Pass the LEED AP BD&C Exam, Get Your Building LEED Certified, Fight Global Warming and Save Money!

The USGBC released LEED v4 in GreenBuild International Conference and Expo in November, 2013. The GBCI started to include the new LEED v4 content for all LEED exams in late Spring 2014. We have incorporated the new LEED v4 content in this book.

Starting on December 1, 2011, GBCI began to draw LEED AP BD+C Exam questions from Green Building and LEED Core Concepts Guide. We have also incorporated the latest information from this book.

LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is one of the most important trends in development and is revolutionizing the construction industry. It has gained tremendous momentum and has a profound impact on our environment.

From this book, you will learn how to:
1. Pass the LEED AP BD+C Exam.
2. Register and achieve LEED certification for a building.
3. Understand the intent of each LEED prerequisite and credit.
4. Calculate points for LEED credits.
5. Indentify the credit path, submittal requirements, synergies, possible strategies and technologies, project phase, LEED submittal phase, and responsible party for each prerequisite and credit.
6. Earn extra credit (exemplary performance) for LEED.
7. Implement the related codes and standards.
8. Obtain points for categories not yet clearly defined by the USGBC.

Most of the existing books on LEED and the LEED exams are too expensive and complicated to be practical or helpful. This guide fills in the blanks and demystifies LEED. It uncovers the secrets, codes, and jargon for LEED as well as the true meaning of "going green." It provides a solid foundation and fundamental framework for LEED. It covers every major aspect of LEED in plain and concise language, and introduces it to ordinary people. This guide is easy to carry around. You can read it whenever you have a few extra minutes.

It is an indispensable book for ordinary people, developers, brokers, contractors, administrators, architects, landscape architects, engineers, interns, drafters, designers, and other design professionals.

What others are saying about LEED BD&C Exam Guide …

“Passed on first try, only used this guide

“This is the best study guide HANDS DOWN. If you're serious about passing the LEED AP BD&C exam on your first try, this is the one you've been looking for! I bought Mr. Chen's LEED Green Associate Exam Guide2 months ago and passed it on the first try as well. I purchased the USGBC reference guide and Mr. Chen's LEED BD&C Exam Guide. I never opened the USGBC reference guide, only studied from Mr. Chen's study guide. I followed Mr. Chen's instructions and studied the guide for 2 weeks (yes, I have a full-time job). I did ignore the mnemonics, not my learning style (makes it more confusing to me). The exam was not easy, but I prepared and stuck to this material. I am not a good test taker by no means. I reviewed the technical data of the guide about 6 times and ignored everything else I had read or heard about the exam. Here's a piece of advice that I picked up from this book, spend less time on practice tests and more time studying! I have a subscription to a web exam simulator (rated the best) and only did about 100 questions, until I realized that I was wasting my valuable time. Find a good book and stick to it. This is also a great reference guide to use on everyday projects. Review the material, try to understand it, then try to memorize it through repetition. I would like to shake your hand and say THANKS AGAIN MR. GANG CHEN !!! ”

—LOBO

“Excellent Guide and Good Manual

“I passed the LEED AP BD+C and the LEED AP ID+C exams this year and Gang Chen's books were my primary study material! The books are easy to read and use. Gang Chen provides study hints and guidance as well as an outline format that makes it easy for the reader to grasp key points. He also provides an excellent review of the entire accreditation process which can save people time in personal research. The books are more than study guides; they are helpful as reference manuals because of the easy to follow format. Definitely a keeper in my bookshelf for future project reference.”

—Karen M. Scott

“Great resource for studying for the LEED Exam!

“I have taken and passed the LEED AP BD+C exam and know what it takes. As this author says, it's not an easy exam and he is right. What is critical to passing is having great teaching tools and this book is one of them. He touches on every aspect of how to memorize data, how questions are formed, what to expect on tricky questions, the content the test writers are looking for and every little detail you need to know when preparing for this exam. I highly recommend this author's books if you are serious about passing any of the LEED exams, hopefully on the first try!”

