Welcome to the ARE Community, @knyckchau! Thank you for your question.
In many cases, answers are derived from analyzing multiple pieces of information from the various case study resources, rather than referencing direct quotes from documents. Therefore, it would be difficult to identify specific references and instead, we will generally indicate in the answer explanation where information was found. However, I appreciate your suggestion and will relay it to the team for consideration.
The ARE is formatted in a way that requires you to think critically about the content and apply them to various scenarios. You will rarely come across a situation where an answer is directly given to you. Rather, you are expected to use the information given to build upon what you already know, and provide the answer NCARB is seeking.
For Q1, an RFP may not explicitly indicate that a design component would require plumbing. However, you can infer that a coffee bar would require plumbing, as we you would need a sink.
For Q2, we need to find the fee for additional services. To get this number, we need to look at a number of different figures. First, we find the sum of all revisions in the Revision Log, which is $28,500. The question indicates that additional services will be billed at 3% higher than the percentage of construction cost that the architect’s fee is based on. Therefore, we need to figure out what that base percentage is first so that we can determine what the additional services percentage is. The construction budget of $2,000,000 is actually indicated in the Scenario, not the Top Down Budget resource. The top-down budget indicates that the gross fees are $140,000, which we can calculate to be 7% of the total construction budget ($140,000 / $2,000,000). From there, 3% more of 7% = 10%. The fee for additional services is 10% of $28,500 = $2,850.
The way I would approach the case study questions would be to become familiar with the scenario and available resources first. I wouldn’t read the entirety of each document (as that would be very time-consuming and impossible to memorize), but I would skim through each to see what information I had available. That way, when I go through the questions, I would know which document(s) would be relevant to obtaining an answer. Utilizing the “Search” function (or Control/Command + F) to find key words helps tremendously when navigating the lengthly resources. There aren’t any specific sections to pay closer attention to than others, as you could need information from any of the available resources. In that same regard, there will be extra information provided that may not be relevant to obtaining any of the answers. Finding ways to efficiently navigate these resources is key, and I encourage you to keep utilizing the practice exams to become more comfortable with the process.
You can also apply general testing strategies to the case study questions, such as the process of elimination. Q1 is asking you to identify which consultants the architect would require services from, under a separate contract, so you know that the RFP would be your relevant resource. Looking at the list of 6, you could either select the 2 you know are correct OR you could start by eliminating ones you know are incorrect. For example, search the RFP for “security” and you will find that the owner is actually providing this service, so you can eliminate it. Same goes for searching “civil” to determine that the owner is has retained a civil engineering consultant themselves.
Case studies are a tricky part of the ARE to navigate, but with practice and testing out which strategies work best for you, you will be able to conquer them!
Hope this helps. Please let me know if you have any further questions.
Happy studying!
Kiara Galicinao, AIA, NCARB
Black Spectacles