How I, a Humanities Major, Passed the 'Hazardous Materials Class B Group 4' Exam on My First Try in One Month Without Doing Calculation Problems
Introduction
I obtained the Hazardous Materials Engineer Class B Group 4 certification in March 2026. The passing criteria for the Class B Group 4 exam is to get at least 60% correct in each of the exam subjects. The exam consists of a total of three subjects, and if you score below 60% in even one of them, you will fail (the cut-off system). I have compiled the know-how that allowed me, a university graduate with a humanities background working in accounting, to pass on my first attempt in a short period of one month.
【*My exam results】
I barely passed the physics and chemistry sections, which I am not good at 💦
Is self-study okay? The reality of pass rates and difficulty
The pass rate for this exam is said to be around 30% to 40% every year. Speaking from the perspective of someone who actually passed through self-study,
I think most people can aim to pass with self-study alone. Even if you have a苦手 (weakness) regarding science subjects, there is no need to worry too much. Once you get used to the question patterns, the specialized knowledge will firmly take root. I watched explanation videos about the exam on YouTube before I started studying with past exam questions. By first understanding the overview of the exam, I think you will be able to see your own study methods and strategies.
About the one-month schedule and study time
The time required to pass was about one month, and the total study time was roughly 30 to 40 hours. My study method was
to just 'go through past exam questions repeatedly'.
I didn't secure the exact same amount of time every day, but I turned it into a routine as follows.
Weekdays: Study for 1 hour before going to work
Holidays: Study for 2 hours in the morning. Study for 1 hour before going to bed
From one week before the exam, I studied for about 2 to 3 hours even on weekdays.
I think the important thing is to make it a habit to continue by solving at least one page or one question every day. Once you learn to slack off, your brain learns to escape toward the easier path 😞. As a result, it led to passing in the short period of one month.
You can fight with just this one book! The strongest past question collection
The one I chose was the Koron Shuppan past question collection. It is composed of content close to the actual questions, the quality of the past questions was high, and it was a collection of good questions.
Good points: The explanations are thorough. You will gain enough ability to fight through the exam with just this one book. In fact, many similar questions appeared on the actual exam. *Since you cannot take the question paper home for this qualification, it is surprising that the accuracy of the questions is this high!
Points to note: The contents are all monochrome, and the design is plain. It might feel a bit stiff for people who like colorful teaching materials with many illustrations, but the quality of the content is unquestionable.
Ask 'Gemini' about parts you don't understand
When I was solving past questions and there were parts where the explanation alone was insufficient for understanding, or when unfamiliar technical terms appeared, I utilized 'Gemini'.
When I asked, 'Explain the mechanism of XX in an easy-to-understand way' or 'What is the meaning of this word?', it would instantly return a broken-down explanation, which greatly reduced the time spent researching and was very useful for deepening my understanding.
Things I'm glad I did and recommended tips
I will introduce the strategies I practiced to maintain my motivation and continue studying for the science-based subjects I am not good at for one month.
Be bold and skip the 'problems you don't understand'!
The most effective thing for continuing my study for the Class B Group 4 qualification was deciding to almost entirely skip complex calculation problems and chemical formulas.
In fact, calculation problems I couldn't solve appeared on the actual exam, but if you firmly grasp the other basic problems, it is not difficult to reach the 60% passing threshold.
Even if you encounter problems you don't understand or can't grasp, skip them for now and move forward
Without stopping, make it your top priority to 'finish one full pass' of the problem collection
First, finishing one pass of the problem collection will lead to confidence. Abandoning perfectionism and quickly grasping the overall picture is the shortcut to passing in a short period.
Conclusion
Since it had been a long time since I last studied for a qualification, it was difficult to maintain my motivation and keep going. That is why the moment I found my examinee number on the results announcement, I was truly overwhelmed with emotion✨
I am rooting for everyone who will be taking the exam! See you later!