nine months in the making

three years ago, i signed up to take a 2 day licensing exam for interior design. and because i am not a particularly great test taker, i of course, procrastinated taking said exam. it IS offered twice a year (only once a year where i live) but i knew how much it would take to prepare for the test and so i deferred it. and kept deferring it. 7 times to be exact. but last fall i just knew that i needed to buckle down, figure it out, and commit to taking it.

so i did.

i started studying in january and took a step class in february. it took me 4 months to make myself get through the first 600 page book. the second one i forced myself to finish in 2 months, and the 3rd one? since it was a codes book, i only read the chapters that applied. in august i re-read the first book again. september was saved for flash cards, practice tests, and drafting exercises. october 1 and 2 was the test.

NCIDQ changed the exam format for 2010 (of course they did) which changed the drafting exercises. since it was a new format, i only had access to 2 practice exams in the new format. the 2 saturdays before the real test, i hung out at my new drafting table (thanks Ann!) and timed myself as i drew for 8 hours each day.

please don't ever make me do that again.

ugh.

the test, as mentioned earlier, is 2 days. each day is about 8 hours. the first day is all multiple choice and deals with everything from anthropometrics to ethics in the industry and from construction document information to sustainability requirements. the second day is dedicated to 8 hours of drafting, which tests our knowledge on means and elements associated with egress, fire codes, partition ratings, and ADA compliance among other things. and although i had a heart stopping moment during the first exercise after lunch (which nearly cost me an hour and the possibility of not finishing) i did end up completing the entire exam. at least, i think i did. now whether or not the information i have provided is correct, is a different story.

now i get to wait.

i won't hear if i've passed until the week before Christmas or so...

but i'll tell ya, practice is EVERYTHING. at least for me. and i can look back and honestly say that whether i pass or not, i gave it all i had. there was a lot of sacrifice for me to stay home and keep at it. i told my friend julie that i would be surprised at the end of this if i had 1. any hair left and 2. any friends. the good news is, i still have both.