Board of Licensure Examination is the next step of every student who graduated

in their respected discipline. I am one of the test takers of the third batch of BLEPP (Board
of Licensure Examination in Psychology and Psychometrician) who successfully passed the
exam in the first try. The exam is surely difficult but for me, you do not need to attend a review
center in order to pass. It actually depends on what type of learner you are. If you do not have
much self-discipline or you learn better when you have guidance then you can attend a review
center, but if you know that you can study well by yourself then you can just review on your own.
It is actually possible to pass the board exam through self-review because that is exactly what I
did. Also, reading blogs helped me a lot in gaining insights about the test so I also want to share
some tips to aspiring psychometricians.

So, I want to share with you the things that I did before, during, and after the board exam
but#remember that this might or might not work on you#so it is best if you know your strengths
and weaknesses when it comes to studying.

BEFORE THE BOARD

I only had 3 months and few more weeks to prepare for the board exam. After I
graduated on April, I still have to take NMAT for the same month and after that I spent the last
2 weeks of April for rest and leisure that I was deprived of during my 4th year in college. So, I
started my review on May and ended it on the first few weeks of August so that I will have time
to relax before the actual exam. Our exam was on August 30 and 31.

I stopped my heavy review 2 weeks before the board. By that time, I was just refreshing my
notes, having few light readings, and scanning for some small information that I might have
missed during my heavy review.

Here are my tips that helped me pull through:

1. Finish your registration early.

It really takes A LOT of time and effort doing ALL the requirements. Some of the papers like
your NSO/PSA, TOR, NBI, and GMs take WEEKS before you can claim them. Going to the PRC
Office is also a big hassle and you still don’t know if your appointment day is full or you will have
to fall in line all day long so I suggest that you finish it early so that it will no longer interfere in
your deep and intense study session.

2. Learn to prioritize.
Prioritize on which subject you will study first. Are you going to start to your weakest

subject first or to the most difficult?

3. Make a schedule and stick to it.

Create your own schedule. Decide which subject you will study on which day and for

how many hours. Be sure to stick to it or else everything will be ruined. Don’t cram

unless you are certain that you are one of those people who are very much fond of

cramming and can still pass the exam. But cramming is never the answer. Preparation is the
key!

4. Do not read too many books. Choose the best reference and master it.

1 or 2 reliablebooks are enough. Reading too many books for 1 subject that includes the same
information can only confuse you and make it easier for you to forget the first few books that
you have read. Instead of doing that, just master one or two books that are reliable. I have a lot
of resources but I only used 1 book to each of the 3 subjects (TOP, I/O, AbPsych) and 2 books to
Psychological Assessment because that is my weakness. Here are the books that I used:

Theories of Personality – Feist & Feist

Industrial and Organizational Psychology – Aamodt

Abnormal Psychology – Kring, et al.

Psychological Assessment – Cohen & Swerdlik, and Kaplan & Saccuzo

5. Know your pace.

Do not get pressured if you are already behind your classmates. Studying is not a race. It is not
measured by how many books you have finished or how fast you read but by how much you
understand. Know if you are a fast reader or not, or if you will need a second reading or not. In
my case, I read slowly but I only read it once.

6. Use your time wisely.

Do not waste your time being idle. Instead of watching tv or playing that computer
game, you could have read one chapter. Remember that you will have all the time in the world
after the board exam so use your time wisely.

7. Reward yourself.

Every time you finish reading a whole chapter, treat yourself so that you will be
motivated to study more if you know that you will have a reward afterwards.

8. Give your brain a break.

If you are already drained and your brain is already information overload, don’t push

yourself too hard. Rest. Sleep. Have a power nap. Have a break. It will become useless if you
don’t retain what you have studied because of that condition.

9. Eat well.

When studying, your brain uses so much energy so you also need to take more energy by eating
nutritious foods and brain foods like dark chocolates or peanuts.

10. Do not just focus on the new, study the old topics too.

This is one of my biggest mistakes. I studied DSM-5 to bits and pieces only to find out

that there is no single DSM-5 criterion in the actual board but DSM-IV-TR instead. So,

just because it is old doesn’t mean that it is no longer important.

11. Practice mock exams.

Practice online quizzes. You can also find Practice Exam PDFs online that you can
download and practice it at home. Pretend that you are already taking the board exam. Practice
how you would answer the questions. Practice how to manage your time.

12.Know the test-taking techniques.

There are different test-taking strategies that you can use in order to get the correct

answer even if you do not have any idea about the question. You can find a lot in the

internet. The three main techniques that I used are the elimination, odd man out, and

rationalization.
13.Sacrifice a little

By giving more time in studying, you are having less time with family and friends. It will be hard
but remember that it will all be worth it in the end.

14.Believe in yourself and don’t quit.

You have prepared so much for this exam so do not quit few days before the actual

exam. The moment you decided that you will take the board only means that you are

determined enough to pass it. Do not be afraid of failing. If you did fail, you will now

have the advantage because you already know how to do it next time. That is better than quitting
and retaking the board without any experience with it. But do not think of failing. Believe in
yourself and claim that you will pass and be a Registered Psychometrician.

