Wiki Question about CPC exam review book

[AW82]

Hi everyone!

I'm currently scheduled to take my CPC exam in September. I just started to do some studying, since I have zero experience in the field. Yesterday, I took the first practice exam in Carol Buck's "CPC Coding Exam Review 2010: The Certification Step".

How challenging is this test compared to the CPC exam? Is the setup similar?

On the very first 'practice' exam, I got an overall 85%, finishing in 3 hours 27 minutes. I was a little shocked, because I know only a 70% is required to pass. I'm just curious as to if I can breathe a little - I had planned on studying like crazy for the next 2 months... but hoping someone on here can give me some good news and relieve the stress a bit.

 

[01131937]

I used the 2009 edition of the study guide and I thought that the pre/post exam was quite a bit easier than the actual certification exam. I found the final exam to be a little more difficult than the pre/post exam, but still easier than the actual exam. I took a community college online coding course and used the study guide to prepare along with Carol Buck's The Next Step and The Extra Step. I found her "Step" books to be useful as they have reports in which one extracts the information needed for coding. I also purchased the three practice exams from AAPC, which were the most similar to the actual exam. I took the exam in March for the first time and passed. I am now working in my first coding job.

Good luck in preparing for the exam.

Carol CPC-A, CMA (AAPC)