Exam Content and Tips - New Jersey Chapter | American Planning

MAY 2011 AICP EXAM REVIEW EXAM CONTENT AND TIPS

February 2011 Kelly O’Brien, AICP, PP, LEED AP Professional Development Officer of Exam Prep American Planning Association – New Jersey Chapter

2011 AICP Review Course E X A M C O N T E N T A N D T I P S


Exam Content Plan Making & Implementation ~45 Questions (30%)

Functional Areas of Practice ~38 Questions (25%)

History, Theory, and Law ~23 Questions (15%)

Spatial Areas of Practice ~22 Questions (15%)

Public Participation and Social Justice ~15 Questions (10%)

AICP Code of Ethics ~ 7 Questions ( 5%)

www.planning.org/certification/examprep/subjectmatter.htm


Exam Scoring Pass Rate

Approximately 63 percent Scores Reported on a scale of 25-‐75 55 is passing For exam re-‐takers, the exam will very likely have anywhere

up to 20% -‐ 25% of questions from the test that you had taken the year prior.


Exam Preparation • Exam tests knowledge (40%) and skills (60%)

• Devote 80 to 100 hours in study time

• Study Groups

• Note Cards

• Audio

• Take Practice Exams


Taking the Exam • Get a good night rest

• Know the location of your testing center prior to the day of your scheduled appointment

• Bring two forms of identification (A list of valid IDs can be found in the Exam Candidate Bulletin)

• One of the identifications must contain a photo

• Calculator provided

• Scratch paper/pencil provided


During the Exam • Exam is 4 hours; on computer

– ½ hour tutorial – 3 ½ hours for 170 questions – 20 of 170 are pre-‐test questions-‐note these questions are not

counted.

• Easy to mark questions to return to them before submitting • No penalty for wrong answers. Guess, don’t leave any

blank! • Receive unofficial results immediately • Official Score Reports are usually mailed to all exam takers

approximately six weeks after the exam window closes


During the Exam • Carefully read the narrative (do not skim)

• Identify main idea. Understand the intention of the text.

• Determine what is being asked Overall topic or scope Specific Details Inference Question

• Determine if the question has multiple parts

• Decide if specific notes would be helpful. Note taking strategy should not be used for all questions

• Summarize additional paragraphs


During the Exam • Topic or Scope

Refer to the main idea in notes

• Specific Details Refer to notes that will lead you correct text

• Inference Refer to and apply knowledge of planning Inference questions appear frequently and you must feel

comfortable applying planning knowledge – not all the relevant information is in the text


Study Resources • 2nd chapter of the 2nd edition

is excellent for historical background.

• 3rd edition is more up to date in all other areas and a little less of a dry read.

• 4th edition changed format somewhat.

• Latest version with new name http://bookstore.icma.org/Local_Plannin

g_Contemporary_P_P1917C29.cfm

http://bookstore.icma.org/Local_Planning_Contemporary_P_P1917C29.cfm

http://bookstore.icma.org/Local_Planning_Contemporary_P_P1917C29.cfm


Study Resources • Everyday Ethics for Practicing

Planners

• The last 5 years of issues (starting one year ago) of: – Planning Magazine

– Journal of the American Planning Association


Study Resources Study Stack http://www.studystack.com/flashcard-‐134400

– Flashcards – Matching – Study Table

http://www.studystack.com/flashcard-134400


Exam Content History, Theory, and Law [15%]

– History of planning, including legal decisions – Theory of planning – Patterns of human settlement

AICP Code of Ethics and Professional Practice [5%]

– AICP Code of Ethics


Exam Content Spatial Areas of Practice [15%]

– Planning at the national, multi-‐state, state, sub-‐state, county, urban, suburban, and small town levels.

– Corridor Planning – Neighborhood Planning – Waterfront Planning – Planning for historic areas – Downtown Planning


Exam Content Plan Making and implementation [30%]

– Strategic planning/visioning – Goal setting – Research methods and techniques – Collecting data – Techniques for organizing information – Analysis of information (quantitative and qualitative) – Demographics – Information systems (GIS, MIS) – Fiscal impact analysis – Intergovernmental relationship – Land Use Regulation – Growth Management – Development Planning


Exam Content Functional Areas of Practice [25%]

– Natural resources and environmental quality

– Land use – Infrastructure (e.g., water, sewer,

power, telecommunications) – Energy – Public services (e.g., public safety,

education, human services) – Transportation – Recreation – Economic Development and

revitalization plans

– Historic preservation – Urban Design – Housing – Neighborhood issues – Rural and small town

planning – Comprehensive planning – Community

Development


Exam Content Public Participation and Social Justice [10%]

– Multi-‐cultural and gender issues – Public participation – Negotiation and coalition building


Recent Exam Experiences • Know the law cases, what topic they deal with, the

outcomes. Dates weren’t as critical but study those too

• More like the concepts of the foundations of the planning profession

• Seemed like the exam included lots of situational questions such as the "what would you do if you're the planner of a small city and...“

• A number of questions seemed completely random -‐ like asking about a certain type of developer agreement (not the financing ones, which we studied)


Recent Exam Experiences • There are a few FAR and graph questions which are

“gimmies” • Know the key names associated with some of the

theories • When asked what you would have studied more after

just taken the exam: I mainly would have tried to study more contextual

situations... what's the best way to implement comprehensive plans, capital improvement plans, learn what's the most key components


Recent Exam Experiences • I had at least three questions on "concurrency". I knew that

Florida had concurrency policies, but I didn't really know what that meant

• I would say at least 70% of my exam were questions that had options I, II, III, IV and we had to pick the BEST or MOST EFFECTIVE answers. I found those challenging because sometimes all four (I, II, III, IV) would be "correct" and picking the best or most effective or "which would have the most immediate results" was hard

• I had very little straight up history questions.

