Hi - for those of you that recently took the CRCM, what was the best study method? Some of the regulations are hundreds of pages and I am not sure if I should try to read each one or focus on the Regulatory Compliance guide from the ABA. I am going to compliance school through the ABA program as well. Basically I am asking if studying the Regulatory Compliance manual is enough or would you suggest printing (?) and studying each regulation. My next question is if you study the actual reg, what did you study? Thank you!!!

I can't offer insight into current practices, but when I served on the CRCM exam committee long, long, long ago, our guiding principle was to tailor the exam questions to high risk topics, not regulatory minutia. For the CRCM professional designation to signify value to current or potential employers, it should convey the idea that CRCMs have a thorough understanding of the high risk regulations--the ones with the potential penalties that could do great harm to a bank's bottom line or reputation.

It really depends on your knowledge base. When I was prepping, I found it most helpful to start by taking the quizzes at the end of each section of the ABA Reference Guide to Regulatory Compliance. Then I focused my study time on the areas where my scores showed the most opportunity for improvement. In my case, that was BSA/AML and Reg. W. For those areas, I reviewed the ABA guide, regulatory interpretations, and any recent consent orders.

Study the manual, and then go to the compliance school the week before you test/ Everything was nice and fresh in your mind and
I was totally focused on compliance and not the office.

That is excellent advice! You might find a classmate who's also cramming for the test...and become a study group!

I studied straight from the Reference Guide to Regulatory Compliance.

I study the exam manual and took the quizzes at the end of the chapter a couple of times. I also used our in house training program that offers courses on every regulation. I felt they highlighted the main points of the regulations that I was not familiar with.