[Anonymous]

Hi,

I am scheduled to take BEC late July, and have just received my Yaeger study materials. I read that it is recommended to take FAR first, so I am planning on taking that next. I am curious as to when I should schedule each test and when to study. Like I said, I already have BEC scheduled for July, so I need to work around that. My initial thought was to study for one at a time, and start studying for the next after I take one exam, but now I am worried about the 18 month window. I work full time, so I need to keep that in consideration. I am also not sure if I am studying too early for BEC? My Yaeger study plan suggests an hour a day, but I do not want to forget the material since my test is a good four months away……Any suggestions would be appreciated!

[Anonymous]

If you can move BEC up to May I think you should take it then. 4 months is a long time to study BEC because the topics aren't really connected and definitely don't build on each other. I studied for BEC for two months, working full time, with small chilren. You could definitely do it in 2 months working full time. Study for 2 hours a day during the week 8-10 hours on the weekend. One of the recurring problems I see from posters on here is that they jump from section to section before passing the first section they studied for. My advice would be take a section until you pass it and then move on. If you focus on quality instead of quantity when you study then you shouldn't have any problems making the 18 month window. There are plenty on here that work full time and have passed the entire exam in 5 or 6 months. I wouldn't recommend rushing it, but it is possible to do.

[Anonymous]

If you can move BEC up to May I think you should take it then. 4 months is a long time to study BEC because the topics aren't really connected and definitely don't build on each other. I studied for BEC for two months, working full time, with small chilren. You could definitely do it in 2 months working full time. Study for 2 hours a day during the week 8-10 hours on the weekend. One of the recurring problems I see from posters on here is that they jump from section to section before passing the first section they studied for. My advice would be take a section until you pass it and then move on. If you focus on quality instead of quantity when you study then you shouldn't have any problems making the 18 month window. There are plenty on here that work full time and have passed the entire exam in 5 or 6 months. I wouldn't recommend rushing it, but it is possible to do.

[Kimboroni]

I totally agree– move BEC to sooner if you are ready to start studying now. They recommend no more than 6-8 weeks of studying for each exam, since if you start studying too early, you will forget the first material you studied and have to almost completely restudy it closer in anyway. 8 weeks might even be a bit too long for a couple of the exams.

I printed a full-year on one-page calendar from Publisher and mapped out my desired test dates, taking into account test vs. non-test months and their release dates, plus various distractions like busy season, school, anime convention prep, my score release date, etc., with a short break (2-3 weeks) after each test to refocus and find out my score and then 6-8 weeks to study for the next one. Within that, I have 7 months extra built in for retakes, so I'm not super worried about the 18th month clock. Although I'm very mindful of it.

I have the next two tests scheduled, but I will amend if necessary and retake as soon as possible if I don't pass. I agree with retaking the one test while the info is still fresh rather than jumping to a different one.

AUD 84 (1/9/14-Wiley books/TB + free materials)
FAR 83 (5/21/14-the above + NINJA 10 Pt Combo Lite)
REG 84 (7/9/14-Wiley books/TB + NINJA Audio/FC/Notes)
BEC 76 (10/5/14-Wiley books/TB + NINJA Audio/FC)

Disclaimer: My ninja avatar is not meant to imply that I have any affiliation with this site other than being a forum member. That's a pic of a T-shirt that my daughter gave me for my birthday. 🙂

[Kimboroni]

I totally agree– move BEC to sooner if you are ready to start studying now. They recommend no more than 6-8 weeks of studying for each exam, since if you start studying too early, you will forget the first material you studied and have to almost completely restudy it closer in anyway. 8 weeks might even be a bit too long for a couple of the exams.

I printed a full-year on one-page calendar from Publisher and mapped out my desired test dates, taking into account test vs. non-test months and their release dates, plus various distractions like busy season, school, anime convention prep, my score release date, etc., with a short break (2-3 weeks) after each test to refocus and find out my score and then 6-8 weeks to study for the next one. Within that, I have 7 months extra built in for retakes, so I'm not super worried about the 18th month clock. Although I'm very mindful of it.

I have the next two tests scheduled, but I will amend if necessary and retake as soon as possible if I don't pass. I agree with retaking the one test while the info is still fresh rather than jumping to a different one.

