Have you felt torn between some responses to questions of the social work licensing exam?
There are two acronyms to help guide you to make the correct choice. An acronym is a word that is created from the first letters or groups of letters in a name or phrase.
The first acronym is “FAREAFI” (in this order) and it is most useful for FIRST/NEXT type test questions.
The second acronym is “AASPIRINS” and it most helpful for questions that ask what is the BEST (or MOST reasonable) option/plan of action.
The infographic below lays out for you exactly what each letter in each acronym represents.
To see how you would apply these tools with some of the social work licensure exam questions, check out How to Use Two Acronyms to “Go for the Gold” on the LMSW Exam!
Succeed on Licensure Exam with 2 Acronyms
Wishing you the best of luck on your exam!
How helpful do you find these two acronyms in figuring out the correct answer to some of the practice questions? Do you have any lessons learned and/or additional tips to share?
Please tell me what the LMSW Licensing is. I have an LCSW to practice clinical social work in CA. Is the LMSW a similar designation in other states, or something else?
Than you,
Rozanne Miller,
MSW
Licensed Clinical Social Worker
Hi Rozanne,
Unfortunately, there is some variation among social work licensing rules/titles across state lines. We all need to abide by our respective state’s board requirements (this information is also provided by the local chapters of NASW). For example, as per the California chapter of NASW [ http://www.naswca.org/?151 ], there is only one licensure exam, the LCSW (and CA is rather unique in this regard).
Most states have two types of licensing exams (although they may call them slightly differently from the LMSW and LCSW that we have in New York). The requirements for the New York LMSW and LCSW are described here: https://www.socialwork.career/2010/08/social-work-licensing-part-i.html and https://www.socialwork.career/2010/08/social-work-licensing-part-ii.html
If you’d like to look at/compare different states’ requirements, please check out the ASWB at https://www.datapathdesign.com/ASWB/Laws/Prod/cgi-bin/LawWebRpts2DLL.dll/0fy0bzg1l6z46w1exz3wu0z7qpp2/
Hoping this helps 🙂
Can these acronyms be used for the LCSW exam?
Hi Toni,
Great question. Yes, these acronyms also apply for the LCSW exam.
Best,
Dorlee
I purchased the ASWB materials and studied the material for about a year. I took the test and failed 90% of the questions was not what I had been studying. It just threw me for a tail spin
Hi Derrell,
I’m sorry to hear that you failed your exam. Unfortunately, many people fail the first time they take the test. This can be for a variety of reasons.
Thankfully, I believe that the vast majority of those who fail the first time pass the exam the next time around.
They do so by either applying different studying methods (such as working with someone else also trying to pass the exam – see this post for how to find a study group https://www.socialwork.career/2013/09/how-to-find-free-online-lmsw-exam-study-groups.html ), different studying materials such as taking a study prep class (see this post for how I passed my exam https://www.socialwork.career/2013/02/ten-tips-for-passing-lmsw-exam.html), evaluating what went wrong and/or incorporating relaxation strategies (https://www.socialwork.career/2014/04/got-lmsw-exam-anxiety-4-strategies-10-practice-questions.html).
Wishing you the best of luck – you can do this!
Thank you so much for this helpful strategy! I took my LMSW exam today in Texas and passed! This was a really helpful tool to use during the exam! Thank you!!!!!! (As you can tell I am very excited)
Congratulations, Aundraea!
And thanks so much for taking the time to share your good news and positive feedback. It is most appreciated 🙂
Is there any help that will help when choosing reasoning questions?
You may find some of the guidance in this post helpful https://www.socialwork.career/2011/05/secrets-for-passing-lmsw-exam.html
Thanks Dorlee! Really appreciate the effort on your part.
Erik
Thanks so much for your kind feedback, Erik ! 🙂
Best,
Dorlee