So I finally passed the SMC certification last week and honestly I'm still a little shocked. Failed my first attempt by 7 points back in February and was pretty discouraged. The problem wasn't that I didn't study — I put in probably 40 hours — it was that I was studying the wrong way. I was reading through the SPSM body of knowledge cover to cover like it was a textbook, which did basically nothing for me.
What turned things around was switching to an SMC practice test routine. I'd do a full timed mock, review every wrong answer, then wait 3 days and redo just those questions. My weak spots were supply chain risk management and supplier evaluation frameworks, which apparently show up a lot more than I expected. If you're just starting out, I'd suggest grabbing a solid SMC study guide that breaks topics down by weight rather than just going alphabetically.
Anyone else prepping right now? Happy to share more specific exam tips — there are a few question formats that tripped me up the first time that I wish someone had warned me about.