Dealing with an ARE 5.0 failed exam is a frustrating experience. It sucks, no need to talk around it. On the positive side, if you’ve failed an exam you’re in good company. Pass rates are between 45% – 66%, depending on the exam, which means a lot of good, competent architects (YOU!) are not getting through these things on the first go.
So you got the dreaded, Likely Fail on your instant feedback. Here are seven things you can do starting today to get a pass on your retake:
- Remember your exam
- Learn the things you missed
- Don't take any time off
- Actually, yes, take time off
- Stay engaged with the material
- Make a plan
- Celebrate yourself
Read on below for more detailed thoughts on how to use these seven suggestions to pass the ARE 5.0 on your next attempt. Then make sure to check out the recommended resources at the bottom.
Can't read this because you're driving? Watch the video on YouTube instead!
REMEMBER YOUR ARE 5.0 EXAM
Write down as much as you can remember from the exam. NEVER show this to anyone or discuss it in public, but your post-exam notes-to-self could be your single best resource to prepare for the exam. Think about what you got wrong or didn't understand. With more time and less pressure do you think you can solve some of the problems?
I remember a question I got wrong (actually I think I lucked into getting it right, but that's another story, at the time I didn't understand the question). During the exam I thought I had to actually calculate the load on a beam. I couldn't remember a formula I needed and so I had to just guess. Sitting down later over lunch (see #7) I thought about the question and realized I did not actually have to calculate the beam…I just needed to understand how the loads would act on the beam and how I could make the beam stronger.
What difficult or complicated questions did you get wrong? Looking back on them, how would you go about solving them and is there any additional info you could learn now to make that process easier next time?
GO LEARN THE THINGS YOU MISSED
Yes, go find the answers to the questions you missed and learn those things. You are 95% certain* to NOT see the same question again, so your goal is NOT to prepare for that one specific question. Your goal is to learn the content that you are going to see. If you missed a question on parapet flashing go bust out your copy of Architectural Graphic Standards and study every parapet detail.
You’ll learn the thing you didn’t know on the exam, and even better, you’ll be exposed to the details and concepts that the exam-writers think are important. So while you won’t see the exact same roof detail on your next exam, I’d bet you do see roof construction questions, and you’ll be better prepared for them.
DON’T TAKE ANY TIME OFF
If this was your first fail, I’d suggest taking the exam again in 60 days. This is the earliest you are allows to retake a failed exam, according to the NCARB Failed Exam Retake Policy. 60 days is plenty of time to learn the things you missed and bolster up on everything else.
TAKE TIME OFF
Forget what I said about taking the exam again as soon as possible. Sometimes what you need to do is take a break. If this is your second fail on a division OR you failed at some point in the Fall, my advice is to wait for the new year to schedule your retake.
November through December is hectic enough with holidays, travel (N/A to people reading this in 2020), all that stuff. Enjoy it and use the time to regroup. When January rolls around channel all that New Year Energy toward your exam. See #5 below and get to it….
STAY ENGAGED WITH THE MATERIAL
If you take time off, this means no studying, but NOT no learning. You should stay engaged with the material. Read the IBC for 15 minutes a day. Look at Building Construction Illustrated every couple of days. Learn one detail a week from Graphic Standards. Find some topic that interests you and see what YouTube has.
My personal number one key to success on the exams is that I viewed them as a way to become a better designer and to learn the things I didn’t learn in school. I thought learning about steel and concrete and mechanical systems would make me better at my job and make me feel more legitimate in the work I was doing. And a great byproduct of this learning would be that I could also pass some exams.
If you can find a way to enjoy the learning process then this non-studying (but secretly studying) period will be very effective.
Then, when the new year rolls around you can actually study for real. See the next thing…
MAKE A PLAN
I think a study plan is the single best thing you can do to prepare for your next ARE 5.0 exam. Pick your exam date and think about what you want to learn before then to feel confident. Spend time browsing through all your resources to get a feel for what’s in them and what you want to take away. Then make a plan that takes you from day 1 through exam day. Make sure every item you want to learn is accounted for.
I have a few free study plans for PPD and PDD on this site. Use that as an example, or follow it yourself for those exams.
TRY TO CELEBRATE YOURSELF
I’m old enough that I was taking ARE 5.0 exams BEFORE the instant feedback. We had to wait an entire day before seeing our results, and tbh I think this is MUCH better than the instant feedback.
Just sitting for the exam is an accomplishment. Pass or fail, you spent hours preparing for the test (and learning stuff)! Instantly seeing a FAIL will overshadow all the positive things that you’ve done in the preceding weeks or months. Just because this specific 4-hour window didn’t go according to plan doesn’t mean you haven’t accomplished something.
After each of my exams I walked across the street to my same lucky restaurant, sat in the same seat and had the same crab dip and beer while taking notes about what I remembered, just in case. You should do the same. Take yourself to lunch or a movie or take the night off or WHATEVER. Just do something to commemorate the fact that you did a ton of work and sat through a very difficult test.
GO GET IT
Get back to work and go get your pass. Today maybe wasn’t your day, but it will happen. So go get it.
Footnotes:
* Made up statistic.
Resources for your next steps:
Hyperfine ARE 5.0 Study Assignments
These will help you focus on key concepts from the exams, and make efficient use of all those primary resources
ARE 5.0 Coaching
90% of how I can help you is free on this site or in the inexpensive Hyperfine study material I made. If you want to actually Zoom with me for an hour we can talk about your specific situation and goals.
ARE 5.0 Practice Quizzes
I did not make any of these, but I recommend any or all of them. Good content by actual architects who have been through the exams themselves.
Free ARE 5.0 Resources
Links to free ARE 5.0 study material and a list of current and standing discount codes. This page has things like links to the AIA contracts, the FEMA guides, Jenny's Notes and other similar resources.