• I think I spent too much time trying to memorize facts. So many of the questions were scenario questions that you really had to read and reread and try to simplify.

Presenter

Concurrency, as defined by the Washington Growth Management Act, is the requirement that adequate transportation capacity be available to support development. A proposed development may not proceed if it would lower the Level of Service (LOS) of a transportation facility below the adopted standard. Transportation improvements that would bring the LOS back to the adopted standard must be reasonably funded and scheduled for completion within six years. Concurrency helps balance the timing and sequencing of development in relation to transportation improvements, such as new streets and traffic signals. The two main parts of a concurrency program are an ordinance, which defines how concurrency is administered, and the Comprehensive Plan, which establishes transportation Level of Service (LOS) standards. Concurrency only applies to arterial streets in the City; local streets are not included in concurrency requirements


Recent Exam Experiences • Subdivisions-‐ Impact fees: how they are used, how does a

municipality calculate them, do calculations include inflation cost etc.

• Neighborhood Planning -‐ Define a neighborhood, do they have elementary school, parks etc.

• Cost effectiveness analysis and Fiscal Impact Analysis. • Be able to calculate Location Quotient, required parking spaces • ADA 1996 Act-‐ requirements for buildings, public hearings etc ( I

had 3 questions on this topic) • Understand ISTEA, TEA21 and SAFETYLU • MPO's -‐ how they work, do they fund projects, do they monitor

air quality etc.


Recent Exam Experiences • Questions on Public participation-‐ when do you use focus

groups, visual preference surveys, facilitation etc. ( I had almost 7-‐8 questions on this)

• I had hardly any questions on Census. The only one I had was about women related trends since 1990's ( % of women is more than % of men, women live longer then men, women use more public transport than men, % of single mothers is rising etc.). I think because 2000 Census is almost outdated, there weren't any questions on this topic.

• Terms you should know: Power towns, E-‐government, Telecom Hotels, Colocation center, parking cash-‐out program, car sharing program, car ridership programs, CORBOR program, Scenic Byway program, New market Tax credit program, smart code/form-‐based code etc.

Presenter

Definition of: telecom hotel �A building that is constructed or rebuilt for datacenters. Also known as a carrier hotel, colocation center or Internet datacenter, telecom hotels typically house hundreds and thousands of Web servers for Web hosting organizations, large enterprises and other service organizations. See server farm. A colocation centre (also spelled collocation, colo, or coloc) or carrier hotel is a type of data center where colocation services are provided. Colocation allows multiple customers to locate network, server, and storage gear- and connect them to a variety of telecommunications and network service providers- with a minimum of cost and complexity. Most Internet exchange points provide colocation. CORBOR – On the FHWA Web site, the combination of these programs National Corridor Planning and Development Program (NCPD) and the Coordinated Border Infrastructure Program (CBI). also called the Corridors and Borders Program, the Border and Corridor Program, and the 1118/1119 Program. The numbers 1118 and 1119 refer to the sections of the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21) that authorized these programs. The New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) Program permits taxpayers to receive a credit against Federal income taxes for making qualified equity investments in designated Community Development Entities (CDEs). Substantially all of the qualified equity investment must in turn be used by the CDE to provide investments in low-income communities.


Recent Exam Experiences • When to use Urban Sim, Community Viz and LandFrag • Energy-‐ Read the APA policy guide on energy and sustainability

really well. Understand the key concepts and principles. • What is Visit-‐ability code? • History -‐ Megalapolis, Advocacy Planning leaders, Mugler v.

Kansas case, Dolan v. City of Tigard. No dates were asked.

Presenter

Visit-ability is an affordable, sustainable and inclusive design approach for integrating basic accessibility features into all newly built homes and housing. The Visit-ability movement is based on the conviction that inclusion of basic architectural access features in all new homes is a civil and human right and improves livability for all.


Sample Question In the US, the “Neighborhood Unit” concept is attributed to

a) Kevin Lynch

b) Clarence Perry

c) Ian McHarg

d) Lewis Mumford

ANSWER: B

Presenter

Found that Transfer of Development Rights is an inappropriate method to compensate the landowner for a taking by the City of New York.


Sample Question What issue has prompted a number of transportation

planning agencies and government departments and agencies to study the effects that their "changing intervals" have on driver safety?

A) texting B) digital billboards C) passing areas D) bus traffic

ANSWER: A

Presenter

The correct answer is A (texting). The effects of digital billboards on driving safety are being studied by various agencies and groups. ��The Outdoor Advertizing Association of America recommends a change interval of at least 4 seconds, and the Federal Highway Administration recommends a change interval of 4 to 10 seconds. ��Source: Lora Lucero, AICP, News section of Planning Magazine, August/September 2009. Page 3.


Sample Question Which of the following concepts was first upheld by Fred

French Investing Co., Inc. v. City of New York (1976)?

a) Planned Unit Development

b) Transfer of Development Rights

c) Transit Oriented Development

d) Conservation Easement

ANSWER: B

Presenter

Found that Transfer of Development Rights is an inappropriate method to compensate the landowner for a taking by the City of New York.

Exam Content and Tips - New Jersey Chapter | American Planning

Documents

Transcript of Exam Content and Tips - New Jersey Chapter | American Planning