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bce
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Posted: Tue Jul 8th, 2008 12:11 am |
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Hi folks,
Well, I did it... passed the LEED NC exam last week w/ a 192, and since I was a frequent visitor to this site while I was studying, I thought I’d give back by offering a few tips from my experience. Nothing I’m going to say here is too revolutionary; it’s just my collection of thoughts on what worked for me.
First, some background: I’m a mechanical engineer for a consulting firm. I have about one year of industry experience and a B.S. in mechanical engineering. Even my limited industry experience definitely helped when it came to familiarity with the standards for the EA and EQ credits (ASHRAE 90.1 Appendix G is perpetually open on my desk).
In terms of studying for the test, I’ll first say that the Reference Manual is all but essential. It may be possible to pass without it, but you’d do yourself a huge favor to have access to the manual (preferably a NC2.2 3rd edition since things like EA credit 1 have changed since previous versions). Yes it’s expensive, but it’s cheaper than taking the test again and your employer may buy it for you anyhow. I would recommend doing a thorough skim of it at least twice to get an idea of what the credits and their intents are all about, then start taking practice tests and using the manual to look up more information on the areas where you struggled.
Speaking of practice tests, the USGBC Colorad.o chapter practice test is a great starting point, and in my opinion relatively reflective of the questions on the actual test. I also signed up for the greenexamprep exams about a week before the test after reading good reviews here. I found the greenexamprep questions to be more difficult than the actual test and more focused on knowing the minutia of the referenced standards… at least compared to the questions I got on the actual test. That said, I would definitely recommend greenexamprep as a way to expose yourself to 320 additional practice questions and recognize the areas you are struggling with… just don’t freak out and think you’re going to fail because you can’t remember what 4-phenolcyclohexene is.
Things to know:
- Think, dream, breathe ASHRAE! Standards 52.2, 55, 62.1, and *especially* 90.1 WILL be on the exam.
- Get familiar with the differences between similar sounding credits. i.e.: thoroughly understand the differences between:
o MRc1 bldg reuse vs. MRc3 recycled mat’l vs. MRc4 recycled content
o EAp1 fund comm vs. EAc3 enhanced comm.
o EAp3 fund ref mgmt vs. EAc4 enhanced ref mgmt
o WEc1 water eff lndscp vs. WEc3 water use reduction
o EAc2 on-site renewable energy vs. EAc6 green power
o Also, understand the differences between the meanings of Measurement & Verification vs. Commissioning vs. OA monitoring
- Understand the CIR process. Know that you cannot receive a point through submitting a CIR.
- Of course be very familiar with the thresholds for achieving all credits.
There is a lot more to know than what I’ve covered here (hence the 400 page reference manual!) but this should get you started. With enough studying and some focused memorization, this is a passable test.
Best of luck, all!
Brian
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ucb_pat
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Posted: Tue Jul 8th, 2008 12:23 am |
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Brian,
This is an awesome summary. Great score and congratulations! I'm also a big fan of the greenexamprep tests. Well done =)
-Pat with http://www.intheleed.com
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bce
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Posted: Tue Jul 8th, 2008 03:15 pm |
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Thanks Pat! I should add that I also frequented your site while I was studying and would highly encourage potential exam-takers to browse through your material at intheleed.com.
Cheers!
Brian
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gust.sara
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Posted: Wed Jul 9th, 2008 03:04 pm |
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Congrats....Gr8 score....!!!
Very importand points given by u & very precise summary...
We all r looking 4ward to score well & work out d most effective study strategy,ur given points r a gr8 help....
Thnx a lot...!!!
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bce
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Posted: Thu Jul 10th, 2008 11:35 pm |
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Glad you found it helpful... best of luck! 
Brian
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Getty
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Posted: Wed Jul 16th, 2008 08:38 pm |
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Hey Brian just curious, do you remember what % you got in each section to end up with a 192, or did it not tell you. if it didn't tell you about what percent did you get on the practice tests usually.
thanks, just trying to figure out how much more studying i need to do!
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bce
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Posted: Tue Jul 22nd, 2008 04:21 pm |
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Getty,
Sorry for the slow reply; I've been on vacation for a week here.
To answer your question, my section performance was:
Knowledge of LEED Credit Intents and Reqs: 93% correct
Coordinate Project and Team: 94% correct
Implement LEED Process: 93% correct
Verify, Participate in and Perform Tech Analyses for LEED Credits: 71%
Although I obviously struggled the most with the "Verify... etc" section, I couldn't have told you which section a given question was testing as I was taking the test. Seems like other people have had trouble with the "Verify..." section as well... if anyone has thoughts on this, feel free to post them here!
Oh, and for what it's worth, my greenexamprep scores (after a few weeks of studying) were generally in the 70-80% range, with the "Knowledge..." scores a bit higher and the "Verify..." scores lower than the average.
Hope this helps, and good luck!
Brian
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PAL
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Posted: Tue Jul 29th, 2008 07:58 pm |
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Brian,
How long would say you studied before taking the exam?
Pete
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ucb_pat
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Posted: Tue Jul 29th, 2008 10:07 pm |
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I took about 2 months for me, but I had a lot to do during that time (i.e. create http://www.intheleed.com). I suck at multiple choice tests, though. However, I've seen people come in here and say they only took one week and passed with flying colors. It's depends I guess.
Pat with http://www.intheleed.com
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bce
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Posted: Wed Jul 30th, 2008 06:46 pm |
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Hi Pete,
I would say my studying was broken down into stages. I knew when I started at my company a year ago that taking the LEED exam was something they wanted me to do, so throughout the past year I tried to absorb as much about the process as I could. During that time, I worked on a LEED project, which helped.
That said, I didn't start studying per se until I registered for the exam, which was about three weeks before the exam date. I found I was having trouble getting motivated to study, so I figured if I just went ahead and set a date, it would force me to get moving.
The first week, I took the reference guide home in the evenings and read through it as much as I could tolerate. The second week I went through the USGBC practice test a few times and used the reference guide to figure out what I wasn't understanding (which turned out to be a lot.) The final week, I registered for the greenexamprep practice tests and took each (of the 4) once, and two of them a second time.
In retrospect, it might have been smart to register for greenexamprep earlier since I believe you get 6 weeks or so of access. However, I think because the practice tests seem to focus on the details, they are more valuable near the end of the studying process when you have a grasp on the fundamentals and are ready to start memorizing details.
Are you registered for the exam yet? Best of luck in your studying!
Brian
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PAL
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Posted: Wed Jul 30th, 2008 08:25 pm |
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Brian,
No I haven't set an exam date as of yet. I was figuring on giving myself about four weeks of study time. Like you I need a target date to get myself motivated.
Thanks for the breakdown of your studies that's helpful to see how others have approached things.
thanks
Pete
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