7 tips to prepare for the NBCOT exam
This time 2 years ago I was knee deep in studying for the NBCOT! I know many of you have graduated from your OT programs and are preparing to start studying - if you haven’t already started. So let’s chat through some practical tips to prepare for the NBCOT exam.
Create a study schedule: First you’ll need to decide how long you want to study for and what plan you want to create for yourself. I studied 5-6 hours per day, 5 days a week. I outlined exactly what I wanted to study on certain days and also when I was going to take practice tests. This was extremely helpful for me to stay on track and hold myself accountable. Be sure to build “off” days in there to give yourself necessary breaks.
Use multiple modes of studying: Although we all love OT, there may come a point where studying it becomes not so fun. You can use a combination of textbooks, Powerpoint presentations, practice exams, Youtube videos, podcasts, flashcards, etc. to help keep yourself engaged with the content and switch it up a little.
Don’t overwhelm yourself with materials: There are a ton of study materials and texts out there. Although it’s helpful to use multiple modes of studying, make sure that you don’t cause yourself to feel overwhelmed with having too many materials in front of you. I personally used six materials total.
Limit distractions: We all know how hard it is to stay on track sometimes. I knew I didn’t want to fall into the trap of pulling out my phone every 20 minutes to mindlessly scroll so guess what I did? I deleted all of my social media apps and I can say this was 100% the best decision I made while studying! Hubs is currently studying for his board exam and has also done this. Now, whenever he picks up his phone to mindlessly scroll, he looks through his study apps or flashcards instead!
Have a study buddy: In OT school, I did not do a ton of group studying especially when I was still learning the material. However, the saying “two heads is better than one” is definitely true! I enjoyed having a study buddy to keep me accountable and on track. It was also particularly helpful when we would do AOTA practice tests together. We would do the test individually and then discuss our answers, why we chose certain ones and this really helped to have a different perspective of how to read the test questions.
Learn how to take the test: Speaking of how to read the test questions, this is probably the hardest part of it all. In my personal opinion, it wasn’t the content part that was hard - the material for the most part I had down. It was learning HOW to take that test and to read the questions. I definitely am an overthinker and I found that I needed to really learn what the question was asking me and to not assume anything not provided in the question. The AOTA practice exams were by far the closest to what the actual exam looked like. TherapyEd was 100% harder and if I did it all over again I probably would just leave that book and exams out because it caused way more anxiety for me than needed. Just my opinions here!
Don’t study the day before: The day before my exam I checked into a hotel, ordered take-out, and watched ALL the drama-filled Lifetime movies. I had a delicious breakfast and the testing center was less than a mile from the hotel so I didn’t have to worry about traffic or a lengthy commute. I strongly believe in not studying the day of or hour before a huge exam but in this case, I also believe I did better by allowing myself to focus on self-care and rest the day before, too.
Overall, this is what worked for me but by no means does this mean this is the “right” way to do things. There really is no “right” or “wrong” way to prepare for the NBCOT exam. You have to do what works best for you! To everyone who has recently passed their board exam congratulations to the newest OTR on the block! to everyone studying and preparing to take theirs you got this! Relax, read carefully, don’t second guess yourself or change your answers (!!) and prepare for that amazing feeling when you see the letters OTR behind your name. and remember, it’s not taboo not to pass your first time so if that happens to you - you are STILL amazing and will rock it the next time around!
My study timeline: I started studying June 1. I took my exam at 8am on July 5. I initially scheduled for the first week of August, but rescheduled for sooner because I felt ready and didn’t want to drag it out. However, I didn’t tell anyone I was taking it earlier! I didn’t want to talk about it afterwards and wanted to process the results privately before telling others. I became a certified OTR at 5:37am on July 10!
Looking back, I can definitely say that my experience studying and taking the NBCOT exam wasn’t *as bad* as I thought it would be but it was definitely stress-inducing for some time just because as we all know, there’s a lot riding on this exam! Whether you’re about to start studying or already studying, I hope these tips help put your mind at ease just a little bit.
