exam day

{kai}

07.23.2022

<exam day>

hi friends :)) i hope you’re all relaxing this saturday! today i am taking an exam to become a ed behavior technician, as i currently work as a behavior technician. this exam is a 90 minute timed exam with 85 questions. i previously completed 40-hours of training and took an assessment to qualify for the exam.

i am sharing with you my exam day so you can see and maybe learn from my exam day routine. luckily, i had until 12:45PM (13:45) to prepare, most aren’t as lucky.

5:00AM

reading - the queens gambit

every morning i start my day off by reading for 20 minutes. i feel it’s been easier on my mind rather than instantly sitting on notion for an hour at the beginning of my day. this way i can start my day off right and stay off the screens a little bit longer.

i also love living in a different reality for a little bit each morning :)

5:20AM

plan day - notion + google calendar

another daily routine i have is looking at my notion and google calendar and planning out my day/week. today i focused on my mourning routine and up until my exam because afterwards i want to do whatever i want and have that choice after a stressful day.

5:40AM

eat breakfast - honeydew melon, coffee + podcast = <3

without breakfast my whole day will be thrown off, so this is a very important step for me as it should be for anyone ! breakfast starts off your day and you’re giving your body the nutrients it needs.

for this morning i just ate some honeydew melon because i wasn’t feeling too hungry, but i wanted to make sure i ate something :)

6:00AM

mourning routine - shower, skin care, brush teeth, get dressed, yoga/meditate

keeping up with your morning routine on exam day is so essential i can’t metaphorically highlight and bold it enough !!

on this day you want to feel relaxed and neutral and confident and it can be hard doing that when you’re rushed, out of place, etc.

give yourself the basic needs you deserve

notes

taking notes - looking over materials

some people don’t like to cram everything in their head the day if the exam, but it works for me. i forget things so easily, especially under pressure. the fresher the better for me! but you do whatever you need to do for your comfort level. i set up 3, 1-hour periods of my day to study. other than my first study period, i gave myself the decision to do 30 minutes for the other 2 if i felt comfortable enough. i find i need to let myself be more flexible and relaxed and this is me finding that harmony :)

i used the forest app to track how long i am studying for

i put it at the stopwatch setting so i can go longer if i wish

at the end of this hour long study period i decided to take a break and not go on, saving more note taking and staring the unfamiliar terminology for next study period

7:30AM

break - amino :0

for my break i decided to work on this blog, i put on some lofi and did what makes me feel happy and calm. it made me feel good staying productive and creative during my break !

i took a 1 hour break to fit my needs, a lot of people don’t prefer longer breaks. there’s a lot of trial and error to finding what works for you, but once you find it it’s worth it

8:30AM

study - finish notes, staring, practice quiz

next i studied some more by finishing up the notes i started before, staring any terminology i am not 100% comfortable with, and then taking a 20 question practice quiz. i finished this within 30 minutes and did not feel the need to complete the full hour of studying. listen to your mind and body !!

9:00AM

prepare - food, clearing workspace, setting up laptop for exam, etc.

the rest of my time i used to relax a bit and prepare for the exam. i didn’t want to stress myself out too much, i was already feeling pretty nervous. i ate a bagel, i cleared my workspace, i set up my laptop and kept my notes up to review occasionally.

12:00PM

setting up - clearing area, singing in

it was very important for me not to be distracted. i made sure that i was in a quiet area with my desk completely cleared. there was zero opportunities for me to get distracted. it was only me and the exam in front of me.

12:45PM

taking the exam!!!

i was found a proctor and started my exam at approximately 12:50PM, and finished after 70 minutes (2:00PM). almost immediately i found out my results …

…. i ed !!!

i was definitely nervous for this exam, but i feel as if i prepared myself well this morning and balanced my time and needs well. i hope that explaining my exam routine for you helped you set up your own!

enjoy !!!

{kai}