Week 1 – Know the Exam – Live Session Tues, Sept 22, 4:30pm (PT)
Zoom Recording CLICK HERE!
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
1. Review & Learn
Recommended Reading & Review
Start Here: ALPP CLC Certification
1. CLC Certification Overview
Review the current certification pathways, eligibility requirements, and the purpose of the CLC credential.
Know the Examination
2. CLC Candidate Handbook for Remote Testing
This is the most important Week 1 resource. Review the current application requirements, examination structure, testing procedures, candidate responsibilities, and practical/didactic examination information.
3. CLC Examination FAQs
Review the frequently asked questions about the online examination, examination length, retakes, accommodations, and certification.
Know What the Exam Covers
4. 2025 CLC Job Task Analysis
Review the current Job Task Analysis and become familiar with the major content domains and the chronological periods represented in the examination blueprint. The JTA informs the examination blueprint; its frequency data should not be interpreted as a direct percentage weighting of examination questions.
2025 CLC Job Task Analysis Executive Summary
5. Academic Content Checklist
Review the five General Principles and the specific knowledge areas identified by ALPP. This is especially useful as a study map for identifying areas that may need additional review.
CLC Academic Content Checklist
Know the Role
6. CLC Scope of Practice
Read the current Scope of Practice so that you understand the role and responsibilities of the CLC, including assessment, counseling, evidence-based practice, and referral.
One place to bookmark
7. ALPP CLC Forms & Resources
Bookmark this page. It provides access to the current Candidate Handbook, Academic Content Checklist, application, Counseling Skills Attestation, FAQs, accommodations information, and other candidate resources.
2. Apply It
Apply It Activity: CLC Examination Application Readiness
In the Review & Learn section, you reviewed the current ALPP requirements for applying for the CLC examination, including the documentation required for the Aggregate Pathway.
Now it’s time to apply that information to your own exam preparation.
For this activity, you will use the current ALPP requirements to identify what you already have, what you still need to obtain or complete, and what steps you need to take before submitting your application.
What to Do
Download and complete the CLC Examination Application Readiness Checklist below.
You do not need to submit your application to ALPP as part of this activity. The purpose is to make sure you understand the requirements and have a clear plan for completing your application when you are ready.
Use the current ALPP CLC Forms & Resources page and Candidate Handbook when preparing your actual application, as requirements, forms, and procedures may change.
Activity: Complete the CLC Examination Application Readiness Activity
3. Build Your Study Tool
Build Your Study Tool: Personal Study Map
Now that you have reviewed the major areas of the CLC examination, it is time to begin building your personal study map.
This activity is designed to help you identify where you currently feel confident and where you may need additional review. You will consider three dimensions of the examination content: Topic Areas, General Principles, and Chronological Periods.
This is not a test or assessment of your knowledge. It is a starting point for planning your exam preparation. Your study priorities may change as you work through the course, practice applying your knowledge, and identify areas that need additional attention.
What to Do
Download and complete the Personal Study Map below.
As you work through the course, keep your completed Study Map. You will return to it throughout the course and may update your priorities as your knowledge and confidence develop.
Activity: Build Your Study Tool: Personal Study Map
3. Practice
Practice Questions: Week 1 — Know the Exam
You have now reviewed the structure of the CLC examination, the Job Task Analysis, the Academic Content Checklist, the CLC role and Scope of Practice, and the major content areas and chronological periods represented in the examination.
The practice questions in this section are designed to help you begin applying what you learned and identify where you may need additional review.
Why These Questions Are Structured This Way
These first questions are intentionally designed to be a baseline. They are not meant to be as challenging as the questions you will encounter later in the course.
At this point, the goal is to determine:
- Can you recognize the major CLC examination content areas?
- Can you distinguish the purpose of the JTA from the Academic Content Checklist?
- Can you recognize the chronological periods represented in the JTA?
- Can you identify foundational CLC principles and the role and Scope of Practice?
- Can you begin moving from simply knowing information to recognizing how that information applies to a situation?
Some questions will be straightforward recognition or recall questions. Others will begin to introduce simple application.
This is intentional.
Use These Questions With Your Personal Study Map
As you work through the questions, pay attention not only to whether you selected the correct answer, but also to how confident you were.
If a question feels difficult, ask yourself why:
- Did you not remember the information?
- Did you confuse two concepts?
- Did you recognize the information but have difficulty applying it?
- Is this an area you identified as needing review on your Personal Study Map?
Your answers can help you refine the study priorities you identified earlier in this lesson.
How the Practice Questions Will Progress
The practice questions will become progressively more complex as the course continues.
Week 1 — Know the Exam
Recognize → Distinguish → Identify → Begin to Apply
The focus is on establishing your baseline knowledge and becoming familiar with the content you will be expected to know.
Week 2 — How to Approach the Exam
Understand the Question → Identify What Is Being Asked → Eliminate Distractors → Select the Best Answer
The focus shifts toward test-taking strategies and learning how to approach different types of examination questions.
Later Weeks — Clinical Content and Application
Recognize → Interpret → Apply → Select
As we move into clinical content, questions will increasingly require you to interpret a situation, determine what information is relevant, apply your lactation knowledge, and select the most appropriate response.
The goal is not simply to get better at answering practice questions. The goal is to progressively move from recognizing information to retrieving and applying it in a clinical context, which is an important part of preparing for a certification examination.
As You Work
For each question, take your time and think through your reasoning. The explanation following each question is part of the learning activity—not just a justification for the correct answer.
Remember: You are establishing a baseline, not proving what you already know.
Areas that feel uncertain now are exactly the areas your Study Map is designed to help you identify.
Click on Practice Questions and complete them before opening the Answer Key and reviewing the answers and rationale!
Practice Questions: Practice Questions
Answer Key: Answer Key & Rationale
