! This test was so challenging just because of the shear quantity of topics that you have to cover and understand. Imagine having to know about soil types and egress calculations all on the same test! But one thing I would keep in mind is that at the end of the day with this exam, it is truly about understanding the larger concepts, so you can apply them in your every day practice.
That’s why these videos were so valuable for me. It wasn’t about memorizing the details of a particular topic, it was about having a good understanding of the information, so if you had to apply it to a project (or in this case, a case study), you would know what to do.
MSM Studio ARE 5.0 PA Playlist
I hope you find these playlists helpful, I hope to be releasing the detailed list of study materials and techniques for both of these tests soon, and in the mean-time, make sure to follow my Facebook page or sign-up my mailing list to be first to find out when they are available.
I’ll be doing Facebook Live sessions this entire week, going over common questions and frustrations for the ARE 5.0 exams. Today’s session, hosted on the RMSM Studio Facebook Page, focused on ways to fill in those construction detail gaps that exist in the references for the ARE 5.0 Construction & Evaluation exam.
Tune in tomorrow afternoon for the next Facebook Live Talk. If you’re not already follow me on Facebook and Instagram for all of my upcoming live sessions, sharing key study tips for the ARE exams.
RMSM Studio 