Another real consideration is how much academic or professional development business analysis training you have done in your career. In my own case, I was lucky to have completed a university degree as well as a series of professional development certifications in my career prior to attempting the CBAP® exam. This helped me tremendously in terms of understanding the concepts in the BABOK® Guide v3 really quickly, and this had a direct impact on the amount of time I needed to study for the exam. I am also a short-term, under-pressure type of learner, which meant my preparation was intense but over within a couple of weeks. 

Average preparation time—considering these primary factors—would be between 4 weeks and 12 weeks. This is based on my own experience, but also on my experience after speaking to a wide variety of different people over a long period of time. My advice is that you consider these factors, spend some time to get familiar with the size of the BABOK® Guide v3, and prepare a plan for your studies. In the next section, I provide you with some ideas for how to create a good study plan to suit your own personal circumstances and learning style.