So I've been sitting on this post for a while because I wanted to make sure I actually passed before sharing anything. Got my results last week and I'm officially credentialed! Took me two tries though, and the second time around I completely changed my approach.
First attempt I went in pretty confident — I have a master's in family and consumer sciences and figured my coursework would carry me. Scored a 68, needed a 75. Embarrassing, honestly. The problem was I hadn't touched some of the financial counseling and housing/environment domains in years and they hit those hard. Second time I spent about 6 weeks using a solid AAFCS study guide, worked through every domain systematically, and did timed AAFCS practice test sessions twice a week. That repetition under pressure made a huge difference — I went from freezing on nutrition policy questions to actually feeling comfortable with them.
Happy to share my full breakdown of what I studied and for how long. The exam tips that helped me most were around time management since some of the scenario-based questions are genuinely long. Anyone else in the middle of prep right now?