first tuesday
50 critical study and exam tips
20 pre-exam study tips
The Big Day: 30 exam taking tips
20 pre-exam study tips
1.
Have a solid grasp of real estate vocabulary.
Many of the questions on the salesperson and broker exam require the applicant to complete the sentence by providing a real estate term for the definition provided. In first
tuesday writings, key industry terms are italicized on their first reference and bolded on
their second.
Key terms are also listed at the beginning of each chapter. Before you take the licensing
exam, make sure you are confident with all these terms.
A review of the Glossary, contained in the California Bureau of Real Estate Reference
Book: Information Relating to Real Estate Practice, Licensing and Examinations, and in
the Real Estate Principles textbook, will also provide a broader view of the content, and fill
in any gaps in your knowledge.
2.
Create flashcards and review them regularly.
Start with ten real estate terms then add five more terms to the pool everyday. During each
study session, review the five new terms and all the previous terms which came before
them, continually expanding your real estate vocabulary.
3.
Study smart.
Want to know more about the general concepts discussed in your Real Estate Principles
book? Included in the introduction of the majority Real Estate Principles chapters is a reference to the chapters in other books published by first tuesday where the general concept
is given an advanced analysis.
All 16 textbooks published by first tuesday are accessible on the Forms-on-CD which
came with your enrollment, and online from within the Library section of your Student
Homepage. These materials are an excellent reference and resource for additional study.
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4.
Read all resources available to you.
Study the California Bureau of Real Estate Reference Book: Information Relating to Real
Estate Practice, Licensing and Examinations available on this CD-ROM for an additional
discussion of the subject matter you will be tested on during the exam.
This will also acquaint you with the CalBRE’s phrasing of certain concepts and discussions – phrasing and language which will be highly similar to that used on the exam.
5.
Stay informed.
Keep current on real estate news that is happening today. A larger awareness of what’s
happening in real estate now will provide a real world application to your studies, translating academic concepts into tangible experience. This knowledge will function as glue
binding all the disparate study topics together.
Tune in to the first tuesday journal online for forward-looking original real estate articles
based on California real estate data. The first tuesday journal online contains daily news, a
monthly update of California’s new real estate bills, and laws and court decisions affecting
your practice.
Get in the habit of following real estate news now – your future job performance and livelihood will depend on it!
6.
Test your knowledge with the State Exam Preparation Book.
If you haven’t done so, purchase a copy of the either the Sales Agent or Broker State
Exam Preparation Book. The Exam Preparation Book features 1,000+ multiple choice
questions for review, weighted between subjects as imposed by the CalBRE.
Each book also includes a glossary, math workbook, final briefing and prep outline.
7.
Cut the distractions and get down to work.
Study the materials in a quiet place where you are free of distraction. Log out of Facebook and Twitter and turn off your cell phone when you are studying. Also, stay focused on
your work. Do not prepare for the exam while in front of a TV, computer, radio or anything
else which will compete for your attention.
8.
With a little help from your friends.
If you study better with others, form a study group of other applicants who will soon be
taking the exam.
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9.
Use mnemonic devices and acronyms.
You are tasked with absorbing a lot of new information while preparing for the exam. To
help with the memorization of these concepts, use easy-to-remember mnemonic devices
and acronyms to help these concepts stick.
Both methods help solidify foreign concepts in the brain, translating abstract and impersonal ideas into something more relatable and easy to recall.
10.
Pair up with an experienced professional.
Find an experienced mentor, such as your future employing broker or practicing agent
with at least five years of experience, and pick their brains for advice and tips.
Consider this your first round of real estate networking!
11.
Solicit input from a new licensee.
Ask around amongst new licensees about their experience taking the exam. What subjects
were heavily represented on the exam? Were any of the questions particularly challenging?
What pragmatic test taking tips do they have?
It is preferable to ask an applicant who has recently tested, as the CalBRE is constantly
changing and updating their pool of exam questions. The more recently the licensee took
the exam, the better.
12.
Test the way that suits you.
Take the exam in the format that is most comfortable to you. If the thought of testing on
a computer terrifies you, arrange to take your exam on paper in Sacramento so you can
focus on the content of the exam itself – not the manner in which it is taken.
