Studying for PPL Written Exam?

[DaveC]

Hey guys. I could really use a hand with some study techniques for the PPL written exam. What is the most efficient way to do it? I'm a university student so I am treating it like it was a university course (i've gone through the study/ref guide and summarized each bullet it asks you to know, and bolded the ones with bullets).

I've heard mixed things like just doing a massive amount of sample Q/A and not reading FTGU etc. What worked for you guys?

I want to write it on Friday.

[zed]

1. Study what you're supposed to know...
2. Try a practice exam... What parts/section/areas sucked?
--If its pretty much everything then go back and study it all (goto #1)
--If its only a small number of areas that sucked, then go back and study those areas and then try it again (goto 2).
--If nothing is weak?
3. Do one more practice exam to confirm.
4. Still good?
5. Go write the exam.

When I talk about studying, or re-studying I mean serious study. Not just getting the answer for the question you got wrong. But the whole area/section for what that question is related to. Because where you make one mistake, there are likely a whole bunch more mistakes just waiting for right question to be asked.

Practice exams should be (my opinion) used to show you where you are weak. If you burn through all the practice exams then they cease to serve any meaningful purpose as you will start to remember the question-answer versus knowing the knowledge. Then you will have a much harder time gauging if you know enough. But your a university student, so just study. When you're ready go write it. Worse case you fail, waste money and time, but come away knowing that you are weak in X area(s).

Good luck.

[niss]

Re-read the areas you are weak in the FTGU. Also if you have flying magazines try to find articles relevant to your weak areas, often enough they can explain meteorology or theory of flight in simple enough form that us pilots can understand.

Also bring a little toy airplane to your exam. I found it really helped visualize things when I was doing TOF. It makes it easier to understand then just trying to visualize how the airplane is flying.

Make sure you remember your mnemonic devices (True Virgins Make Dull Company, etc) and make sure you know the stuff that is easy to screw up cold (What way does wind go when it veers or backs?)

Overall don't worry too much, you would be hard pressed to write a more stressful exam then I did. When I went the FI didn't want to let me write (political issues with my instructor) and once I convinced him to let me the power went out twice during the exam.

Take a breath and chill out, it seems pretty daunting but in the end it's just an exam. At least this exam doesn't affect your grades like in school. Worst case scenario you cock it up and have to rewrite, you don't have to worry about it lowering your GPA.

If I can think of anymore I will let you know.

Cheers,

Niss

[DaveC]

Thanks for the tips.

Any other places I can find a list of mnemonics to help me memorize things?

[zed]

Besides the one's you have access to already (ground school notes, instructor, other pilots etc), you could search through...
viewforum.php?f=74

[CanterburyTail]

I'm writing mine today. I've found that doing the practice exam at the flight school to get your letter is good practice, it'll let you see your weak areas. Also then the practice exams in the back of FTGU and The Canadian Private Pilot Answer Guide are good (in fact the later book is very good for a large number of sample like questions.) Also then do the practice test available on the TC website.

Read up on all your weak areas. Check the latest list of weak areas on the TC site for the exam (and check those for a few of the others as well briefly, it can't hurt.) I found out my main weak areas were fronts and what the heck a carburettor does.

Well good luck with yours.

[niss]

One mnemonic device that stuck with me since Ground school for Cold vs warm fronts:



Think of tits, when they are cold they are hard and pointy, when they are warm the are soft and round.

[Shiny Side Up]

There's one thing no one's mentioned, but in my experience anyone who's done it does better when it comes to written test time. :take notes in ground school. Even if you took an online course you should have a note book full of your own stuff from it. You know all those mnemonics you're talking about? They won't be in the FTGU. These are all the little gems of knowledge your ground school should have imparted upon you.

I don't know why everyone thinks they're just going to pick up their *insert written test guide of choice* read it a few times and pass the test.

BTW, the written test still always asks a question that will either relate to the ANDS or the NOSS rule. If you paid attention during the last ground school class, you might know what I'm talking about.

[CanterburyTail]

People don't think you can sit some practice tests and then pass the written, infact most people have mentioned that tests are useful to highlight your weak areas that you then go back and study on. You can't read everything in the days running up to your test, but the practice exams will tell you where you should be concentrating your time.

[iflyforpie]

BTW, the written test still always asks a question that will either relate to the ANDS or the NOSS rule. If you paid attention during the last ground school class, you might know what I'm talking about.

NOSS?

Is that like UNOS? (Or ONUS, I can't remember which way it goes anymore... stupid reversible acronyms ).

[Shiny Side Up]

People don't think you can sit some practice tests and then pass the written, infact most people have mentioned that tests are useful to highlight your weak areas that you then go back and study on.

Actually there are many who do think that. Every week I get a request to give someone a letter of recomendation based upon their self study, both for the PPL and CPL written exams. Uniformly they do poorly when they finally submit to my requirement to do a practice written - which before they write I make clear what they must score to get my letter (%80+). A suprising (or maybe not so much so anymore) ammount feel they're smart enough to challenge the exam with minimal study time and a lot of the time a very long time since they took any formal groundschool.

Mind you the same is often the case with the PSTAR test as well.

[CanterburyTail]

I was mainly referring to posters on this thread. But yes, you are right in that assumption. After all statistically 50% of the population is of below average intelligence.

I must say that after months of study for the written I was still disappointed to get 87%. I was hoping for higher. Yes it's a pass, but lets face it in aviation knowledge is your best weapon. Nothing less than perfection is ultimately safe. And I still spent all last night going over the areas I highlighted in the exam as being weak in so I would know them.

[Dagwood]

[thread-hijack]

After all statistically 50% of the population is of below average intelligence.

