Social Work ASWB Clinical Exam Guide: A Comprehensive Study Guide for Success

I bought this book several months ago in preparation to take the exam. At first, it seemed similar to the master's exam guide, but upon further reading, it focuses much more on clinical. There are some items repeated from the master's exam guide (stages of development, defense mechanisms, etc). About a month before the exam, I took the practice exam in the back to see where I stood. Then, I read the book cover to cover, highlighted points to go back to, and took the exam again, doing much better. In the week before the exam, I went back over highlighted segments of the book that needed further study. I also downloaded the pocket prep app that has 1000 exam questions and would take a Quick 10 exam whenever I had time. The pocket prep is entirely based on this book, so I was able to look at references for questions I got wrong and go back to the book and read about it. I will say, the pocket prep questions are in general significantly more difficult, wordier and more confusingly worded than the practice test in the back of the book and the actual exam. It is worth it to take practice questions though as a method of studying so you can see their reasoning, but I would expect the exam to be about on a par to the practice exam in the back of the book, because mine was similar. I had also received practice tests and study guides from other sources, but many different prep materials are done by different people and are inconsistent, so it became too confusing and I decided to just focus on this book and the pocket prep. It was definitely enough to pass. I passed on the first try this morning, and felt I was definitely using knowledge used in this book to apply when trying to pick the best answer. I would definitely recommend it.

I rented this book about two months prior to taking my Indep. SW licensure exam (for LICSW licensure here in MA). I honestly didn't really start studying until maybe 3 weeks out -- I basically read through the book, took the practice exam at the back, then went back and reviewed based on answers I had missed. The book really felt like a great guide for the material -- I found it easy to read through and it was a great refresher. Passed the exam on my first try in October!

I used Dawn Apgar's study guide for the LMSW exam, and aced it. All I needed was the guide, my DSM 5 and the NASW Code of Ethics. I did a little research on terms that were foreign to me, but otherwise I didn't need any other books. I'm getting ready to take the LCSW exam, and was thrilled to see she has updated the Clinical Exam Guide for changes in the 2018 exam. The guide is well organized, very readable, includes study tips and practice questions. It goes over every area that is needed to prepare for the exam. No need to pay for exam prep groups. Friends have been passing around the previous version of the Clinical Exam Guide. I felt it was worth the investment to get the most updated version.

This is the ONLY book you will need to study in order to pass your exam (aside from the DSM, and maybe one about psychiatric medication). No use wasting money on other material. This covers everything in a very straight forward manner and gives tips for test taking that are VERY helpful. There is also an on-line version that comes with it that I would use A LOT. I'd have my phone read it to me using text to talk while I was driving and doing other tasks, that way I wasn't having to sit and read 100% of the time.

Very happy with this book. It definitely helped me pass the exam. I would highly recommend!Several things I liked about it1: the overview of every topic that the test could cover helped me identify where I needed to focus. Things I already felt confident in, I could skip, and things I didn't know, I could review in more depth2: the test was also super helpful in helping me understand why I missed what I missed and what I needed to go back and review.You will never feel completely ready for this LCSW exam, but this helped me go in w/ enough confidence that I didn't really have test day jitters and was able to pass!