Fresh Construction & Evaluation Materials to Help You Pass the ARE

Every year, households across the country engage in the ritual of spring cleaning. It’s taking the home you know and love, giving it a little TLC, and letting it shine like brand new. Black Spectacles ARE Test Prep got that same attention and care with the launch of our new Construction & Evaluation materials. Yes, these materials are still NCARB-approved! No, this doesn’t imply that anything was ever out of date; you’ve always had access to the best materials.

Let’s give you the tour. Our new Video Lectures have been improved after years of feedback from ARE candidates such as yourself, as well as input from learning designers and licensed architects. As always, Black Spectacles ARE study materials are developed with one goal in mind - to help you pass the ARE.

A Fresh Face

You’ll recognize a new architect behind the camera, meet April Drake! As Senior Project Architect with HDR in Arlington, VA, April brings over 15 years of education, government and commercial project experience to Black Spectacles. As one of only 500+ African American licensed female architects, she is especially passionate about promoting the growth of women and minorities in architecture and allied fields. She is the 2020 Secretary for AIA Northern Virginia (NOVA) and a committee volunteer for NCARB since 2014. We’ll bring in experts that share April’s level of expertise and enthusiasm in their respective fields for the upcoming division launches.

Quiz Bowl 

Quiz fans, rejoice, you’re getting what you’ve been longing for. Paired with a fresh face are strategically placed quiz breaks and longer section quizzes. Our learning designers know the advantage in testing what you’ve retained, and these quiz questions make sure you’re comprehending the most vital concepts in these videos.

Sharpen Your Pencils

Curious how you should structure your notes? Never fear, our downloadable lecture slides bring a method to the madness, summarizing key takeaways from our Video Lectures, equipping you with diagrams to fill out and organize your thoughts. These lecture slides have every key term for this division accounted for, assembled for you to review at a glance. Create some repetition in reviewing these terms in the lecture slides, during the Video Lectures, and in your Digital Flashcards to hammer home the key concepts. Reference your lecture slides prior to taking our Practice Exams (humble brag - they’re as close to the real deal as you can get), and use them to prep before exam day.

It's a Date

Calendar maintenance and time management are the keys to success when studying for the ARE, so we've launched an enhanced, detailed Black Spectacles ARE Study Guide. This is a road map, guiding you through the weeks leading up to exam day, relieving you of the burden of managing what objective to cover each day or week. Check your progress against what’s recommended by our learning experts, stay on track, and use your energy towards retention and studying. In addition, we outline ALL of the Black Spectacles ARE resources at your fingertips, including accompanying ARE Live episodes, relevant blog posts, and ARE Community threads.

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