Okay so I've been putting off writing this for a while but I feel like I owe it to this community because you all basically got me through this. I failed the RMA exam in October and again in January. Both times I scored around a 68 and you need a 70 to pass. It was devastating, especially because I'd already lined up a job offer contingent on getting certified — my employer was incredibly patient but I knew I couldn't drag it out much longer.
What changed for me the third time was actually drilling on clinical procedures and medical law separately, not just doing general reviews. I also found that timed practice tests helped way more than just reading. I used RMA Practice Test 4 probably a dozen times in the last two weeks before my exam. Scored a 78 on my actual test date.
For anyone out there grinding toward registered medical assistant jobs or trying to figure out if the rma salary bump is worth the certification cost — it absolutely is. My hourly went up $4.20 after I passed. Happy to answer questions about what topics caught me off guard.