AUD 84 (1/9/14-Wiley books/TB + free materials)
FAR 83 (5/21/14-the above + NINJA 10 Pt Combo Lite)
REG 84 (7/9/14-Wiley books/TB + NINJA Audio/FC/Notes)
BEC 76 (10/5/14-Wiley books/TB + NINJA Audio/FC)

Disclaimer: My ninja avatar is not meant to imply that I have any affiliation with this site other than being a forum member. That's a pic of a T-shirt that my daughter gave me for my birthday. 🙂

[Anonymous]

Thank you so much for your advice! So I should wait to see if I passed before studying for the next? I'm just afraid (well, not afraid 🙂 ) that I will pass, but have a month wasted without studying before I find out. With my test scheduled in July, I figured this would be the best case scenario:

BEC – July 2014

FAR – November 2014

AUD – February 2015

REG – May 2015

I don't know if I am spacing them out too far in the case that I fail one or more. If I do have to retake, should I set out the same amount of time to study as I did for the first take? Ugh, there are so many things to consider when trying to organize all this stuff!!

[Anonymous]

Thank you so much for your advice! So I should wait to see if I passed before studying for the next? I'm just afraid (well, not afraid 🙂 ) that I will pass, but have a month wasted without studying before I find out. With my test scheduled in July, I figured this would be the best case scenario:

BEC – July 2014

FAR – November 2014

AUD – February 2015

REG – May 2015

I don't know if I am spacing them out too far in the case that I fail one or more. If I do have to retake, should I set out the same amount of time to study as I did for the first take? Ugh, there are so many things to consider when trying to organize all this stuff!!

[Kimboroni]

I haven't had to retake yet, but from what I've read, you pretty much have to treat it like your first time studying if you want to pass. It's not “I just need 4 more points” so you just do 4 more points worth of studying– you have to study it all and totally attack it again.

I didn't know what to expect on my first one, so I tried to keep fresh on the material while I waited for my score. With both work and school to deal with, that was hard, so I probably didn't do a very good job.

Some people say to start studying for the next one as soon as you take one, but I don't know how that works. The jumping around doesn't sound conducive to me.

AUD 84 (1/9/14-Wiley books/TB + free materials)
FAR 83 (5/21/14-the above + NINJA 10 Pt Combo Lite)
REG 84 (7/9/14-Wiley books/TB + NINJA Audio/FC/Notes)
BEC 76 (10/5/14-Wiley books/TB + NINJA Audio/FC)

Disclaimer: My ninja avatar is not meant to imply that I have any affiliation with this site other than being a forum member. That's a pic of a T-shirt that my daughter gave me for my birthday. 🙂

[Kimboroni]

I haven't had to retake yet, but from what I've read, you pretty much have to treat it like your first time studying if you want to pass. It's not “I just need 4 more points” so you just do 4 more points worth of studying– you have to study it all and totally attack it again.

I didn't know what to expect on my first one, so I tried to keep fresh on the material while I waited for my score. With both work and school to deal with, that was hard, so I probably didn't do a very good job.

Some people say to start studying for the next one as soon as you take one, but I don't know how that works. The jumping around doesn't sound conducive to me.

AUD 84 (1/9/14-Wiley books/TB + free materials)
FAR 83 (5/21/14-the above + NINJA 10 Pt Combo Lite)
REG 84 (7/9/14-Wiley books/TB + NINJA Audio/FC/Notes)
BEC 76 (10/5/14-Wiley books/TB + NINJA Audio/FC)

Disclaimer: My ninja avatar is not meant to imply that I have any affiliation with this site other than being a forum member. That's a pic of a T-shirt that my daughter gave me for my birthday. 🙂

[Anonymous]

I take my exams as close to the last acceptable exam date for the closest score release. If you plan it out that way then you may only have to wait a week or so for your score. Then you can either retake or move on. I don't know if I would plan an entire full study period for the retake because if you watch lectures for your first take I wouldn't watch them again for your second take. Usually the retake is because you didn't have enough time to review not because you didn't get through all the videso or didn't read the book. For a retake I would focus on pounding out the MCQs and rewriting notes, not going through the initial phases of taking notes again or watching videos again.Review and quizzing is the name of the game on a retake. But don't think about a retake before you've taken your first exam. You may not ever have to retake an exam if you practice good study habits and quality over quantity the first time. And make sure you leave enough time for reviewing all the material and getting through your entire test bank at least twice. Very important!!

[Anonymous]

I take my exams as close to the last acceptable exam date for the closest score release. If you plan it out that way then you may only have to wait a week or so for your score. Then you can either retake or move on. I don't know if I would plan an entire full study period for the retake because if you watch lectures for your first take I wouldn't watch them again for your second take. Usually the retake is because you didn't have enough time to review not because you didn't get through all the videso or didn't read the book. For a retake I would focus on pounding out the MCQs and rewriting notes, not going through the initial phases of taking notes again or watching videos again.Review and quizzing is the name of the game on a retake. But don't think about a retake before you've taken your first exam. You may not ever have to retake an exam if you practice good study habits and quality over quantity the first time. And make sure you leave enough time for reviewing all the material and getting through your entire test bank at least twice. Very important!!

[Author]

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