If you’re studying to be a Certified Treasury Professional, you’ve got a lot of work ahead of you. Here are five tips, based on my own experiences preparing for the exam.

1. Know the text. Read the "Essentials of Treasury Management" textbook thoroughly and more than once if time permits. Exam questions cover the whole book.

2. Don’t skip ahead. Read the modules/chapters in chronological order. Don’t go to any later chapter before covering the former ones. It will help you to understand the concepts better and it establishes a link between all modules/chapters.

3. Be wary of outside materials. If you are only reading materials purchased from an outside provider, be ready to face much tougher and more complex questions than what are given in the practice sets. I passed the CTP in July 2015 and I found the exam much harder than what appeared in the outside materials.

4. Never take a day off. Set aside a block of time every day to read and prepare. Apart from reading the study materials, also read current financial, economic and risk issues on the internet to keep yourself abreast of recent developments. This comes in handy and gives a better understanding of the entire subject.

5. Practice your problem-solving. Memorize the formulas by writing them down and solving problems. Also practice using a financial calculator if you don’t know.

I hope these tips will help you as you prepare. Good luck!

Shovan Dutta, CTP is a senior associate for Sunova Credit Union.