PPL Written Exam Prep

[shivam282]

Hello,

I just started studying for the PPL Exam a few days ago. So far I know everything from Theory of Flight in the "General Knowledge", and about half of Flight Instruments. Right now I am using From the Ground Up to study(I just look through everything I need to know on the Transport Canada website then go by each page in the book to find that topic), I also have a copy of the 2015 AIM and 2015 CAR's and I feel at this rate it may be a very slow process to get to know everything and eventually take the exam. Does anybody know any ways to study for this faster or more efficiently? Any websites or apps that offer free practice exams or other study material? I do already know about the practice exams at my Flight school. I think I would mainly be needing help in Navigation and Air Law/ Flight Operations.

Thanks.

[praveen4143]

The private pilot ground school that is offered by your flight school is an important first step. It's a legal requirement and they are expected to cover all topics as referenced in the written exam guide. Look up TP12880 at https://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/civilaviation/ ... u-5523.htm - this is the PPL written exam guide and that will give you some insight as well.

Practice exams are available on www.aerotraining.ca for free exams but IMHO they're a little overkill. There's loads of apps and books out there too! The one by Dauntless seems nice. Just make sure you get Canadian publications/exams as there are some differences in the US and Canadian exams that are significant enough to make a difference.

[geneticistx]

I'm about 3 weeks away from writing my written and curious about the various practice exams and their applicability. So, if anyone can give insight into how well those exams prepped, I would appreciate it.

[PAJ]

Its been quite some time now so perhaps an old/dated recommendation but I used http://www.pilotexams.com/ and was very happy with their product. Not free but certainly got my monies worth.

Hope this helps.

PAJ

[MattW]

Usually ground school is part of studying, alternately one of the online ground schools would work. Actually you need a letter from an approved school stating you have taken ground school to get entrance to the exam. The practice exams that Harvs provides are quite similar to the TC written exam.

[MrAviator19]

You might want to invest in Sharper Edge exam prep books. They have one for each level - PPL, CPL, Multi, IFR. I personally used it for PPL, CPL and now IFR. Great set of "key notes" on each topic followed by practice tests and exams at the end on the entire material (questions from past TC exams). 2 thumbs up!!

[waterdog]

I think I'm confused by the original post. I did my ppl ground school through harv's air. At the completion of the course I then had to write several exams in order to obtain my letter of recommendation for the written T.C. exam. My studying for the T.C. exam consisted of reviewing my course material that I already knew and looking for weaknesses in areas that I was unsure of.
But the reality is that at the end of the ground school, once I obtained my letter I was ready to write the test.
The original post makes it sound like you are sitting down, day 1, beginning to study for the T.C. test. If thats the case, that is the wrong way to slay this cat.

[Windymind]

Hello shivam282,

As the others already mentioned, going to the ground courses of your flight school would be the first best step. However, it also depends on whether or not your flight school is actually of help. I know a few small schools that have very poor ground school instruction and as a result, the students end up wasting time.

Personally, I did the required ground school hours but 90% of my actual learning was from self-study. I got a 92% overall for my PPL by just using Transport Canada's official study guide which you can find online. I focused on the points which had the black dot beside it and used From The Ground Up to narrow my studying down to the most important things.

About a week before my exam and after studying my way, I went back to the study guide as a whole and wrote one-line notes for each dot that basically summarized the whole topic in one for me and during the day of my exam, the half hour before the exam, I skimmed through my study guide with all the important notes that would help me remember the most important thing I had to know about each topic/dot.

Nizus.com is also a great website to help practice for the exam. The questions do not really resemble the actual exam but the content and knowledge required are very relevant. Costs around $30CAD for a month of subscription.

Finally, learn as if you had to teach someone else what you were learning. It's a great way to see if you really understand the topic. Understanding is way better than memorization as the knowledge sticks with you longer and if you plan to do the whole nine yards (CPL, IFR, ATPL), you would reduce your workload in the future significantly!

Obviously, everyone has a different way of learning so I'm wishing you the best of luck!

[danishroy]

Hello shivam282,

As the others already mentioned, going to the ground courses of your flight school would be the first best step. However, it also depends on whether or not your flight school is actually of help. I know a few small schools that have very poor ground school instruction and as a result, the students end up wasting time.

Personally, I did the required ground school hours but 90% of my actual learning was from self-study. I got a 92% overall for my PPL by just using Transport Canada's official study guide which you can find online. I focused on the points which had the black dot beside it and used From The Ground Up to narrow my studying down to the most important things.

