architect54

NCARB has published the pass rates for the architect registration exam 4.0 (ARE). The important thing to notice is pass rates have decreased. Schematic Design has the highest pass rate. Perhaps it should now be considered a good exam to start with when taking the ARE. Consider this when developing an overall exam strategy.

NCARB’s pass rates need to be explained to me. The results for CCNY say there were zero test takers for Construction Documents and Services. What? I graduated from CCNY, took ARE 4.0 in that time period and passed. Isn’t that at least one? I don’t quite get it. This proves you have to be cautious reading into statistics because data may be missing or incorrect for whatever reason. (Funny.)

It is time for a strategy change. I’ve been having incredible difficulty studying for structures. I’ve decided to prepare for Schematic Design instead. I took it before and the interior layout whipped me like a parent beating a misbehaving child.

I’m giving myself three weeks to prepare two hours a day. If after three weeks I think I’m ready, I’ll reschedule schematic design for a closer date. That should give me one more week or so and put the exam date around the third week of February. For now I’ll leave my current exam appointment months off in the distance.

This means I’m going back to a 3-1-3 exam format. The first 3 exams I’ve taken and really studied for them as a group. The 1 in the middle being Schematic Design, which I’ll put myself to the grind for now. Then the last 3 I’ll study for as a group, similar to how I did the first group. That means essentially studying for Structural Systems (SS), Building Design and Construction Systems (BDCS), and Building Systems (BS) together. Somewhat like I did for the first 3 exams. It sounds like a good idea on the surface. I think there is enough overlap in SS and BDCS for the strategy to be effective, but I’m uncertain about Building Systems.

Something that struck me in the ARE Strategies podcast is the suggestion to treat the 7 part architect registration exam (ARE) as one exam. For my remaining exams, I might try and employ this advice for three exams. My original exam sequence was 3-3-1. It became 3-1-3 and now I’m going back to 3-3-1.

I have 4 exams left (two I failed and two I haven’t taken). I’m thinking of grouping study for 3 exams (Building Systems, Structural Systems, and Building Design and Construction Sytems). This would leave Schematic Design to the end and a 3-1 exam sequence. I would take the exams in the order mentioned. I will have to reschedule to commit to this order.

I’m not sure how I’m handling this. Is there enough overlap of study topics? Will I be able to study enough of each topic to take the 3 exams close together?

In the podcast Umber Kazmi recommended treating the exam as one. Her advice still indicated studying for one part at a time. I think. That’s what I got out of it. So I don’t think I’ll be able to study for all three exams and take them within a week of each other. Not with 2 hours of daily study. Not unless that daily study lasts for a very consistent 3 month period with extended weekend studying. (OMG.)

I sort of treated my first three exams as one. Those exams had more similarity and content overlap. For my remaining exams I’m rethinking my exam strategy a bit and preparing my head for some extensive studying about to come.