—S. Jennifer Sakiewicz

“LEED BD & C Exam Study Guide

“Gang Chan's study guide is an excellent resource in preparing to take the LEED AP BD+C exam particularly if one follows the study recommendation made in the guide. It does not replace the LEED Reference manual as the definitive source for technical information but more importantly provides a structure for the study of the information that is easily understood and when followed should provide good assurance of success in passing the exam the 1st time. This is a 'keeper'!”

—Spock

“Good summary of information to memorize for the test

“Chen's exam guide is a good summary of the test relevant information in the LEED reference guide. He underlines specific information that is important to commit to memory for the test. It is a good way to understand which information needs to be strictly memorized if you are preparing for the test in a short amount of time and have a good understanding of the LEED process through your professional experience. I passed the test with a very high score on my first try, and I did use this guide, one other, the LEED reference manual, online sources, a class, and many years of personally working on and completing online LEED submittals through my work. The week before taking the test I used it to commit point values and those kind of details to memory... ”

—Denver

“Not a bulky ref guide
“LEED BD&C Exam Guide does a great job in highlighting and summarizing the key points and concepts in USGBC ref guide. If you only have limited amount of time for LEED AP BD+C exam preparation, definitely go for this book.”
—Metcalf

“Very valuable guide!
“I am a lighting designer and am preparing to take the LEED BD+C exam...I got LEED BD&C Exam Guide to prepare for the LEED AP BD+C Exam and it was fairly well organized to help me refresh my memory on the background LEED knowledge I had. All the specifics that one needs to know about each credit such as the Purpose of the credit, Credit path, Submittals, Strategies and technologies etc, are clearly organized for every credit. In addition the author also employs the smart technique of Mnemonics which helps in memorizing the vast amount of information in a simplified manner.”
—Visswapriya Prabakar

“Immensely valuable and utterly to the point, a true must have!
“This is an excellent publication by Gang Chen that outlines precisely all the key points one need for success. I personally appreciate the easy to adopt memorization technique offered by the author. Practice exams are very comprehensive yet summarized and not to mention highly effective learning tool as it is designed in this book. It is a very delightful experience for me to have this outstanding publication. In a word, this definitely worth the money and for me it turns out extraordinarily helpful.”
—Shanaz, who passed LEED AP BD+C Exam on the first try

“Very Helpful!
“I found LEED BD&C Exam Guide to be very detailed and very helpful. I plan to take the exam soon, and I feel fully prepared for it.”
— Yousuf Asadzoi

“Good book!
“I had appeared for GA and passed. I loved the content and the underlined highlights. I read your book; it gave me insight and knowledge on how credits are applied. Some questions in your book helped me answer ones on the test. Good book, I'll go through it once again when I appear for AP.”
—Haresh Vibhakar, AIIA (India), AIA, LEED Green Associate, Architect

“A good outline

“The book is an excellent outline to learn the necessary items required to study for the exam. It is not a comprehensive study guide in and of itself. Practice exam is good indicator of test preparation.”

—Paul Levine

“Solid LEED Study Guide

“This is the kind of book I wish was available when I did my original LEED AP exam. It teaches you how to study, which is so important when school is a distant memory. The bulk of the book helps you review and memorize with mnemonics the concepts for each credit that you need to know for the exam. The questions are good representations of questions on the exam. I would recommend to anyone studying for their exam, that they:

- First read the chapters in this book on how to study;

- Second read the actual LEED BD+C guide to give you the background information on the credits and gain comprehension. Underline and review as the author indicates to get the most out of your study time.

- Finally read the rest of this exam guide to help you review and memorize for the exam.”

—missfitz "missfitz"

“Very Helpful Guide

“Gang Chen's LEED BD&C Exam Guides very helpful in consolidating information from USGBC and GBCI sources as well as providing the information that is necessary for the exam without excess irrelevant information. I highly recommend this book for preparation for the LEED BD+C exams.”

—leedap