Passed with a 33 on first try!
Hello everyone :3 I passed the exam recently and wanted to share my experience studying and the resources I used to help future test-takers!
First off, I’m a procrastinator, to the fullest extent of the word lol. What helped me stay on track was setting an exam date and sticking to it regardless of how stressed I felt, as it forced me to study. I actually studied for roughly 2-3 weeks for 5 days a week for 3-4 hours a day (rough estimate not including questions from pocket prep, I did not track time or days.).
I only used RD bootcamp and PocketPrep for study tools as I could not afford other materials. I SWEAR BY RD BOOTCAMP !!! They are affordable and have a structured course that is heavily animation video focused (if you are a visual learner like me, it’s a godsend), with flashcards, and practice questions with explanations. They also have a portion of the course dedicated to test taking and how to navigate the wording and options of the RD exam, which was super helpful the day of the exam. During each video or reading I took notes (I filled a notebook front to back). After completing a module, I would then try to explain the topic to my partner, which helped me assess how much I actually knew. I took two mock exams with RD Bootcamp and received scores of 80% and 84%. For PocketPrep, I have 27 hours of study time and answered 1100 questions. My subject scores are all high 80s.
This may not be the best idea but I chose to leave TPN, PN, and scoop size calculations until the last few days before my exam. Hear me out! On the day of the exam I felt like I was able to recall how to do calculations easier since they were fresh in my mind, so it worked for me.
The best advice I can give: give yourself a deadline and stick to it. Tell yourself by this day I will have this and this reviewed and completed. Learn the way YOU study the best (is it handwriting what you read or learned? Is it explaining to others? Is it watching animations?). Don’t bother spending so much money buying multiple resources, you will overwhelm yourself with information and materials. Do not go super in depth into every topic in MNT, understand the basics. Do not just memorize information, understand why the answer is correct and why the wrong answers are wrong (pocket prep helped with this the most).
The whole time I was doing the exam I felt like I was failing. The RD exam is a beast in a way that it will have you questioning everything. Trust your gut and remember that you know more than you think.