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| 10 Key Strategies to Help You Pass Your Licensing or Certification Exam |
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As the author of licensing and certification exam preparation materials, I am quite often asked if there are any efficacious strategies to maximize your score on the exam. My answer is an unequivocal "yes." Here are 10 specific methods that can be easily implemented.
1. Give yourself ample time to prepare for the exam. I am amazed (shocked rather) at the sheer number of counselors who literally wait until the last minute to begin their exam preparation. A woman who received her master's degree over 18 years ago telephoned me several days prior to the administration of her examination. She asked with a high degree of sincerity whether 48 hours would be sufficient in terms of study time. I immediately suggested that 48 hours would barely be enough time to memorize the exam content areas much less study for the entire test!
Imagine for a moment that you were working with a client who wanted to become an attorney and thus had to sit for the bar examination. Or perhaps you were counseling an accountant who needed to pass the Certified Public Accountant Exam to secure CPA credentials. I can't imagine that you would condone a client's program of study that commenced just weeks, or worse yet, days before the exam. Personally, I feel that six-to-eight months lead time (if not more) is ideal.
2. Keep the duration of your study sessions brief. Translation: Do not engage in marathon study sessions. For years behavioral scientists have been investigating a phenomenon known as mass versus distributed practice. Mass practice is akin to a long or marathon study session. Distributed practice, on the other hand, means you keep your study sessions short with generous time intervals between each session. The research clearly indicates that distributed practice yields far more desirable results. Unfortunately, if you begin studying just days before the exam then you will be forced to cram. Why not sign a behavior management contract with yourself stating that you will keep your study sessions brief and spaced over a reasonable period of time. Remember to enhance the contract by providing yourself with positive reinforcement for sticking to your plan. For example, you might allow yourself an ice cream treat each time you study for a fifteen-minute interval. Just for the record, if you switch the position of the reinforcer (i.e., you scarf down the ice cream treat and tell yourself you will study after you are finished) the chances are next to none that the strategy will be effective.
3. Don't allow perfectionism to hinder your exam performance. Dr. Albert Ellis, the founder of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT), has been warning us about the dire consequences of perfectionism since the 1950s and it is time that we take his admonition seriously. A woman confessed that after a mere 10 minutes into the exam she exited the room in tears. She was convinced that she had flunked her test.
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