My 8-week ACC study schedule (free resources only)
Someone in a Facebook group asked me to share my study schedule after I mentioned passing, so here it is. This is designed for someone with full-time work and family commitments — about 1-1.5 hrs/day.
Weeks 1-2: Foundation
- Read through the official ACC exam content outline (free download from the certifying body's website)
- Take one baseline practice test to identify your starting weak spots — don't stress the score
- Begin the ACC - Acupuncture Certification for Chiropractors practice tests on PracticeTestGeeks focusing on core concepts
Weeks 3-4: Deep Dive
- Work through each topic area systematically — don't skip the ones that feel obvious
- For alternative medicine-specific terminology, use flashcards (Anki is free and excellent)
- Complete at least 2 full-length timed practice exams
Weeks 5-6: Scenario Practice
- Focus on scenario-based questions — these make up 40-60% of most ACC exams
- For each scenario question you get wrong, write out WHY in your own words
- Review NCCAOM - National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine and Alternative Medicine content if your exam covers multiple subjects
Weeks 7-8: Final Prep
- Take a full timed practice test every other day
- Only review weak areas — don't re-read entire study materials
- Stop studying 24 hours before your exam. Sleep and hydration matter more at this point.
This got me from a 62% baseline to a 87% on my final practice test, and a passing score on the real exam. Feel free to adapt it for your situation!
This is gold. Saving and sharing with my study group. The "stop studying 24 hours before" advice is underrated — I bombed an exam once because I crammed until midnight and couldn't think straight in the morning.
What do you think about condensing this to 4-5 weeks if I can do 2-3 hours per day? I have a test date that's sooner than I'd like and trying to figure out if I can make it work.
The Anki flashcard tip is something more people need to hear. I have a ACC deck with about 200 cards covering all the key terms and formulas. Doing 20 cards/day during my lunch break added up faster than I expected.
Great breakdown. One thing I'd add to Week 1: look at the score breakdown from your baseline practice test — not just the overall score. Most ACC exams are weighted by domain, and knowing which domains carry more weight changes how you allocate study time.