Hello! I’m Elif. I live and work in Brooklyn, New York, alongside my husband and our 6-year-old daughter. It took me nearly two years and approximately $10,000 to successfully complete six exams in ARE 5.0
about me and the questions
Since the age of 6, I’ve found myself preparing for various standardized tests, from elementary school to the challenging ARE exams. The first time I heard about AREs was right after I won the green card lottery and without hesitation, I saw them as just another set of exams to conquer. I had always been methodical and experienced in test-taking, or so I thought. However, the AREs turned out to be quite different from my previous experiences.
Throughout my academic journey in Turkey, my most effective strategy had been to tackle as many questions as possible until I fully grasped the content. I’m talking about working through tens of thousands of questions. But when I began my ARE 5.0 studies, I quickly realized that the available question resources were far from what I was accustomed to. There simply weren’t enough questions on the market to meet my needs.
That’s when I made the decision to write my own set of questions, covering everything from PjM to PDD. I based these questions meticulously on the NCARB ARE 5.0 Handbook Reference Matrix. Originally, I never intended to share these questions with others. However, my close friends, who had studied alongside me, saw the value in what I had created and encouraged me to share my work with a wider audience.
After successfully passing my last exam in December 2019, I embarked on the journey of “fixing” the questions in my folders. I meticulously edited each question to include feedback that links to relevant study materials, allowing users to delve deeper into the content. This way, each question becomes a valuable study tool, designed to assist you in your exam preparation.
I continue to work on new content and questions daily and will release more as I progress. So, please stay connected and feel free to reach out if you have any further questions or need assistance.
Best regards, Elif Bayram, AIA, NCAR