Also, the below strategy is what worked for me (I passed the exam the first time taking it). This strategy may not work for you.
1) Read the Candidate Guide supplied by the Landscape Architects Technical Committee (LATC). After you have passed all national Landscape Architect Registration Exam (LARE) testing administered by the Council of Landscape Architectural Registration Boards (CLARB), you will be eligible to take the California Supplemental Exam (CSE). After you apply for the CSE and pay your fee, the LATC will mail you a Candidate Guide. Cross-check it with the one on the LATC website.** Read the contents carefully. It includes the topics you will be tested on and lists resources. However, some of the website resources they listed didn't work. Google was critical. I have included the active websites here, the ones I used to prepare for the exam.
**After the exam, I was concerned to find that the Candidate Guide that was mailed to me was dramatically different than the one posted on the LATC website. I am now shocked to see that it is 2 years old - no wonder it was so different! Fortunately, I had used the Candidate Guide posted on the LATC website. Be sure to double-check that you have the most current Candidate Guide. Also, my exam had 125 questions even though the current [and the old] Candidate Guide says there are 100.
Notice which topics have the most "weight" and focus on them. In my Candidate Guide, 65% of the exam was going to be "Design Process" topics so I focused more attention on them.
After reading the Candidate Guide, I determined that I would need to know:
- California building codes
- CALGreen building codes
- LEED
- SITES
- LID
- MWELO
- Irrigation practices & water conservation
- Plants that grow in California, including natives
- Firescaping practices
- Regulatory agencies
- How the permit process works
- California contract law
- Bikeway planning & design
FYI, my Candidate Guide looked like this:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8VVfQFX6TrFWHdZbjZKWTdreDg/view?usp=sharing
2) Develop a study strategy and schedule. I sequestered myself in my house and studied for 4 days straight over New Year's holiday weekend when my ex-husband had custody of the kids. I scheduled the exam on Monday, the afternoon of the 5th day. Disclaimer #2: This may not work for everyone, but I have over 25 years of professional experience working as a landscape associate in California for both public agencies and private firms and knew I could at least partially rely on my experience.
3) I visited the CSE Landscape Architect website and took all the offered practice tests (look under the Practice Tests tab). This highlighted my areas of weakness. For me, it was wetlands & regulatory agencies, water conservation/MWELO principles, and California native plants.
4) Check the resources list in the Candidate Guide. I visited each website listed and checked off each one after I had finished reading all applicable materials. If I wasn't familiar with the listed book topics, I checked to see if any of them had an online PDF version. One did: EBMUD firescaping. I downloaded it and read it. Buy or borrow any of the book resources you think you will need.
5) Read all information, taking notes as needed.
I visited all the below websites and read all applicable material. The only hard copy book I read from the resources list was my Time-Saver Standards for Landscape Architects. I re-read the sections on erosion control, water quality, and green rooftop design. I also read my hard copy of the Landscape Architects Practice Act, but this is another resource that can be found online.
The Unofficial Study Guide
California building codes per the California Standards Commission. This is important! For landscape architects, these are the accessibility requirements that guarantee access to all public buildings, including those with disabilities. Many think of wheelchair accessibility when they think of disability standards, but they also apply to the eyesight impaired, arthritis sufferers, and those with heart problems. These mostly follow the national standards you were tested on in the LARE but there are some additions, such as required edge protection/curbs on ramps and landings. Know how to deal with elevation changes as well as parking space dimensions, minimum travel way widths, all about curb ramps, handrails, guardrails, grate opening requirements, etc. Read all applicable sections.
http://www.bsc.ca.gov/Home/Current2013Codes.aspx
Note: This is a sensitive website and becomes frustratingly non-responsive easily.
CALGreen. Mandatory "green building" practices that are part of the building code. Only one is mandatory for the landscape: the use of weather-based or soil moisture sensor controllers. There are also non-mandatory Tier 1 and Tier 2 requirements if your client wants you to go the extra mile. Read all applicable sections. The checklists are especially helpful.
http://www.bsc.ca.gov/Home/CALGreen.aspx
LEED. Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, a green building certification program.
http://www.usgbc.org/leed
SITES. Sustainable Sites Initiative, a rating system that distinguishes sustainable landscapes, measures their performance, and elevates their value.
http://www.sustainablesites.org/
LID. Low Impact Development, a comprehensive land planning and engineering design approach with a goal of maintaining and enhancing the pre-development hydrologic regime of urban and developing watersheds. Basically, it means disturbing the site as little as possible while still meeting project requirements. For example, don't add drain inlets if vegetated swales will do the trick.
http://www.lowimpactdevelopment.org/index.htm
MWELO. Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance. This is important! This applies to almost all California landscapes; know the exceptions. Know and understand the formulas. Know WUCOLS, MAWA, ETAF, and ETWU. Read the entire document.
http://www.water.ca.gov/wateruseefficiency/docs/MWELO_TbContent_Law.pdf
Irrigation practices. Know all components of an irrigation system and how to design an irrigation system. Know the best way to design an irrigation system for maximum water conservation. Download the Landscape Irrigation Best Management Practices PDF document from the Irrigation Association here:
https://www.irrigation.org/landscapebmps/
Plants that grow in California, not just natives. This is important! Which plants are toxic? Which are drought-tolerant? Which grow in shade? Which would you plant under established native trees? Which grow well on the coast? Which are flammable?
I relied on my experience in the profession for this information, although I did look at native plant nursery websites, like Las Pilitas, to brush up on my knowledge of native plants. Sunset Western Garden Book would also be a good resource (it was also listed as a resource in the Candidate Guide).
Firescaping. The EBMUD pamphlet "Firescape - Landscaping to Reduce Fire Hazard" was listed as a resource in the study guide. The PDF can be found here online:
Regulatory agencies, both national and in California. FEMA, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, California Coastal Commission, California Fish & Wildlife, etc. Know which agency you would need to contact for more information based upon a specific site condition. Need to know 100 year floodplain limits? Contact FEMA. Do you have a stream or wetland on your project site? Contact Fish & Wildlife and the Corps of Engineers.
California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) is a statute that requires state and local agencies to identify the significant environmental impacts of their actions and to avoid or mitigate those impacts, if feasible. Here's the FAQ:
http://resources.ca.gov/ceqa/more/faq.html
Know California contract law as it applies to landscape architects. I read my Landscape Architects Practice Act booklet that I received from the Landscape Architects Technical Committee (LATC). It's free! Contact them directly to receive a copy or read it online here:
http://www.latc.ca.gov/laws_regs/pa_all.shtml
Highway Design Manual's Bikeway Planning & Design. Know minimum width requirements and the different classes of bikeways.
http://www.dot.ca.gov/hq/oppd/hdm/pdf/chp1000.pdf
After reading all the above information, I once again visited the CSE Landscape Architect website and read several articles under the Topic Guide tab to brush up on topics I felt I needed more help with. This site had good overview information on all the regulatory agencies.
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6) Create flash cards. The last thing I did was create flash cards from my notes, re-visiting any applicable websites if I was unclear on anything. The simple act of writing things down, especially multiple times, helps me recall information much better. I reviewed the finished flash cards several times until the exam, then one last time in the car before I headed into the testing center.
7) Get a good night's sleep the night before and show up at your exam site at least 1/2 hour before your exam time to allow adequate time for check-in. They will take your fingerprints and a photograph of you. You will also need to give them your photo ID to hold onto while you're taking the exam.
8) Take the exam! Read all questions and their answers carefully. Click here for details about the exam's format.
Good luck!