13.
Write it down.
The physical act of writing down information helps in its retention. Physically engage
with your materials. Make extensive notes of all the material you are not familiar with on a
separate sheet of paper, highlight key passages in the books and make notes in the margins
to provide you with a road map for future study.
14.
Scour the California Bureau of Real Estate’s (CalBRE’s) website.
Review the California Bureau of Real Estate’s (CalBRE’s) website under the Examinees
tab for additional information and answers to frequently asked questions.
Further, a general understanding of the layout of the CalBRE’s website will prove useful
once you become licensed as you will return there with some frequency.
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15.
The early bird passes the exam.
Arrive to the test site early so you are not rushed or hurried. You want to start the exam in
a relaxed, comfortable frame of mind – not frazzled from your commute. If you arrive late
you will still be admitted, but you will lose the number of minutes you were tardy by.
Remember: the earlier you arrive, the more time you have to cram before the test begins.
16.
Be well rested and ready to go.
Get plenty of rest the night before you take the exam. What you do at night sets the course
for your next day. Thus, get in exam-mode before you go to bed the night before – and go
to bed early.
Refrain from alcohol or caffeine the night before to ensure a clear mind in the morning.
17.
Test on a full stomach.
Eat before you test. Refrain from devouring a heavy meal and stick to something light,
nutritious and filling. You don’t want to contend with stabs of hunger when you’re trying
to parse a difficult question.
18.
Make it real.
Having a hard time grasping some of the concepts? Make them personal.
Instead of considering the concepts only as they appear in the book, visualize them in a real
world context more familiar to you: What was your experience when you purchased your
own home? What disclosures did you receive? What kind of mortgage do you have? If you
were to conduct an appraisal of your house, what method would you use and what do you
believe is its fair market value (FMV)? What is the architectural style of your neighbor’s
house? What steps would you take to list a house for a friend?
By making these concepts real, they have a greater chance of being understood at a deeper
level – and retained for when you take the exam.
19.
Practice with a timer.
When taking quizzes or any practice exams, time yourself. Try to finish them in less time
than is provided for the actual licensing exam. Consider a musician practicing a piece of
music at faster tempo than they will actually perform it.
When the real licensing exam is being taken, you will be prepared to finish it faster than is
necessary – providing you with the opportunity to review your answers before you submit
the exam.
20.
Practice makes perfect.
Retake the practice quizzes for your pre-licensing courses multiple times until you consistently receive a score of 80% or greater. Though non-mandatory, the quizzes provide a
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useful illustration of the key topics which you’ll be exposed to over the initial years of your
practice – and on the licensing exam.
The Big Day: 30 exam taking tips
1.
Carefully read what is written.
Read the exam questions slowly and carefully multiple times. Read what is written, not
what you expect to be written.
If you’ve seen a similar question on a practice exam or quiz, do not assume the question is
the same on the licensing exam. The exam question may be phrased in the positive, when
the question you previously saw was phrased in the negative, or it may be asking you to
answer a different facet of the concept.
Do not try to anticipate the intent of the exam question, read only what you see.
2.
Answer what is written – do not assume any facts outside of the question.
Answer the questions exactly as they are written. Every question is its own self-contained
universe, and everything you need to answer it will be contained in the question itself.
Do not try to argue with a question or change its wording. Leave your personal anecdotes
at the door and answer the question based on its content, not your opinions about it.
3.
Skip the hard questions then go back to them.
If you are stuck on a challenging question, skip it then return to it after you have answered
all the other questions for which you are confident of the answer.
Regardless of the length or complexity of any single question, all questions on the exam
are given the exact same weight and importance. Thus, do not invest a disproportionate
amount of time into a single irksome question (e.g., a math question), unless you have already answered all others first.
4.
Make sure your exam booklet and answer sheet are in sync.
If you are taking the exam on paper, you will have an exam booklet and a separate answer
sheet. Be sure that you are marking the correct box on the answer sheet that corresponds to
the exam question so you do not get out of sequence and miss a whole series of questions.
This is of particular concern if you intentionally skip a question with the intent of revisiting
it later. If you skip a question, also skip the corresponding line on the answer sheet.
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5.
Partially incorrect = incorrect.