15.Think of your future and not of other people.

The reason why you will take the exam is for yourself and not for other people. Do not be
pressured because of their expectations. They will never know the pressure, the
hardships, the struggles, the setbacks, and everything behind the scenes that you have
experienced. Your parents, your relatives, your teachers, your classmates, your friends, and even
your neighbors—what they will see is only the product but never the process on how you made
it. Whatever their reaction is, whether you pass or fail, in the end of the day, the result of the
board exam is for yourself and not them.

16.Stay motivated.

Think of what will happen when you pass the board exam—the thing that you really

want so bad. Why do you want to pass the board? Is it because you can finally prove to yourself
and to other people that you can achieve something this big? Is it because you told yourself that
when you pass the board, you will buy this thing that you have been waiting for so long or that
your parents will buy it for you? Is it because you want to see yourself in a tarpaulin that your
proud school will make for you? Is it because of the letters “RPm” that you will get after passing
it? Is it because of the license ID? For whatever reason you have, just keep thinking of it. Make
that your motivation in order to pass the board.

17.Aim high and think positive.

18. Pray.

Pray. It really helps a lot. Pray but do not rely on prayers. Do your part—study hard and give
your best—and God will do the rest.

DURING THE BOARD:

1. Make a checklist of what to bring.

It is troublesome if you forget even one thing—most especially your NOA. You will not be
allowed to take the exam without your NOA so be sure to take care of it. Don’t forget to bring an
umbrella or jacket just in case you need it. It rained during the first day of my exam. My room is
also really cold that I don’t know what I would do if I didn’t bring

2. Get enough sleep.

I want to suggest that you get at least 8 hours of sleep but to tell you the truth, I was not able to
sleep even 1 hour of sleep during the first day of exam. Maybe, I was too tense. So, if you are like
me who cannot sleep, just get rest and try to relax. Avoid studying at this point. You might get
mental block if you push more information into your brain or you might fell asleep during the
exam if you tire your brain too much. I don’t know which one is worse.

3. Eat breakfast but not a heavy one.

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day so be sure not to skip it. You will need lot of
energy to process all the information during the exam. But I suggest that you do not eat too
much so that your stomach will not consume your energy burning your heavy meal.

4. Bring snacks and packed lunch.

In my testing site, you can bring snacks inside and eat while you are answering so bring some
mini snacks or mini brain foods so that you will not be distracted answering if you are hungry.
Also, bring a packed lunch or buy earlier in the morning because you will only be given 1 hour
for lunch break and all the fast foods or canteens are full of students. It will be hard and
a hassle for you to order.
5. Be food-conscious

Do not attempt to eat random foods or street foods during your exam days. You will regret it if
you got an upset stomach. So, endure a bit by avoiding your favorite#turo- turo snacks just for
these days.

6. Focus, focus, focus.

Focus and concentrate.#You are not allowed to make any mistakes#so be sure that you are
following the instructions well and clear. Always use pencil for shading and always use ballpen
for writing. Always remember this because I know few people who interchanged the two and it
was a very horrible mistake. If you use ballpen in shading, you will have a technical problem and
you might fail not because you did not reach the passing score but because of a technical
problem. That’s painful, right? So, focus! Also, any kind of erasure is not allowed so before you
shade an answer, you must make sure that you are not going to change it. You can write on the
test booklet/ test paper so I suggest that you answer the test paper first and transfer them to
your answer sheet afterwards. Focus also in the numbering if you decided to skip an item. So,
focus!

7. Manage your time wisely.

You will be given 3 hours of answering so plan on how you are going to answer first. You can use
the first 2 hours for answering in the test paper and 1 hour for transferring. Be careful on
transferring.

8. Be conscious and careful.

Shade GENTLY. Do not put too much pressure on your answer sheet. Do not also make
unnecessary marks like your fingernails. Marking using your fingernails is strictly
prohibited. If you decided to eat while answering, make sure that your food will not mark or
smudge your scantron. It might also create technical problems. So, handle it with care.

9. Pray.

If your hands are shaking and your heartbeats are fast because of anxiety, pray to God that He
will calm you down. If you did not understand the question, pray and ask God to help you
understand the question. Pray and ask for His guidance that He may show you the right answer.
Pray that you will get through this exam with His Divine Mercy.
10. Have fun.

I am not mocking but board exam can actually be fun if you know what you are doing. At first, it
is really nerve-wracking but if you get the hang of it, you can actually find it enjoying. Just
enjoy the exam. You are already there. Stress, doubts, and negative thinking will do no
good.

AFTER THE BOARD

Now, you have done everything that you can. It is now time to lift up everything to the Lord. You
already gave your best. #You deserve some good rest. Eat to your heart’s content. Sleep and
regain all the energy that you have lost. Heal. Just relax and have fun.

I wish you the best of luck! God bless future Psychometricians!