I'm finishing up my CAA program in August and planning to sit for boards in October, which gives me roughly 10 weeks of dedicated study time. I've heard the pass rate hovers around 70% on first attempt, which is honestly more nerve-wracking than I expected for a professional certification. My program directors say I'm strong clinically but the written boards test differently than clinical performance.
Right now I'm doing about 2 hours of review per day covering pharmacology and airway management. Those are my weak spots from coursework - I get the physiology but the drug interaction details don't stick well. I'm using the AAAA study guide plus a question bank that has about 1,200 practice questions total.
My practice exam scores are in the 64-68% range right now and I'm hoping to get to 78-80% before test day. Does the actual boards feel harder or easier than typical question banks? I've heard some people say the banks over-prepare you and others say the opposite.
Would really appreciate hearing from anyone who's taken it in the last year or two. The format changed slightly in 2023 and I'm not 100% sure all the prep materials have caught up with that.
10 weeks is enough if you're disciplined about it. I did 8 weeks and passed on my first attempt with a 76%. Pharmacology is worth the extra time you're giving it - probably 30% of my exam touched drug interactions in some form.
The actual boards felt about the same difficulty as a well-made question bank to me. Not harder, not easier. The wording is just different so don't get thrown off if the phrasing feels unfamiliar.
Getting to 78% on practice tests before your real date is a solid target. Hitting that consistently across 3 full-length mocks means you're ready.
Your 64-68% range right now is totally normal for this stage. Most people in my cohort were around 65% at 8 weeks out and the majority passed. Just stay consistent with daily review and don't cram the last 3 days.
Airway management scenarios are huge on the written portion - more than I anticipated. I'd spend at least 25% of your remaining time there. The clinical reasoning questions aren't just recall, they want you to walk through a decision tree.
Related Discussions
- CAA credential — worth doing separately before going for Fellowship?4 replies
- CAA certification – is it recognized outside my state and worth it for career mobility?4 replies
- NCCAA exam prep timeline - how far out did you start and what actually worked?3 replies
- Passed CAA on second attempt — here's what I changed3 replies
- Failed CAA exam twice — what actually helped me pass on attempt three3 replies