Actually no.

Suppose 5 pilots had IQs of 100, 96, 95, 89, and 50.

The average IQ is 86, but only 1 pilot is below average.

The median number is 95, and half the pilots are below that.

Now, back to our regularly scheduled programming...
[/thread-hijack]

[DaveC]

There's one thing no one's mentioned, but in my experience anyone who's done it does better when it comes to written test time. :take notes in ground school. Even if you took an online course you should have a note book full of your own stuff from it. You know all those mnemonics you're talking about? They won't be in the FTGU. These are all the little gems of knowledge your ground school should have imparted upon you.

I don't know why everyone thinks they're just going to pick up their *insert written test guide of choice* read it a few times and pass the test.

BTW, the written test still always asks a question that will either relate to the ANDS or the NOSS rule. If you paid attention during the last ground school class, you might know what I'm talking about.

I'm aware of ANDS, had to look up NOSS. I've finished writing my notes from the Study/Ref, going to read em a couple of times.. go write a practise exam at the flight school and see what kind of damage I take

[niss]

Xpder Emergency Codes

7700 - " Seventy Seven, going to heaven"
7600 - " Seventy Six, the radio needs a fix"
7500 - " Seventy Five, the arab wants to drive"

[DaveC]

Xpder Emergency Codes

7700 - " Seventy Seven, going to heaven"
7600 - " Seventy Six, the radio needs a fix"
7500 - " Seventy Five, the arab wants to drive"

Hahhaa I love those! Thanks.

[DaveC]

Writing tomorrow. I've been getting high 70s, low 80s on my practice exams. I am aiming for a similar score. Will follow up later

[DaveC]

:@

80 air law, 90 met 65 navigation, 59% Gen/Airmanship
Unbelievable. I changed 5 questions before submitting, and I changed all 5 of them to the wrong answer. I gotta wait 2 weeks to re-write now.

[niss]

:@

80 air law, 90 met 65 navigation, 59% Gen/Airmanship
Unbelievable. I changed 5 questions before submitting, and I changed all 5 of them to the wrong answer. I gotta wait 2 weeks to re-write now.

Bummer dude. Don't worry about it too much you'll get it. Usually on multiple choice unless I realize that I made a totally retarded mistake or another question gives me the answer I never review my answers. I check to make sure I answered every question but that's it. I found that my accidentLly choosing the wrong letter vs second guessing myself and changing the right answer to the wrong one ratio is quite tolerable.

[iflyforpie]

Yup, take it from someone who's probably written more TC tests than most people here (fourteen, and none were repeats), that you never ever change your answer once you've decided...

[. ._]

Oh well, you have another couple of weeks to brush up. No biggy.

I'm not sure what you're using to study, but I've found the Private Pilot Answer Guide to be great.

http://www.vippilot.com/en/I163a.html

VIP ships really fast (usually you'll get stuff in a few days) and if you can get 80 percent on all sections of this bad boy, you'll do fine on the test.

Remember: If ISTP can do it, ANYONE can!

Good luck!

-istp

[CanterburyTail]

Well your letter with your scores should give you general areas that you got wrong, so I would start studying with those areas, and branch from there.

[loopa]

:@

80 air law, 90 met 65 navigation, 59% Gen/Airmanship
Unbelievable. I changed 5 questions before submitting, and I changed all 5 of them to the wrong answer. I gotta wait 2 weeks to re-write now.

If it means anything, a very good friend of mine who's now flying for WestJet and making good dollars failed his first attempt of the private flight test and written. Look where he's now?

Keep your chin up, and study away. The General Knowledge is always the toughest section. And it seems to be the one segment people do the worst on. Don't try to memorize the things in there, but rather try to understand it. If you changed 5 questions and got all of them wrong, that means you would have scored 64% anyway. Still not good enough in my opinion if you want to consider yourself proficient at it, right? So try hard, ask instructors, and certainly ask on these boards as there are many experienced people who always seem to give an insight or two if you have trouble understanding something

I think this is a chance for you to actually deal with the problem of not understanding General Knowledge, and getting very good at it, instead of passing it off as unimportant if you were to pass today. I hope you see this in a positive way as well!

Now you have experienced a failure, and if ever asked about it, speak up and say what you gained out of that experience.

Cheers buddy!

[niss]

You should at least be proud of how you did in Met. There are so many questions in there that confuse the hell out of me.

[172PIC]

For me I read FTGU, the "other" Canadian study book, and a bunch of other books specific to Met, Nav etc. Also read a lot of magazines (just be careful not to get mixed up with FAA regs though!). Prior to the test I did a pile of sample tests here http://www.aerotraining.com/ (click on the link for free online exams on the bottom left.) They are self marking online tests that progressively increase in difficulty. It requires 90% to go on to the next level, if you get through this you will pass your written no problems. Every section I failed i studied up on then rewrote. Ended up with a 98% on the written - only 2 questions wrong. One on air law and one general, both of which I should have had right but I didn't read the question correctly (take your time and make sure you understand the question, some of them are a bit tricky).

On the test use the normal multiple choice strategies - eliminate the two obviously wrong answers, choose the most correct - or if you can't figure it out leave it for later as another question could answer it or at least jog your memory. The transport test software lets you quickly flip back to questions you aren't done yet so it's not a big deal.

Manage your time like on any test. I was done in 75 mins or so, you get 3 hours so plenty of time but if you find you're spending more than 2 mins on one question move on to another and come back to it.

Also the area you do your nav on most likely won't be your local area - so remember your variation may be opposite to what you're used to etc. Take your time drawing on the map and make sure everything is 100% correct before answering any of the questions.