A partially incorrect answer selection is still incorrect. Think of the exam as a binary construct: an answer selection is either correct or incorrect – partially correct is the same as
incorrect. There are no nuances or shades of grey on the exam.
6.
Tackle the exam in phases.
Some students find it helpful to go through the exam in three separate phases.
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first time: answer those questions for which the answer is immediately known without equivocation;
•
second time: answer all those questions for which you are able to eliminate one or two of the distractors; and
•
third time: answer all those tricky questions which require further deliberation.
Be on the lookout for common math errors.
Some of the distractor answer selections supplied with a math question will be based on
common math errors.
If the CalBRE is aware of common math errors, such as an incorrect conversion of a decimal to a percentage or the omission of a final step in a calculation, one (or multiple) of the
distractor answer selections may be based on this frequently miscalculated answer choice.
Be on the lookout for these intentional misdirections in math questions.
8.
Estimate, then confirm.
Before calculating the answer to a math question, first estimate what you believe the correct answer will logically be.
This will equip you with a ballpark amount for the correct answer, enabling you to eliminate the distractors that are drastically outside of this estimated amount.
9.
Work backwards and plug in the answer selections.
Work backwards on math questions. First, mentally estimate what you believe the correct
answer should be, locate the answer selection that most closely matches this estimate, then
plug the answer selection into the scenario of the question.
If it is the correct answer selection, the question and answer will be logically consistent.
If you plug the incorrect answer selection into the question, its internal consistency will be
broken.
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10.
Be comfortable.
Wear comfortable clothing to the exam and bring a sweater. If the air conditioning is blaring, put on an extra layer of clothing to avoid the distraction of physical discomfort.
11.
Use all the tools at your disposal.
Use the provided calculator to double-check your math, even if it’s basic. When under the
stress of testing, it is not unthinkable to inadvertently make a simple math error.
Even if you’re good at mental math, let the calculator remove all possibility for error. Think
of it as confirming what you already know.
12.
Never seen it before? It’s probably not the right answer.
Eliminate any answer selections containing a term you are entirely unfamiliar with. If you
have never been exposed to the term during the course of your studies, it is likely not a
crucial concept and is therefore a distractor.
13.
Keep an eye on the clock.
When testing electronically, a timer is always visible on the screen. Keep an eye on the
time in order to properly allocate your remaining time left, but don’t dwell on it or let it
cause you undue consternation when testing. Think of it as a helpful pacesetter of your
progress, nothing more.
14.
Give yourself some structure.
Like structure? Create a time frame for yourself. To establish a pace, set benchmarks
dictating a certain number of questions you’d like to answer by a certain time. This will
ensure you don’t run out of time at the very end, or are burning through the early questions
too quickly.
For example, budget 45 minutes each for questions 1-37, 38-75, 76-113 and 114-150. This
will divide the exam into manageable quarters (and provide you with 15 extra minutes to
go back and double check your work at the end).
15.
When in doubt, go with the longer or shorter answer selection.
If you are unsure about a question, the longer or shorter answer selection is likely the correct one. Look for the answer selection that is different from the others.
16.
The greater the fraud protection, the better.
For questions concerning state or federal regulatory controls, the answer that best affords
protection and prevents fraud is likely correct.
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17.
Unlawful answers are never right.
Any answer selection that is overtly unlawful or contrary to public policy is incorrect
(unless the question is asking you to choose the answer selection which illustrates inappropriate conduct).
18.
When presented with very similar answer selections, one is likely correct.
It is unlikely to encounter two similar distractors for the same question. If you see two answer selections with very similar wording with the exception of just one or two words, one
of these answer selections is likely correct.
If you do not know the correct answer and have to make an educated guess, by eliminating the two outlier distractors, you will have a 50%-50% chance of answering the question
correctly.
19.
Look for clues.
Some questions are answered directly or indirectly in subsequent questions.
If you are stuck on a question, review the exam for other questions covering a similar subject matter and see whether these questions provide any clues regarding the answer of the
question causing you trouble.
Think of the exam as an elaborate crossword puzzle in which you can use answered questions to fill in blanks of your remaining questions. When in doubt, become a detective,
scouring the exam for clues which may shed light onto the question at hand.
20.
