A four-week RE5 study plan.

Make the plan fit your starting point

Four weeks is an example schedule, not a promise that four weeks is enough for every learner. Your background, available time and current understanding will determine your pace. Leave room to repeat difficult topics.

Before starting, list the official criteria, the study resources you have and the sessions you can realistically protect. The blocks below are RE5 Master's suggested groupings, not official task headings or a replacement for the syllabus.

Use the exam guide for current source links. Keep track of your coverage against the full official map, even when your study material uses a different chapter order.

Week 1: Build the framework

Focus: vocabulary, the regulatory framework, products, activities and the people involved. Start with the scope of FAIS, advice versus intermediary services and financial products.

Do: make a one-page map connecting the client, activity, product and relevant role. After each session, close your notes and explain one distinction in your own words. Check that explanation against your source.

Finish with: a list of covered criteria, your own examples and a short list of unresolved questions. Do not use familiarity with an abbreviation as a substitute for understanding the underlying role.

Week 2: Work through the client journey

Focus: the study sections on conduct, disclosure, the advice process, client money, records and complaints. Link each topic back to the applicable criteria in your source checklist.

Do: choose a fictional client journey and identify where each topic belongs. For a practice question, note both the answer and the reason the closest alternative does not fit. Keep personal client information out of your study notes.

Finish with: a mistake log that distinguishes a knowledge gap from a reading mistake. Revisit week-one topics briefly so they remain part of your active revision.

Week 3: Close coverage gaps

Focus: any remaining criteria, including the sections in your material on licence responsibilities, competence, supervision, financial-crime prevention and accountability.

Do: audit your checklist line by line. Mark each item as not yet studied, studied but uncertain, or able to explain and apply. Choose the next session from the gaps, not simply from the topics you enjoy.

Finish with: mixed-topic questions and a written explanation for each mistake. If an answer seems inconsistent with your source, record the exact question and reference for review rather than memorising an answer you cannot justify.

Week 4: Practise, review and decide the next step

Focus: full-paper practice, time management and the topics still causing errors. Use a free mock-exam paper or the app's timed mock exams.

Do: complete a fresh attempt under timed conditions, then set aside a separate review session. Read the explanations, revisit the relevant material and try a new example. Repeat attempts on the same paper can reflect memory as well as understanding.

Finish with: evidence of what improved and a short next-revision list. A practice score is not a guaranteed official result. Extend preparation if you still cannot explain important topics.

A repeatable 45-minute study session

1. 5 minutes: recall yesterday's concept without opening your notes.
2. 20 minutes: read one manageable section and check the source it refers to.
3. 15 minutes: answer questions or write a short scenario and explain the rule.
4. 5 minutes: record the gap and set the next action.

This is a suggested split. Shorten, extend or divide a session to suit your circumstances. Protect time for reviewing mistakes rather than using every available minute to answer more questions.

A mistake-review template

Keep your own log in a notebook or document. You do not need to submit personal study information to use this plan. For question-reading examples, continue to RE5 exam technique.