Big Picture Chart

While studying for the CALE I discovered a typo on this chart and corrected it. Why didn't anyone tell me?!

CALE - During The Exam

The rules about what you can and cannot bring into the exam room are extensive and restrictive. You can however, leave a bag (many do) on tables outside of the exam room. You are given a plastic baggie to place your wallet, keys, ear plugs, and lip balm. This you carry around all day. In the bag I left on the table I had some fruit, two energy bars, water, and my lunch. Lunch was also served by the CALE organizers. Not sure if this is going to be a regular part of the test day, so check into it and prepare accordingly. 

You cannot bring water into the exam, but will be provided a small bottle during each section. Prior to going into the test, I put a few drops of the tincture in my water bottle and sipped that through the morning. The tincture, Move Mountains by Kan formulas worked well for me. The ingredients are: Huang Qi, Wu Wei Zi, Gou Qi Zi, Yu Zhu, and Ji Lin Bai Ren Shen. It is meant to increase endurance and boost energy. I took a risk and did not test it out before the test. It totally did the trick, but I would recommend not following my footsteps and testing it out prior to the day of the exam. 

GENERAL TIPS: 

• Dress warm and comfortably. The room in Ontario is like an airplane hanger. I wore warm pants, a t-shirt, a base layer, turtle neck, and shoes I could slip off. In the morning I was just right, and after being in the sun for a couple of hours during lunch, I was fine without the sweater during the second half.  

• Bring a few pair of ear plugs. I did not practice studying with the ear plugs at all. I did practice putting them in once or twice just to know how to do it. I ended up wearing the plugs during the exam and found it helpful to cancel out noise and focus. It’s also nice to have an extra pair you can give away if someone else is in need. 

• Where a watch. You have no idea where you will be sitting and what will be obstructing your view to the giant time clocks around the room (which were on the floor in Ontario). Knowing the time helped me pace myself. I spent two hours on each section and did not feel rushed. Definitely practice taking timed tests prior to the exam. Or set a timer and give yourself one or two minutes per question just to get used to the pressure. 

• Every ten questions stop what you are doing and look up to take a deep breath. Plant your feet on the floor, put your pencil down, count to ten and then resume. I utilized this suggestion from a friend during the second half. I was restless and in general the questions required a lot more of my focus. Just stopping to take a few deep breaths helped. 

• I didn't get up at all during the exam. Some people like to get up after 50 questions. I thought I would be that person and was fine. You can use the restroom during the exam. You raise your hand and the section attendent comes by to mark your ID card with the time you leave and then marks it again with the time you returned. 

• My test taking style on scan tron tests is to answer a page of questions and then fill in the bubbles. This ritual is a quick break and helps me check my work. I tend to skim the question one last time before filling in my answer. It's like being sure you turned off the stove before leaving the house kind of thing. 

• Read the answer before you read the question to know what you are looking for. I read each question twice. The first time through I eliminated the answers that were definitely not the answer. Then I read through the question again to find the key details. Most of the time I was able to narrow it to two.  

• It is not my practice to go back and change answers. Multiple choice tests are not my strongest skill so over time I have learned to move slowly and trust that my first answer is probably the best choice. I do mark the questions I guess on or find difficult and review those before I turn in an exam. I generally change one or two questions and usually end up canceling myself out: switching a right answer to the wrong one, and vice versa. If you have time, definitely look over the questions that you are not sure about. 

AFTER TEST CARE: 

Take a vacation! You have three weeks to a month before the results arrive and you might as well do something fun.  Start planning that now and look for cheap airfare. Get out of town for a bit to clear your head. It's going to take a LONG time to undo the damages of being in school for so long.

I'm just on the other side, but I met someone camping on the 4th day of a road trip I am on who has practiced Chinese medicine in California for 10 years. His advice to me and my partner is to be very patient. He (and other people I have spoken with) said it takes about a year to find the person you were before starting school. A year has always sounded ridiculous, but now that I am trying to relax I see it will not be forced and probably will take a long time. 

Good luck to you! 

CALE Study Preparation

If you are expecting that I will break down the test for you piece by piece, then this entry will disappoint. Midway through the exam you will sign an agreement that states you will not talk about the test. Of course people do, but I’m not about to do it in writing.

This entry is more about strategy and getting you off to a good start. You already know what is best for you. 

SELF CARE

• Talk to a friend/partner/mentor about what it is you most fear about this exam. It's good to just put it out there and be honest with yourself. Prior to taking the test I was most nervous about squandering the investment; the money for the test and overall the money and time I (and my support system) put into getting to this point. 