You have nothing to fear but fear itself.
Do not become overburdened by test taking anxieties or fear. Remember: you prepared for
the exam (and can retake it if you fail).
21.
Use every second to your advantage.
Use the full time allotted to take the exam. After you complete it, don’t immediately submit it. Go back and review the exam multiple times (as many times as the clock allows).
It is a matter of human nature to make the occasional mistake; mathematical, clerical,
conceptual or otherwise. Thus, take the time to go back and review the exam after it is
complete to ensure simple errors, such as incorrect math or use of a vocabulary term, are
remedied before it is submitted.
If you’re taking the exam on paper and have to change an answer, fully erase your previous
selection. Otherwise, the question will be graded as if two answers were selected, and will
thus be incorrect.
Each minute is valuable – use them.
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22.
Make a note of it.
You are provided a small white board, marker and eraser when taking the exam. This
comes in handy for making notes, such as specific questions you’d like to come back to and
review, or helpful mnemonic devices or acronyms you used during your study.
It is also helpful to use the white board to write out equations for math questions (though a
calculator is also provided).
23.
Use your “last chance” to go back and review.
When testing electronically, after completing the exam and submitting your answers, you
will be asked whether you’d like to confirm the submission.
This is your last chance to go back and review your answers. If you have any time left and
are not 100% confident in all of your answers, use it.
24.
Be a trooper – don’t take a break.
You may take breaks at anytime during the exam. However, you will have to formally sign
out, check in your computer mouse, then sign back in on reentry. More crucially, the clock
continues to run during your break, stealing precious minutes from your total allotted test
time. Thus, try to avoid breaks if possible, or keep them very short if they are necessary.
If you’re taking the broker licensing exam, you will be provided with a break between test
sessions which is not deducted from your total testing time.
25.
Grammatically incorrect = wrong answer.
If the question asks you to complete the sentence by marking an answer selection, any
selection which is not grammatically correct when plugged into the sentence is likely a
distractor.
Pretend the CalBRE is infallible – the correct answer will not contain a mistake.
26.
Look for the exception.
If two or three answer selections appear to be correct, reread the question and determine
whether it is asking you to select an exception – the answer selection that is not correct in
practice.
27.
Are two answers correct?
Some answer selections provided are, “All of the above,” “None of the above,” or “Both
a. and b.”
If you’re reviewing the answer selections and multiple seem correct, check all of your
answer selection options to determine whether an “All of the above” or “Both a. and b.”
response is available.
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28.
It’s all random – but sometimes patterns appear in random sequences.
Do not be concerned with patterns which may occur in your answer selections. Just because the answers to four questions in a row were “c.” does not mean that any of those
answers are inherently incorrect.
It is not uncommon for multiple answers in a row to be located in the same column or be
the same letter. Do not arbitrarily change your answers solely to break a pattern you may
perceive is developing, as these patterns are the result of pure chance.
The human brain is hard wired to see patterns everywhere – don’t let your reptilian brain
get the best of you!
29.
Never say never.
Keep an eye out for absolute wording such as “always,” “never,” “every,” “only,” and
“must.”
If absolute language is used in the question, the correct answer selection must be correct
ALL of the time (or NONE of it) – no exceptions.
Further, if one of the answer selections is incorrect and “All of the above” is provided as
an answer selection, it cannot be correct and thus is not to be selected. This is also the case
for “Both a. and b.” answer selections if either answer selection “a.” or “b.” is clearly incorrect.
30.
If all else fails, take an educated guess.
If you have absolutely no idea what the correct answer selection is, take an educated
guess.
A one-in-four shot is better than failing to answer the question at all, which is certain to
score no points.
Use the tips provided here and exercise common logic to eliminate as many distractors
you can. Examine the language of the question and avoid all answer selections which are
not grammatically correct. Choose an answer selection which is closely related to another
answer selection, eliminating the two choices that are very different. Scan the whole exam
for clues which will help you answer the question causing you grief.
Relax, stay calm and remember: missing a handful of questions won’t prevent you from
passing.
Do you have any additional study or exam tips?
Share your wisdom with your fellow first tuesday Students by emailing your experiences to
the first tuesday Editorial Department at editorial@firsttuesday.us.
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