I have the Ballast study materials. What is the best course of action to prepare for this exam?
Everyday Architect
Aug 6, 21 6:39 pm
What have you tried so far?
natematt
Aug 6, 21 7:19 pm
Work experience should help too.
Have you done any of the 5.0 AREs so far?
t a z
Aug 7, 21 10:35 am
Do you have the latest 2nd edition with the yellow and grey cover?
It served me well to read the previous Ballast edition (cover to cover) but the manual really needed a complete re-edit to align better with the depth and topics the current exams cover.
Ballast, in general, covers much more technical detail than the actual exams. I.e. most of the info in the structural sections from my edition didn't come up at all and seemed leftover from an older version of exams.
Strategically I'd suggest studying for PPD and PDD together because there is a fair amount of overlap on subjects covered.
At the end of the day reading (and understanding) Ballast will help to make you more well rounded and give you a single consolidated reference to refer to in the future.
TL;DR: Is reading Ballast really boring? Yes. Is it worth the effort? Probably.
t a z
Aug 7, 21 10:39 am
Just do all the practice problems too. It gets the brain working.
I have the Ballast study materials. What is the best course of action to prepare for this exam?
What have you tried so far?
Work experience should help too.
Have you done any of the 5.0 AREs so far?
Do you have the latest 2nd edition with the yellow and grey cover?
It served me well to read the previous Ballast edition (cover to cover) but the manual really needed a complete re-edit to align better with the depth and topics the current exams cover.
Ballast, in general, covers much more technical detail than the actual exams. I.e. most of the info in the structural sections from my edition didn't come up at all and seemed leftover from an older version of exams.
Strategically I'd suggest studying for PPD and PDD together because there is a fair amount of overlap on subjects covered.
At the end of the day reading (and understanding) Ballast will help to make you more well rounded and give you a single consolidated reference to refer to in the future.
TL;DR: Is reading Ballast really boring? Yes. Is it worth the effort? Probably.
Just do all the practice problems too. It gets the brain working.