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4th Time, Apparently, IS The Charm! This (CIH Logistics)forum is one that I have been silently following for the past 6 months. All the good advice was so helpful and uplifting. I realized that I was going to need more than good feelings to get through this, so I paid close attention to the practical tips offered by those who successfully passed their tests.
Passed the ASP! Started studying in earnest in mid-January, using the Brauer and Yates books, primarily. Took the ASP/CSP combo online review session from Bowen that started in February. I am fortunate in that I have very strong employer support, so I was also able to access the Datachem service and purchase the SPAN review books.
Overall, regarding the test: Math was approximately the percentage of the test I expected. Virtually all of the math I had was covered in sufficient depth by the Bowen online course, so any extra practice I got using the other resources was a bonus. The remainder of the test was a combination of what I'd call "safety trivia."
For all the access to study materials I had, I can tell you that easily 1/3 of the questions were items that were not covered specifically in any of the commonly referenced materials. But then, if you look at the BCSP reference guide reading list, it's pretty lengthy so there is no shortage of material to draw from. It truly is a test that's a mile wide by an inch deep.
Of all the items I had access to for reference, I would rank them as follows:
1. Bowen ASP/CSP online course and resources. Sample questions most accurately matched up with what I was presented with in style/format.
2. Datachem software. Simply a huge volume of study questions to work from and the ability to do "study sessions" on topics that I felt weak in was a great benefit.
3. SPAN workbook. Overall the material was pretty good, but it seemed like older, re-purposed questions.
I passed through brute force repetition of questions and study topics. Now on to the CSP!
I took the CIH test and I received a Preliminary Pass, I am so excited, I can't contain myself. I felt very confident since the week previous, I had a feeling of being the Ready that I have not ever had in my life.
I want to thank Bowen for the course and for the time that he answered my emails and phonecalls with questions, Also, I want to thank another premium member, whom I met thru the discussion board and he became my long-distance study buddy.
Two weeks after passing the ASP, I passed the CSP! I finished the test in 2 hours and was sure I had failed, but somehow managed to pass. I was actually surprised at the increase in the level of difficulty from the ASP to the CSP exam. Thank you Patrick and Bowen EHS for helping me through this process. I would definitely recommend the ASP-CSP course to anyone looking for a prep course. This was the only study material I used for each exam, so it is possible to pass both tests without using any other study materials!
Thanks Russ,I will be recommending your prep course to everyone looking to take the exam. You have built an excellent program. I quickly went from totally intimidated of the calculations to still intimidated but much less so. And although I didn't expect to do as well as I did, I probably got 80% of the calculations correct without anything more than your course.
I found this forum (ASP-CSP Exam Logistics) to be a great place to help me with how I should focus my studies. Thank you all who posted here. Someone had posted something about radiation and lasers and I'm glad I freshened up on those topics because wouldn't you know it, there were a few questions on this! Anyhow, just to repay the favor, here is my take on how I prepared and studied for the exam. First and foremost, thank your Bowen team for putting together some great training! I will be highly recommending you to anyone who needs help. The fact that your lectures are all online and you have a plethora of additional study tools available really helps!
I passed. It's been a very long time since I stepped on a college campus to take an exam. Today, I had my test and after multiple attempts of practice tests...making certain to read the full question and all the answers. The test was light on statistics and chemical equations but definitely tilted at treatment and handling specifics. I'm so grateful to have this over with and that I could not have done it without Bowen. Thanks!
I received a preliminary pass on my CIH exam!!!!!!! It took me a few tries but I finally did it. The Bowen course was essential to passing, I could not have done it without the material and all the advice! My journey began in 2012 when I began studying for it and took a few years off and began studying again in 2016. I failed it in the Fall of 2016, Spring of 2017 (8 months pregnant) and then again in the fall of 2020. Finally, after much focus and dedication, I am proud to say that I passed the CIH exam! Do not give up!! You only fail if you never try!! Again, this would not have been possible without the Bowen Course and material. Thank you 1,000 times!!!
I took my exam this morning, and I'm happy to have received a preliminary pass on my first try. Many thanks and appreciation to Russ, Rustin, and the team at Bowen EHS for putting together a very insightful and comprehensive review course for this exam. Your course (especially the study question vault) gave me a lot more confidence going into this! I think the best strategy that worked for me was to study a little every day (1-2 hours) for the past 4-5 months instead of cramming information in huge time blocks, reading the recommended literature from the first or second lecture, and definitely having a bowl of oatmeal for breakfast (Thanks for the tip Russ!). Thanks again and good luck to those taking this exam!
Passed the ASP Exam yesterday! I did use all five hours for the test; actually, 4 to work the "first pass" all the way through and then 1 hour to go back and further work the items I had flagged during the first pass.
Since the mathematics is actually my strong skill, I didn't leave them for last - I answered them on the first pass. Most equations were provided ... but not all. My strategy was to answer everything as best I could on the first pass (in case I ran out of time), and then, flag anything I wanted to go back and think more about if time allowed. For the ones I didn't know at first blush, I found it fairly easy to get down to two reasonable choices. From there, I just made sure to read the question thoroughly (even 5 or 6 times!), and ask myself which was "better." My preparation consisted of the Bowen ASP Course (thank you Nicole!), and the Yates book to fill in areas I needed help with. I made a LOT of use of the practice quizzes (including the iPhone app, whenever I had a few minutes of time) and the 50-question practice test on the Bowen website. I did purchase and complete the BCSP Self-Assessment, which was also helpful in identifying areas I needed more study in as well as giving me a flavor for the test itself. Now – on to the CSP! Thanks for your support, the great website resources, and the great preparation I received through the course.
