Studying A-to-Z for the AAP Exam

Joyce Bucknam, AAP
Remote Systems Manager
Reliant Community Federal Credit Union

Joyce Bucknam spent 10 months preparing for the AAP exam. And for good reasons.

“It was a very intense exam. It truly is a reading exam,” said Bucknam, remote systems manager at Reliant Community Federal Credit Union, Sodus, New York. “You’ve got to pay attention to the words. They want to make sure you understand what they’re asking.”

Bucknam went to the Payments Institute, taking “every class that I possibly could related to becoming an AAP,” and signing up for an AAP buddy who offered studying suggestions.

“I took the 10-week course from The Clearing House. I got all the manuals and documentation I could get and read those. I made sure I did all the homework.”

Bucknam also used the ACH Pro CD, which includes sample tests. “I took the exams at least twice a week. My AAP buddy said he took the exams until he got 100. I got 97, 98, but I could never get 100,” she laughed.

And she wasn’t done yet. Bucknam also got the flash cards.

“If I knew the answer, it went in one pile. And if I didn’t know the answer, it went to the reject pile. And I kept going through that reject pile until it was down to nothing.”

Being an AAP helps immensely with her job—especially when dealing with the “Nacha Operating Rules & Guidelines,” which is more than an inch thick.

“When questions come up, if I don’t know the answer then I know where to find it. Knowing where to find it in the book really helps,” said Bucknam.

Achieving the AAP credential “was a lot of work from the beginning to the end,” she said. But did she pass on the first try?

“Oh yeah.”