AAPA study plan
AAPA · Give each week a clear focus.
8 weeks · About 7 hours per week
Plan Design, Benefits, and Compensation & Regulatory and Compliance
Map the four exam domains and weight each by percentage to set study priorities
Define core plan-design terms (eligibility, vesting, benefit formulas, compensation definitions) in your own words
Outline the main regulatory frameworks governing plan operation and identify which agency enforces each
Build a personal glossary of 25+ terms with one original example each
Your checkpoint
A one-page domain map plus a 25-term glossary with original examples
Plan Design, Benefits, and Compensation
Distinguish defined benefit from defined contribution structures and list the design tradeoffs of each
Explain how compensation definitions and benefit formulas interact to determine payouts
Compare vesting schedules and eligibility rules and predict their effect on participant outcomes
Draft three original scenarios where a design choice changes a participant's result
Your checkpoint
A comparison table of plan types with a worked numeric example for each
Plan Design, Benefits, and Compensation & Regulatory and Compliance
Connect each major plan-design feature to the regulatory requirement it satisfies
Identify required participant disclosures and the events that trigger them
Explain fiduciary duties and apply them to two hypothetical decision points
List prohibited-transaction concepts and construct a compliant alternative for each
Your checkpoint
A design-to-compliance crosswalk chart covering at least 10 design features
Regulatory and Compliance
Sequence the compliance calendar across a plan year and label each deadline's trigger
Summarize reporting and filing obligations and who is responsible for each
Explain correction options for common operational failures
Solve five original compliance mini-cases and justify each answer
Your checkpoint
A one-year compliance calendar plus written answers to five mini-cases
Client Communication and Documentation
Draft plain-language explanations of complex plan provisions for three audience types
Identify documentation standards for participant communications and recordkeeping
Practice translating technical terms into participant-friendly language without losing accuracy
Write model responses to two difficult participant scenarios
Your checkpoint
Three sample participant communications plus two model response scripts
Administration and Operations
Trace a participant transaction from enrollment through payout and name the controls at each step
Explain reconciliation and recordkeeping practices that prevent errors
Describe how operational errors are detected and corrected
Diagram the workflow for one end-to-end process
Your checkpoint
A process flow diagram with control points annotated
Client Communication and Documentation & Administration and Operations
Integrate documentation requirements into administrative workflows
Build a checklist that ties each administrative step to its required record
Audit two of your earlier deliverables for gaps in documentation or controls
Revise weak answers and note what changed
Your checkpoint
A combined administration-and-documentation checklist with a written gap analysis
Client Communication and Documentation & Plan Design, Benefits, and Compensation & Regulatory and Compliance & Administration and Operations
Review all four domains using your glossary, crosswalk, and checklists
Write 40 original practice questions weighted by domain percentage
Score your practice set and re-teach the two weakest areas
Summarize the ten highest-risk concepts in a one-page review sheet
Your checkpoint
A scored 40-question practice set plus a one-page final review sheet
Milestones
Week 2: Can explain plan types and benefit formulas from memory with a worked example
Week 4: Can place any major compliance deadline on the calendar without notes
Week 6: Can walk through one administrative process end to end and name its controls
Week 8: Scores 80% or higher on the original 40-question practice set, with no domain below 70%