About a week before my exam and after studying my way, I went back to the study guide as a whole and wrote one-line notes for each dot that basically summarized the whole topic in one for me and during the day of my exam, the half hour before the exam, I skimmed through my study guide with all the important notes that would help me remember the most important thing I had to know about each topic/dot.

Nizus.com is also a great website to help practice for the exam. The questions do not really resemble the actual exam but the content and knowledge required are very relevant. Costs around $30CAD for a month of subscription.

Finally, learn as if you had to teach someone else what you were learning. It's a great way to see if you really understand the topic. Understanding is way better than memorization as the knowledge sticks with you longer and if you plan to do the whole nine yards (CPL, IFR, ATPL), you would reduce your workload in the future significantly!

Obviously, everyone has a different way of learning so I'm wishing you the best of luck!

What do those black dots even mean? Are they an indication of this is the minimum we need to know for ppl? Or is it something else?

[jg24]

Hello,

I just started studying for the PPL Exam a few days ago. So far I know everything from Theory of Flight in the "General Knowledge", and about half of Flight Instruments. Right now I am using From the Ground Up to study(I just look through everything I need to know on the Transport Canada website then go by each page in the book to find that topic), I also have a copy of the 2015 AIM and 2015 CAR's and I feel at this rate it may be a very slow process to get to know everything and eventually take the exam. Does anybody know any ways to study for this faster or more efficiently? Any websites or apps that offer free practice exams or other study material? I do already know about the practice exams at my Flight school. I think I would mainly be needing help in Navigation and Air Law/ Flight Operations.

Thanks.

Download the latest AIM, it is free and yours is long outdated. CARs too.

Usually ground school is part of studying, alternately one of the online ground schools would work. Actually you need a letter from an approved school stating you have taken ground school to get entrance to the exam. The practice exams that Harvs provides are quite similar to the TC written exam.

Harv's Air online courses provide recommend letters upon completion of the courses. Or your local school that you're doing the ground school at, will provide that upon completion of the course and/or other prerequisites they stipulate.

all schools that have very poor ground school instruction and as a result, the students end up wasting time.

There are many ways to study, so I won't get into it as there are plenty of people that will give great tips and techniques. As for the ground schools, if you do so at your local school, walk in with the mindset that you have to do about ~75% of the studying at home. If they don't assign homework, assign yourself some to review the material and prep for the next day's material. They are not designed to cover everything in depth for you, you have to do the studying yourself. They will basically give an introduction of the topic and cover it briefly. It's a good way to get some discussions going though, and to ask questions. But you can also do that on the side. When studying on your own, if you have questions, write them on a dedicated list sheet and ask your instructor(s) or fellow students when you're in.

Just be sure to do some practice exams prior to writing the official one. It will help you gauge how well you know your material, strengths/weaknesses, and give you a taste of what the TC exams are like. READ THE QUESTIONS TWICE/CAREFULLY.

[Windymind]

Hello shivam282,

As the others already mentioned, going to the ground courses of your flight school would be the first best step. However, it also depends on whether or not your flight school is actually of help. I know a few small schools that have very poor ground school instruction and as a result, the students end up wasting time.

Personally, I did the required ground school hours but 90% of my actual learning was from self-study. I got a 92% overall for my PPL by just using Transport Canada's official study guide which you can find online. I focused on the points which had the black dot beside it and used From The Ground Up to narrow my studying down to the most important things.

About a week before my exam and after studying my way, I went back to the study guide as a whole and wrote one-line notes for each dot that basically summarized the whole topic in one for me and during the day of my exam, the half hour before the exam, I skimmed through my study guide with all the important notes that would help me remember the most important thing I had to know about each topic/dot.

Nizus.com is also a great website to help practice for the exam. The questions do not really resemble the actual exam but the content and knowledge required are very relevant. Costs around $30CAD for a month of subscription.

Finally, learn as if you had to teach someone else what you were learning. It's a great way to see if you really understand the topic. Understanding is way better than memorization as the knowledge sticks with you longer and if you plan to do the whole nine yards (CPL, IFR, ATPL), you would reduce your workload in the future significantly!

Obviously, everyone has a different way of learning so I'm wishing you the best of luck!

What do those black dots even mean? Are they an indication of this is the minimum we need to know for ppl? Or is it something else?

The black dots are the points/topics that TC puts emphasis on in the exam. Obviously, the more you know, the better but a good place to START studying and really understanding would be the points with the black dots beside the point.