• Ask for help. If you have responsibilities at home, talk to your family or roommates and negotiate the space and time you need to do your best studying. This is probably obvious, but I don’t recommend making major life changes in the midst of taking this test. Six weeks leading up to the exam my partner and I were packing up the house, shutting down our life in Napa, saying goodbye to neighbors and friends, and deciding how to prep the van for our 6 month road trip. My partner was amazing and absorbed most of the work so I could study. Despite having the very best circumstances in a not ideal study environment I still had to work very hard to remain focused and shut everything else out. 

• Whatever regiment you have that keeps you sane, do not abandon it during this time. The two weeks before the test I started to take long walks with the dogs to clear my head. I was tired of studying and bored of all the subjects. After the morning studying (my most focused of the day) I would eat lunch and then walk to the vineyard and follow the 17 acres of fence line. I didn’t allow myself such luxuries prior to that and wish I had. 

• Prepare for this as if you were preparing for an athletic event. Cook whole food meals regularly (vegetables, grains, meats) and eat with people you love. The days that I did not follow this rule I was more tired, anxious, and unable to maintain focus. The same can be said for sleep. Sleep regular hours and go to bed earlier rather than later. 

• Get a massage a day or two before the exam. For almost a year I have wanted to book an appointment with a friend and finally did for this occasion. She was amazing, delivering the exact massage my body needed. I definitely felt the effects of her work going into my exam. 

• The night before the exam I took a mineral bath and read through the Laws and Regulations. Very romantic.

PROCRASTINATION HAPPENS:

• Make a time schedule to study.  I studied my weakest subjects in the morning from 7-10a. Break until 1pm. Review of stronger subjects until 5pm. Before bed I normally read, so I had a stack of texts that I would pick from depending on my mood and read through a chapter. And if I could not sleep I would spend 30 minutes flipping through study cards. 

• When I was losing focus I would review the big picture table on my bamboo dry erase board (my favorite study tool purchases of all time). I tried to write out the entire Big Picture once a day, and focus on smaller pieces when I lacked focus. Note: You do not get a scrap piece of paper during the test. Rather, there are two pages in the test booklet that are blank, and you are allowed to mark up the exam.  I practiced writing the entire big picture up until the night before the test, but during the exam I prioritized and only scribed my weakest links. In my case that is recalling under duress the Luo, Yuan, and Xi Cleft points. 

GETTING DOWN TO IT

• Make a plan and give yourself room for the study plan to change. You’ve just spent a few years developing good and bad study habits. Decide on the top three ways you absorb knowledge and prioritize. I began reviewing foundations and herbs four months out and started studying seriously (all day 6 days a week) two months out. The review period helped me recognize the weakest links and reminded me of all the nook and cranny subjects, like face diagnosis, auricular anatomy, and obscure acupuncture indications. 

• Be efficient and do not reinvent the wheel by making new study cards for everything. It’s very easy to bog your review down with endless detail. Stay focused on what the exam wants you to know. Read the entire exam booklet!

• The test is broken down by percentages, so divide your time accordingly. For instance there are 22 questions on herbs and formulas out of 200. Don’t kill yourself if this is your weakest link. Study a few formulas and a few herbs each day. My weakest link was point prescriptions. I must have truly slept through those classes because I remembered nothing. I spent two solid weeks reviewing (learning) all things point prescription. Thankfully the intense cram session also helped with the review of point indications, categories, and diagnosis. 

• Practice reading as many multiple choice case studies as you can. Trade with friends, take all of the free TCM Tests offered online. Review old notes with case studies. I did not take any mock exams but I did practice taking 100s of small case study quizzes. It helped tremendously with question fatigue.

• I highly recommend taking advantage of the jeopardy "Big Game Winners" contest that runs for an entire week (a month of so before the CALE) with each day focusing on a different subject. You compete with other students around the country and the top 8 scores win a prize. 1st prize (won by a classmate) is a 3 month subscription to the CALE or Nationals. Once it was clear that my peer was not going to let anyone catch her, I opted to fall back to third prize which is a 3 month a la carte subscription. To me that was better than 2nd prize which was only a week CALE or Nationals subscription. Regardless, it is a week long review shot gun style and worth putting some time into to save a few hundred dollars. 

• Also take advantage of the once a month TCM Tests free days. You can spend the entire day taking the quizzes for free, which is a great deal. The day after you are sent an email to subscribe and given a "discount" rate. I've known people to illegally split the $700 cost for the 3 month board subscription, but you do it at your own risk. Personally I think the prices review classes charge (for the most part) is too much. I know everyone has to make a living, free enterprise and all, but the inflation of our education has gotten out of hand. 

On to the next! My last entry on this subject is the day of the exam and what to expect. 

CALE Application Process

Someday the California Acupuncture Licensing Exam will enter the 21st century and offer an online application process, or even better get rid of the test all together and embrace the National exams, but in the meantime it's all snail mail and there are lots of bits to keep track of on your own. Missing one will ensure that you will not gain admission to the exam. If you are applying for Nationals at the same time, all of the paperwork can get confusing. 

