Every once in a while Mars will align with Jupiter during a lunar eclipse and a drive by of Haley's comet. Well, I think last Monday morning was one of those rare moments in the continuum of space and time because I was somehow able to muster enough information out of my swelling brain to pass the LEED AP exam with a less that spectacular score of 174 out of 200 (you need a 170 to pass). And now I will share my secret with all of cyberspace: You need to study.
I will in fact go into some more tips on passing it or a least tell you what I did and should have done to make my life a little easier, but before I do so (because you wouldn't listen to be bitch if I told you now) I need to vent a bit about how angry I would have been if I failed this thing. Not only was the test $400 plus about $300 I spent on reference material and study classes, but since the criteria for LEED project certification has already changed, I would have had to learn the new system before I took the test again. I will have to learn the new system eventually, but at least I don't have to go through the misery of cramming every percentage, associating it with a LEED credit and then spitting it back at a testing center.
So the first thing you need to do is read the reference manual cover to cover. Just do it. Of course, I felt like I was above this and I used the pick and choose method of what I studied from the book. But I've realized that the people who make this exam want you to read the whole thing and they'll ask you questions that you won't know if you only look at the major criteria for each credit.
I took a six week study class put on by the Delaware Valley Green Building Council and this was actually pretty good. There is probably something similar in your local green building chapter. It was only $75 and they gave practice questions and insight on the LEED system and how to pass the test. We concluded the class with a spirited game of LEED Jeopardy by splitting into groups and competing against each other. My group finished dead last.
I took three practice tests and scored exactly the same on all three - roughly 50% correct. With two days left before the exam, I felt like John McCain two days before the presidential election. After aimlessly leafing through the credit criteria I decided to structure my cramming with a spreadsheet that came with my Ebay purchase of the reference guide. The sheet has every credit and prerequisite in the left column and and then a column for intent, requirements, submittals, reference standards, and construction vs. design submittal. I went through each credit and covered up the pertaining information and tried to recall what should go in. After about three or four times through the document I think I tripled my knowledge of LEED credits. I think this method was the primary reason for me taking my 50% average to about 69% which is evidently enough to squeeze by.
I will say that the moment before I hit end on this test was one of the most nervous moments of my life. Perhaps its because I'm jobless and the money I had invested and the struggle I would have to go through to study for the test again, but it was certainly an experience that I will not soon forget. I clicked the end button, and after about ten excruciating seconds of computer churning a screen popped up with the word pass next to the word result. Damn.
Enjoy, and be sure to let me know how it goes.
John Poole, LEED AP
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