Are you willing to share which education provider you used and which review courses you've tried?   What sort of background do you have (industry/profession)?  If you're uncomfortable posting this information, feel free to email me at nancy@nljones.com.

ttd0715,

It sounds like it's one of two things.  Either a) you don't understand the material enough to pass or b) you're not a good test taker or c) both.  Okay, that's three things.  If it's the former, the only thing you can do is to continue trying to absorb the information, understand it, then apply it at test time.  No real secret there.  Depending on what review course you've taken, they should be helping you to focus on the right areas rather than on a bunch of the minutae that doesn't much matter.  If it's the latter, maybe there's some type of training you can seek out that will allow you to learn the proper techniques and strategies for test taking. 

In the meantime, there was a very good article written by a guy named David Ashby in 2001.  It talks about how the exam is scored, which may help you to understand what questions actually matter and what questions are so far out there that it's not worth spending your time worrying about.  You can see it by going here 
www.fpanet.org/journal/articles/2001_Issues/jfp1101-art13.cfm

Good luck!

I took the test about 6 years ago and failed.  Then took it again at the next available test date. 

The second time I took the test I took a 4 day review class.   But that wasn't it and I am not sure that is what helped.   I had 2 other people in my area that were also taking the test.  We would meet right after work  (sometimes 3:00 - 4:00) and study until 10:00 - 11:00 at night.    We just kept taking the quizes over an over and when in trouble, one of us had the answer to our question.  I also got up at 4:00 in the morning to study until about 7:00.     I did this daily and a good 6 to 7 hours on Sat and Sun for about 6 weeks.   

I passed.    My suggestion is to do what I did - give every minute you have to taking the quizes over and over.  It doesn't matter if you have a group or not.   I would just put in the time.

Good luck. 

Deborah

Its a pain, I rec Kaplan's live review course, take the 6 day one (two 3 day weekends), get the CD reviews, and get the flash cards, and use the online review.  Forget about reading the material on your own from here on out, self study should be testing online through kaplans test bank, it helps you hone in on your weak areas, and you can save time leveraging their technology.  Good luck, and dont go in there with a wounded duck outlook, you can pass it, its just a really hard test.  -Tom, MN

look up Ken Zahn on the web.....greatest review course....take, study and study..you will pass. 

I am using the Dalton Review for preparing for the CFP Exam.   I also have the review manuals published by CFFP (new), OLD Bisys-Dalton Review manuals, and a CD with 1000s of CFP questions  that I bought on E-Bay.    I like the Dalton Review because you can take either on-line or live classroom review unlimited times for no additional cost.     I will go to the classroom review in Atlanta, GA in June and the classroom or on-line review in November for the December exam.    Being that I live near Atlanta, where the live review is held,  was an important selection criteria.   

Rocket. I suggest you go to the October on line review and take the November exam. That might work out better.

Rocket, I have taken the Zahn review course, with Brett Danko. The review was  good, but  very fast.
Trying to find cases that I can practice, since I didn't do enough last time.

Too bad you didn't live closer, we could get together and study!

When you are meeting with someone, it makes you more disciplined.

I am Keir Educational Resources' lead editor and instructor for our live and online review courses for the CFP(R) Certification Examination. As a result, I have helped thousands of students pass this exam.

Here are some of the things I have found that are key to passing the CFP(R) Exam.

1. You must review all 89 topics tested on the exam every time you sit. I have found that students who already failed the exam at least once tend to review mainly the topics they missed last time. Although the students typically end up passing some of these topics, they also end up missing topics they knew the last time. You have to be very diligent studying every time. I know this is not an easy task as it takes between 200 and 300 hours to adequately prepare for the exam.

2. Did you complete a case studies book? We have found that the majority of the Keir students who fail the exam did not complete our case studies book. The cases help to bring it all together. I have also taught classes just on the cases. Students get faster on the cases with practice. Thus, if time was an issue for you on the exam, answering practice cases could help you cut down on the time it takes to answer the cases during the next exam.

3. If you have used the same review course provider for the first two attempts, you might want to change providers. Sometimes reading or hearing the information presented differently can make the difference. We all teach the same 89 topics. However, each company has their own style. I normally compare the different styles to Coke vs. Pepsi. Some people prefer Coke and some people prefer Pepsi, but there is nothing wrong with either soda.

4. If you get stuck when studying, contact your review course company for help. We have a link on our website where you can email your questions to our instructors. We have a team of instructors who respond to emails every business day. If you question cannot be handled via email, the instructor will call you directly.

I hope this helps. I wish you the best of luck the next time you sit for the exam.

Debra Sawyer

Thanks Debra for you input, it has been very helpful!. My concerns are basically, do I have enough time at this point to take the July Exam? I know that's hard for you to answer, and only I can judge for myself.

The last review book I have is for July 06 and then a C D that I bought for the last exam I took in Mar of '07.

One think I know I did not do is to do a bunch of cases before the last exam. I'm sure this would be helpful, since these points are higher. I just have to find a book or CD on cases. The review course I took only offers me a
new materials, which include a few cases only.

Does Keir offer a book of just cases that I can buy?

Other than that, all I can do is study, study, study.... from now until mid July.

Thanks for you encouragement.  

Debra,
I went through the Ken Zahn material with Bill Raddatz and also failed the exam.  Do you offer any type of discount on the live review for 2nd timers?  I don't want to use the same material for the next exam and have heard great things about Keir.

Thank you.
Weemery