C.A. Study Help

R

rangerdanger

Location
Lexington, Kentucky
Hey guys, for a number of reasons(the biggest of which at the moment is a guaranteed raise) I've decided to study up and take the C.A. exam. Wondering what the best study advice is, and any tips on taking the test or things to watch out for. I'm going to pick up the study guide here in a week or so, but are there other things I can be doing besides the study guide to help prepare for the test?? Any specific books I should be looking at?

Thanks!!
 
I spent one week on each chapter (guide), read through and answered the questions as best I could then re-read it again and answered the ones I got wrong. Repeated this until I had it down pat, test was no problem.

Good luck on the test, getting the cert is getting your foot in the door...

jp
grin.gif
 
Read Arboriculture by Harris, Clark, and Matheny. Get the list of plants that could be used for the I.D. section of the exam through your I.S.A. chapter. Then study the plants list using the latest edition of the Manual of Woody Landscape Plants by Michael Dirr. Get and read all the ANSI A-300 standards. The Z-133.1 safety standards must also be on the list for starters.

Joe
 
I'd second the above recommendation to read Arboriculture by Harris et al. It's a thick textbook, but reading it is a must. It was a huge help to me in having a more in-depth understanding beyond the study guide.

Dirr is also a huge help, but the ID portion has changed, so you should be aware of that. They don't cover trees local to your area. I think there is another thread somewhere about how that portion of the test is different than it used to be...probably back just a few pages on the General Discussion forum.

Best of luck!
 
If all your looking to do is pass the test all you need to do is study the guide. We have a guy from South America without any back ground in arboriculture, and he got a 95 by just making flash cards out of the study guide.
 
I just finished reading and quizzing the study guide, but I went back and quizzed again to see what actually stuck, and what I still need to bone up on more. Give yourself a reasonable amount of time to prep, I don't plan on taking it for another two months. I mean its easy to just regurgitate the answer, but as a C.A. your supposed to understand the concepts and apply them to your work. Do it for yourself, and not just to spend a bunch of money to put a sticker on your helmet and impress people.
 
What all the above said! Study guide will get you to pass it but to be a better arborist it never hurts to obtain more information.

Vocab is always a good thing to know and just do the questions at the end of each chapter to get used to the questions and how they are worded
 
www.morningfire.us click on skip intro, then, click on isa test prep. you'll find some questions there on most of the topics. I just took the test in Jan and it was alot easier than I thought it would be, however, I would not solely rely on the study guide. PM me if you have any questions
 
Well, if all goes well I'll be taking the test June 7th I believe. Going to study for an hour a night. My goal is to take the test and pass before heading out on the road trip. As I go along, I want to study more, to help expand my knowledge. The test is going to be given after a 2 day workshop at the University of Kentucky on topics related to the CA Exam. Hoping between that and the studying I'll be ok.
 
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