Black SpectaclesReviews of blackspectacles.com

I only had PPD and PDD left to take when I signed up for Black Spectacles so my experience may be different than others'. It is very expensive for what I found to be useful. I would recommend BS for practice exams and quizzes but not sure it is really worth the money. The videos are not very engaging or detailed (very few visuals) so they are a bit hard to follow and I didn't end up using them that much.

I really am grateful for all this study program has to offer. The content on the practice exams they offer is truly amazing and the feedback on each wrong answer helps immensely. I have not found the video section as helpful for the divisions I've studied so far. Even with taking notes while watching and pausing, they are not broken down enough for me to understand some the information discussed. The flash cards are OK. I only have two real quarrels with this study program: 1. With the rather steep cost of the Pro Plan, users should also have access to a decent amount of the recommended reading material cited in the ARE5 Handbook. Some of these books are pricy with the added on cost of the courses. I wouldn't mind even older versions of the recommended readings. Candidates could take the readings with them on their phones or tablets and solidify the information further. Or if there is something that's hard to understand, a book might help break it down a bit more. 2. I've tried using the forums offered and was unable to get a response to my question about everyone's favorite topic "Billing Rates". I can say I've only asked that one question so far and didn't get a response so I didn't ask again. Lastly, I've read through some of the responses to candidates questions on the forums and found the professionals answering either do not know the answer to some of the questions or just have not responded to some people. I understand people are busy so I won't hold this against anyone and I hope for a better expirence in the future with other divisions. Thank you Black Spectacles for the vast amount of material you offer, and I hope to see some reading material available to users in the near future.

I just started my journey with Black Spec. And I have mixed feelings. I think is user friendly and I love the idea of having a very structured study calendar. However, I find the videos to be too vague and quite boring. As someone who doesn’t have a lot of experience in the field I feel like I need more content. I think the practice exams are outdated and the questions are very short compared to those in the real exam. In addition, I don’t know if BS uses real questions or they produce their own because pool: some of them have spelling errors and (IMPORTANT): some questions are extremely misleading.. let me explain. I understand that questions include lots of “distractors”,however; what I encountered in my last practice test was extremely disappointing and stupid. The question contained 4 scenarios and it read “place the seal next to the THREE scenarios that reflect blah blah …” clearly two were correct but the instructions said to place the seal next to the 3 scenarios. Well, only two were correct. This is so stupid and unnecessary. This is not a distraction, this is a misleading question that I hope would never be included in an actual exam. I find the practice exams to be unreliable and extremely arbitrary.

I only used Black Spectacles video lectures, flash cards, and practice exams to study for all 6 sections of my ARE exams. I failed 3 exams, but passed each on the second try. I took the exams sequentially and was within a narrow margin of passing all the exams I failed. I realized toward the end that it was productive to study future exam sections. The overlap between the various exam sections needs to be better addressed. I would definitely recommend Black Spectacles to anybody studying for their ARE. However, given the cost and my own performance, I can only give it 3/5 stars.

Honest Review: The practice tests were very much like the real tests therefore very useful! unfortunately the videos and flashcards were close to useless. The videos are way too broad, and the flashcards too specific with inconsistent format. Edit: for context, I passed the 6 AREs on my first try.

It's good to give you a general idea of what to expect but doesn't provide exhaustive material to prepare and doesn't point you to the necessary study material in order to pass.

The Exam Simulator was like the real thing

There is some good content and support in the PPD and PDD modules, but they are sorely lacking in enough detail and specifics. I had taken both of these two tests twice previously and passed all the sections - just not all in the same test. After 4 months of 20-30 hours of studying using Black Spectacles - I actually did much WORSE on the tests than I did on my two previous tries, and consequently lost three of my four passes due to the five year rule. I attribute this to general mental fatigue and increased distance from specifics in NCARB recommended resources - particularly IBC. The content of the videos is mostly a review of everything you should have learned in college or your first internship. Nicely done, but too vague and general to be useful during testing. Content of Flashcards is better. The practice tests are helpful, but don't compare in difficulty to the real tests. I was finishing the practice tests in 2.5 hours and scoring well, whereas on the real test I finished with only 10 minutes to spare (3 hours 50 minutes), and not enough time to check all the code items I had jotted down. They do help one to feel more prepared, but falsely so... I'd recommend Hyperfine and NCARB listed resources over Black Spectacles. And, if you do elect to utilize Black Spectacles - do so judiciously. One up side - I was I able to connect with great study buddy via Black Spectacles and that is pretty invaluable! And, Black Spectacles did help me keep moving forward when I was feeling pretty discouraged. Onward and upward!