So I just got my results back and I finally passed the UPC exam on my second try. First attempt I went in pretty confident after about three weeks of casual reading through the codebook, and honestly I got humbled fast. Scored a 68 when you need a 75. The sections on water supply systems and drainage slope calculations just destroyed me.
What actually made the difference the second time was being way more systematic. I found a solid UPC study guide that broke down each chapter by topic weight, and I committed to doing a UPC practice test every single evening for two weeks. Not just reading — actually timing myself and treating it like the real thing. My weak spots were DWV sizing and the medical gas provisions, so I drilled those specifically.
For anyone prepping right now: don't underestimate the appendix sections. I thought they were low priority but got at least four questions from there. Also the exam tips I got from this forum a few months back about memorizing pipe sizing tables saved me probably 10 minutes of lookup time. Happy to answer questions if anyone's in the same boat I was.