Exam-Day Playbook & Final Review Checklist *(OUTLINE + BULLET BODY)*

You've done the hard part — you've learned six domains of content. What's left is execution, and execution is where prepared candidates sometimes underperform: they rush the easy questions, freeze on a hard one, and let the clock and their nerves make decisions for them. The exam isn't just a knowledge test; it's a performance, and performances have a playbook. This lecture is that playbook — how to pace, when to flag, how to breathe through a panic spike — plus a tight, high-yield list of the facts most worth carrying into the room. Treat this as the lecture you re-watch the night before.

- **Confirm logistics 48 hours out:** test center or online-proctor setup, the **ID** required, start time, and the rules (Pearson VUE-style proctoring). For online proctoring: clear desk, quiet room, working webcam, and a stable connection — test it in advance. - **Plan the night before:** light review (the checklist below), **no cramming new material**, lay out ID, sleep. Diminishing returns kick in hard at the end — **rest beats one more topic**. - **Day-of basics:** eat, hydrate, arrive/log in **early** (15–30 min), use the restroom before you start. Small frictions become big stressors if rushed. - **Mindset anchor:** you don't need a perfect score — you need the **scaled ~75 to pass**. You can miss a meaningful number of items and still pass. Aim for **steady accuracy**, not perfection.

- **Budget the clock:** ~**120 items in 210 minutes** ≈ **1:45 each**. Target **~90 seconds** on easy items to bank time for hard ones and a review pass. - **Two-pass method:** Pass 1 — answer everything you know, **flag** anything that's slow or uncertain, and **never leave a blank** (no guessing penalty — always put an answer even on flagged items). Pass 2 — return to flagged items with banked time. - **The 2-minute rule:** if an item runs past ~2 minutes, **lock in your best informed guess, flag, move on.** Every item is worth the same — don't trade three easy points for one stubborn hard one. - **Checkpoint the clock** at intervals (e.g., ~30 items per ~50 minutes) so you're never blindsided at the end. - **Use the flag tool deliberately** — it's there to free your working memory; offload the hard ones and keep momentum.

- 3.5 hours is a **stamina event.** Know the rules on breaks (some formats allow an optional break; others don't pause the clock) and plan accordingly. - **Micro-resets without leaving:** between questions, a single slow breath and a roll of the shoulders resets focus more than re-reading a stem five times. - **Hydrate and fuel beforehand** so you're not fighting hunger or a caffeine crash mid-exam.

- **Reframe arousal:** a racing heart is your body **mobilizing**, not failing. Mild stress **sharpens** recall — name it ("I'm activated, that's normal") to defuse it. - **Box breathing for a panic spike:** inhale 4, hold 4, exhale 4, hold 4 — two or three cycles drops the spike enough to think. Use it the moment you feel your mind go blank. - **Anchor on process, not outcome:** when a hard item triggers spiraling ("what if I fail?"), return to the **loop** — read the qualifier, eliminate, choose, flag. Process is controllable; outcome isn't. - **The hard-question circuit-breaker:** one brutal question is **not** a verdict on your readiness. Flag it, move to an item you can win, and let an early success rebuild momentum. - **Don't tally as you go.** Counting "questions I think I missed" is corrosive and inaccurate (the scoring is scaled). Keep your eyes forward.

- **Three stages:** placement → layering → integration; **placement** is the **easiest to detect** (cash entering the system). - **Thresholds (memorize the numbers):** **CTR** > **$10,000** cash/day, file in **15 days**; **SAR** within **30 days** of detection (**up to 60** if no suspect); **funds-transfer/Travel Rule** at **$3,000**; **BSA recordkeeping retention = 5 years**; **beneficial-ownership control test = 25%**. - **USA PATRIOT Act sections:** **§311** special measures; **§312** correspondent/private-banking EDD; **§313** no shell banks; **§314(a)** government→FI search; **§314(b)** voluntary FI↔FI sharing (safe harbor); **§319** forfeiture/records. - **Who does what:** **FATF** sets the 40 Recommendations and grey/black lists; **FinCEN** = US FIU; **Egmont** = FIU-to-FIU sharing; **Wolfsberg** = correspondent-banking DDQ; **Basel** = CDD for banks; **OFAC** = US sanctions (SDN list, **50% rule**, **strict liability**). - **Program pillars:** compliance officer · internal controls · independent testing · training · risk-based **CDD** (5th pillar). **Three lines of defense.** - **SAR rules:** **tipping-off is prohibited**; SAR is **confidential**; filing doesn't end monitoring (continuing-activity SARs); good-faith **safe harbor**. - **Crypto:** **VASP** = exchange/transfer/custody for others; **hosted vs unhosted** wallets; **FATF Recommendation 16** crypto Travel Rule (~$1,000); mixers/chain-hopping/peel chains/privacy coins = **layering**. - **Exam technique:** hunt the qualifier (**BEST/FIRST/MOST**); **eliminate tipping-off and premature de-risking**; multi-select = independent true/false; **no guessing penalty — answer everything.**

- Many candidates see a provisional result on screen; an official outcome follows per ACAMS process. **Don't dissect** individual questions afterward — it doesn't change the score and corrodes confidence. - If you don't pass on the first attempt, it's a **retake, not a verdict** — diagnose weak domains and return. (We never promise a pass; preparation improves odds, that's the honest claim.)

So walk in with a playbook, not just knowledge. Pace at about a minute forty-five per item, run two passes, flag anything past two minutes, and never leave a blank — there's no penalty for guessing. When anxiety spikes, box-breathe and return to the process loop; one ugly question is never a verdict. And the night before, run the high-yield cheat-sheet — the thresholds, the PATRIOT Act sections, who-does-what, the SAR rules, the crypto essentials — then rest. You don't need perfect; you need a scaled seventy-five. That's the whole strategy. In our final lecture, we'll close the loop — recap the journey, point you to the AMLReady practice test for your last mile of prep, and talk recertification and where an AML career can take you from here.