Just got back from the exam. Overall it felt pretty good - but you never know. Nothing too surprising on MC - I feel like generally the exam is not trying to be deliberately tricky like for example the PPI practice exam. They want you to understand the fundamentals (and some very specifics.)

Study what NCARB recommends as far as contracts go. Three primary ones are A201, B101 and A101, in that order of priority. I'd say that if you know A201 really well you will have a strong foundational knowledge for a fair amount of what the exam covers but don't frget other things as well - CSI Gen rqmts, constr. drawing and spec practices, etc. Listen to Schiff Harden lectures, all if possible but esp. A201, B101 and insurance. I know it helped me to hear a lawyer talk directly about the complex and risky process of construction. Bottom line is to know who does what in various situations. When studying it helps to be able to understand implications of contract provisions not just memorize them because questions might describe a hypothetical situation then ask who does what in that situation.


  • Studied primary AIA docs and understood the basics of what others cover
  • CSI Masterformat - esp. div 1 and differences btwn specs and drawings
  • Kaplan - pretty good overall
  • PPI - also good
  • AHPP - a bit, find straight study manuals more helpful
  • Kaplan and PPI Q+A and practice exams - good to do timed mock exams including vignette a few weeks in advance - really helps to ID weak spots. PPI practice exam is pretty tough.

As others have said, vignette is pretty straight forward but be on your toes! Don't remember wrong info from practice vignette. Look at plan very carefully, check and re-check. I found an element that I missed completely w/ three minutes to go! Scary but I had the tools wired from multiple practices and easily picked it up.

On to BD&CS!