Attending one California CM school makes the ordeal not that painfull. If you transferred (especially from an out of state school) you might have some extra leg work. If you attended multiple Chinese Medicine schools and/or received credit for classes from former schooling then the process becomes a chore. 

To help ease the CALE application process, I created this checklist. You can download it here.

BUDGET 

The licensing exams are expensive. I listed my expenses for CALE below, including the study aid costs, to give you an idea of how much you can anticipate spending. If you are living on financial aid, then it is wise to put aside money each term for several terms to cover your costs. If you are taking CALE and Nationals and want to be licensed and insured soon after passing, putting aside $5000 is a safe number. 

My expenses for the CALE are on the high end because I fell into the category of transferring previous school credits and transferring CM schools:

• Application Fees - $75 (initial application) + $550 (final application)
• Ordering transcripts and postage- Eight transcripts + Postage $60
• Live Scan (aka digital finger printing) - $65 
• Passport photos- $12
• Hotel for one night - $83
• Airfare from Oakland to Ontario- $139
• Parking my car at the airport for two days - $12
• Gas and tolls round trip - $16
• Meals (I brought my own food) - $25
• TCM Tests 3 month CALE subscription - $599 (more on this later)

Total: $1636 ($1037 w/out study buddy)

NATIONALS (This varies depending on which certification you choose)

• Oriental Medicine OM Application - $595
• 4 exams (theory, acupuncture, herbs, western) - $1200
• Clean Needle Technique certification (application here) - $135
• Ordering Transcripts - Eight transcripts + Postage $60

Total: $1990

Grand Test Total: $3626

After you pass then you pay for your state licensure and malpractice insurance. The total in the end will bring you up to $5000 easily if you are planning to have a California and National license.  

TRAVELING TO CALE: 

To find the best deal and limit the work you have to do subscribe to daily airfare updates for Sacramento or Ontario respectively, at the beginning of your final term. Book your hotel early and tell them you are taking the CALE. Some hotels offer discounts to lure test takers, or offer a deal if you book a number of rooms together. If you have 10 people or more from your school call a few hotels to shop around. I stayed at the Ayres Boutique Hotel in Ontario and was very happy with my choice.  I booked through Orbitz. The rooms are huge and have a desk, couch, comfy bed, sink, refrigerator, coffee maker, free internet access, and breakfast. 

Next post will be on studying for the CALE. 

Your CALE Starter Kit

The week before my CALE results arrived (passed) I retraced my steps--from applying to taking the CALE. This entry and the next two or three will break down each step. I wish someone would have had this ready for me when I started the process. 

To begin, here is a checklist for the CALE application you can print out. I've also made a study map to give you some general guidelines for how to manage your time. 

The CALE is not unreasonable, nor is it an impossible test. The caveat is that the test maker’s assume you studied a lot and paid attention in school. When I was working full time and schooling full time I was exhausted and barely absorbed the material. I spent the majority of my review going over those terms. It was oh so fun. 

There is no easy way to prepare for this exam. You must review all of it, and spend time (re)memorizing all of the things that for the rest of your life you can simply look up. 

I will post a few more entries on this topic before I wash my hands of the subject forever. You could skip them if follow one rule: start reviewing early enough to ensure that you have the mental room to reabsorb the entire curriculum. Keep in mind that you will at some point in the process feel completely overwhelmed with the material and wonder how you will ever get through everything. Leaving enough space to face all of your fears and get solid focus time in is really important. 

And try to remember that the CALE has little baring on the kind of practitioner you will become. Make a plan, put as much of your life duties aside for a few months, study a lot, and focus on the endgame. 

The Nuclear Option

Due to an error of my own manufacture, I had to delete the email subscription and old RSS feed. I have simplified everything and made one new RSS feed (in the right sidebar of the website). Unfortunately, the web service I use does not allow email subscriptions. 

If you would like to continue to read this blog, please subscribe again. 

There are some exciting changes coming to the site in 2012 after all of the licensing chores are out of the way. 

• I am taking this show on the road in March and will travel around the United States to explore the reaches of Chinese medicine in this country. 
• There will be more writing about farming and its parallels with our medicine--specifically from the classics. 
• In depth articles about growing chinese herbs, and how to connect with farmers to encourage more medicine farmers in the US. 
• A podcast, documentary style, covering themes in our field: herbs, translation, politics, etc. 
• A beautiful and affordable ebook to help you study herbs.
• Study guides that will pick up where Study Hall left off.

I also look forward to more reader participation! Please let me know what you think about the site. Constructive criticism is welcome, as are your positive insights. 

Thanks for reading and don't forget to resubscribe!

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