Passed CSP exam and very thankful to my employer paying for ASP/CSP Bowen online review course and to Bowen EHS for providing free weekly ASP/CSP practice questions. As previously mentioned, there was less math, but, a lot of Safety Management scenarios, BCSP Ethics questions, and a few occupational health questions. Good luck to all taking exams. It's a lot of studying/preparation, but, it's worth it.
Finished taking my CIH test today and received a preliminary pass! A lot of the comments I have been reading I found useful. What I will say is if you follow the rubric and study what your predecessors are telling you, may be a good idea and you should be fine. I put in between 2-3 hours a day for 8 weeks, and prior to that, I spent weekdays studying. Bowen quiz and practice questions have been invaluable to my progress. I also used the ACGIH IH calculations book, Quantitative IH book by Jack C ACGIH (great book, just doesn't present the questions in the same format as Bowen), did not use Datachem. If you understand how to manipulate the equations and have a good understanding of algebra I think you will do just fine on the math portion. At the end of the day, it's what we put into it that matter, you put the work in or you don't. Prepare like it's something you will only do once and you will be rewarded. Thanks for everything Russ, I don't think I would have been as prepared as I would if not for your entire platform: class, study guides, quizzes, references, etc.
I wanted to let Will Pate know that I sat for the CHMM exam and I passed! I took his online CHMM review course in the Spring of 2016. This was an excellent class! Even after waiting almost a year after completing the review course I went back and listened to each lecture over again, took lots of note cards from this lectures, used the Bowen CHMM app on my iPhone, read the IHMM book, and studied DataChem CHMM Prep extensively. I would highly recommend this review course for anyone planning to sit for the CHMM. Thanks Will for a GREAT class.
I passed the CSP exam...and so will you!! Without compromising the exam, here's my "two cents" for your exam success.Know the equations. They may or may not be provided on the exam, so I highly recommend you know them. And don't just know the equation, but understand which one is used and when. I actually had to use an engineering economics equation in reverse ...just glad I knew what equation worked for the scenario given. Calculators are not allowed in the testing site. The on-screen calculator works just like the one provided by Bowen EHS. Just be sure that each time you close out the on-screen calculator, be sure to set it to Classic Mode when you open it back up. If you don't, you'll get weird figures on the calculator and realize something is not looking right. Understand ALL material in the Bowen EHS review course book. It's not enough to just know the words or terms, but also the application of the terms. Take the time to go through the CSP 10 Blueprint...you'll be glad you did. I had 30 total pages (front and back!!) of notes outlining all of the items on the Blueprint. Well worth the time spent in preparing and learning the material. Some info is provided on the Blueprint presentation / handout (ROHS, REACH, etc). Review the Bowen EHS study questions. I have all questions to 2005. I found it helpful to separate them by topic so I could focus on a particular topic. You can get more info on the CIH and CHMM study vault. Bottom line...do what you need to do to pass the exam!! I studied hours (no joke!!) each weekday and weekend for 5+ months, but it paid off in the end. THANK YOU Bowen EHS for all the exam material you provide us. You truly set up your students for success!! Highly recommended!!
I will feel better when I receive the official letter from ABIH! I have the "preliminary" pass! I am still in shock after seeing that, and am really, really tired right now. Thank you, everyone, for your support during classes and great feedback to questions! Also, a big "thank you" to Mr. Russ Bowen for everything! Your teaching methods really helped me pass this exam, especially since it is over 20 years since I graduated from college!
Thank you very much!! Your course was really and truly invaluable. My biggest worry when facing the task of preparing for the exam was not knowing where to focus my efforts, how best to study for it, and how in-depth I needed to go with the various rubrics. The prep course helped navigate all of those issues and I think it made me much more effective with my time than if I had waded into this solo. The study sessions were also so very helpful!! Thank you to
you and your amazing team for the resources you've pulled together. I'll be recommending your course to anyone in my professional circle considering challenging the exam.
I took the CSP exam and passed. Wanted to thank Russ and his team for their assistance. After many years in the field, it was interesting to learn more broadly the areas of EHS, which was my intent besides the credential itself. Although for the week prior I was not liking it too much, I just wanted to get it over with, ha. I had a couple of questions exactly from this course. There were very detailed questions about the ear, like someone else mentioned. Stuff that an ear doctor would study I imagine. There is a chance these are pilot questions for an upcoming specialty cert. on hearing conservation or something similar; due to the current + upcoming generations expected prevalence of hearing loss due to technology, etc. Just my opinion. Thanks all and good luck.
I passed my CSP test yesterday! Thank you, William, for all the help and support you give us. Thank you, Bowen, for these amazing courses and resources.
Passed the CSP a month after ASP! My overall impression of the CSP was that it is more difficult than the ASP. ASP seemed pretty straightforward with simple answers. The CSP had numerous scenario questions and very little math. I reviewed the PowerPoint from the course, used the CSP pocket app, and tried the self-assessment quiz from the BCSP. My personal opinion is that the CSP is more application than the ASP.
Where to start! Thank you to Patrick for being such a great instructor and explaining everything so well. I found the exam did not contain as much math as I was expecting, but the Bowen EHS prepared me for many of the equations. The test only gave me about two equations, so memorizing many of them is very important. I utilized the test bank that Bowen provided and bought a CSP exam prep APP from the Apple store. In total, I think I took about 700 practice questions in the weeks leading up to the exam. I read David Yates's book, " Safety Professionals Reference and Study Guide," second edition cover to cover. This book could be considered a useful reference. However, it is full of mistakes and calculation errors. If you utilize this book as your only resource, it could leave you confused about some of the math examples. Overall I had an excellent experience with Bowen EHS and would recommend it to other test takers. Great Job!