The NEW IBCLC Exam Study Outline is now available!
A resource to radically simplify your IBCLC exam prep
*This resource is not affiliated with or endorsed by IBLCE. All organizational & test names are trademarks of their respective owners.
Study Smarter, Not Harder
Spend less time sifting through textbooks & more time learning what you need to know to prepare for your exam.
Studying for the IBCLC Exam just got a whole lot easier.
Get access to carefully curated study notes compiled with your needs in mind:
✓ Instantly download 88 pages of study material packed with content you need to know for the IBCLC exam
✓ Concise & condensed explanations in outline format
✓ Designated space to easily add your own notes on every page
✓ Organized sections that mirror the IBLCE Detailed Content Outline*
*Please note: Some material on the IBLCE’s Detailed Content Outline (e.g. counseling skills, cultural competency, etc.) requires the application of knowledge/skills, so this study outline is NOT comprehensive. Please see the FAQs below for more information.
JUST IMAGINE IF YOU COULD...
✓ Stay focused on essential facts, rather than getting lost in a dense textbook
✓ Spend less time looking for information, and more time committing it to memory
✓ Study efficiently, because so much of what you need to know is already compiled and ready to use
✓ Have more time to devote to practice questions, so you are better prepared for exam day
✓ Be the IBCLC candidate who can answer others’ questions, instead of wondering them yourself
✓ Have an awesome resource to refer to later, even after the exam is long over!
YOU GET STUDY NOTES ON ALL THIS:
- Developmental milestones
- Breastfeeding habits & sleep
- Infant state & feeding cues
- Infant oral anatomy & suck/swallow tongue movements
- Infant facial muscles & cranial nerves
- Newborn assessment
- Preterm infants
- WHO Growth Charts
- Milk baking & donor milk
- Human milk substitutes
- WHO Code
- Infant stooling & voiding
- Internal & external breast anatomy
- Breast development & stages of lactogenesis
- Variations in breast anatomy
- Breast surgery
- Composition of human milk
- Milk synthesis & maternal nutrition
- Infant food allergies/intolerance
- Physiology of lactation (infertility, breastfeeding during pregnancy, breastfeeding multiples, tandem feeding, relactation & induced lactation, lactational amenorrhea)
- Hormones & lactation
- Maternal pathology (46 conditions)
- Maternal breast pathology (27+ conditions)
- Infant oral anomalies
- Infant pathology (51 conditions)
- Drug entry into human milk (including drug examples)
- Maternal mental health
- Selected psychology, sociology, & anthropology topics
- Birth & common birth practices
- Breastfeeding initiation
- Breastfeeding positions, infant-led latching, & asymmetric latch
- Managing milk supply
- Milk expression
- Lactation tools & techniques (e.g. tube feeding devices, cup feeding, etc.)
- Milk storage & handling
- Additional clinical skills/knowledge
- Statistics & research methods
With space to add your own notes on every page!
What Students Are Saying...
Hey there, I'm Gabby!
And I know what it's like to feel overwhelmed studying for the IBCLC Exam.
I tried reading lactation textbooks cover-to-cover, but the information didn’t stick. I tried making flashcards, but there was just too much to squeeze on a 4×6 notecard. I needed to try something new.
So I started over. I took out a blank piece of paper and started writing. My goal was to–as much as possible–condense everything I needed to know about a topic on as few pages as possible. Infant reflexes? One page. Drug entry into human milk? One page. Components of human milk? Well, that one had to be a couple pages, but you get the idea.
By the end, I had a study guide that was easy to reference and a LOT less dense than the mountain of textbooks I scoured to compile these facts. I wound up passing the exam by a very wide margin, and by the next year, I had created a study outline that over 850 IBCLC exam candidates have used to study for their exams!
Frequently Asked Questions
WHAT SHOULD I DO IF MY PDF WON'T DOWNLOAD?
If you are having difficulty downloading your PDF, try the following:
1) Make sure you are downloading your PDF on a desktop/laptop computer. For some reason, downloading to a mobile or tablet device sometimes causes issues. You can later transfer the document to your mobile or tablet device.
2) If you are still having trouble, email me at [email protected] or DM me on Facebook and we will work out another way to get your PDF to you!
WHEN do I get my PDF? Where is the download link?
Immediately after making your purchase, you will see a download link, and your download link will also be emailed to you with your receipt.
What's Included with the IBCLC EXAM STUDY OUTLINE?
The IBCLC Exam Study Outline is downloadable PDF file (no physical copy will be mailed to you) that includes 88 pages of info (plus a few extra blank pages for notes) on the following topics:
- Developmental milestones
- Breastfeeding habits & sleep
- Infant state & feeding cues
- Infant oral anatomy & suck/swallow tongue movements
- Infant facial muscles & cranial nerves
- Newborn assessment
- Preterm infants
- WHO Growth Charts
- Milk baking & donor milk
- Human milk substitutes
- WHO Code
- Infant stooling & voiding
- Internal & external breast anatomy
- Breast development & stages of lactogenesis
- Variations in breast anatomy
- Breast surgery
- Composition of human milk
- Milk synthesis & maternal nutrition
- Infant food allergies/intolerance
- Physiology of lactation (infertility, breastfeeding during pregnancy, breastfeeding multiples, tandem feeding, relactation & induced lactation, lactational amenorrhea)
- Hormones & lactation
- Maternal pathology (46 conditions)
- Maternal breast pathology (27+ conditions)
- Infant oral anomalies
- Infant pathology (51 conditions)
- Drug entry into human milk (including drug examples)
- Maternal mental health
- Selected psychology, sociology, & anthropology topics
- Birth & common birth practices
- Breastfeeding initiation
- Breastfeeding positions, infant-led latching, & asymmetric latch
- Managing milk supply
- Milk expression
- Lactation tools & techniques (e.g. tube feeding devices, cup feeding, etc.)
- Milk storage & handling
- Additional clinical skills/knowledge
- Statistics & research methods
IS THIS AN OFFICIAL IBLCE RESOURCE?
No. While I am an IBCLC, I am not associated with the IBLCE in any other capacity. This resource is not affiliated with or endorsed by IBLCE. All organizational & test names are trademarks of their respective owners. I cannot answer questions about future or past exams, and I do not have access to information about what questions will be on the exam. Any study strategies shared in this outline are my own personal recommendations.
does the outline cover everything I need to know to pass the exam? Is It TOTALLY Comprehensive?
No. The IBLCE’s Detailed Content Outline is very broad, so it would be impossible to anticipate everything that could possibly be asked on an exam. Additionally, you will need to know how to APPLY certain knowledge (e.g. cultural competency, counseling skills, etc.), which is a skill best practiced rather than something that can be “studied.”
For best results, you will need to utilize additional study materials that are NOT included in this study outline, such as practice questions.
It is the buyer’s responsibility to ensure that they are familiar with all material on the IBLCE’s Detailed Content Outline, which is available on the IBLCE website.
Fortunately, the outline does cover a great number of topics you will need to know about, and if you come across something not included in the outline, you can also add the information to the margins or to the included “notes” page at the end of the outline.
Will I pass the exam if I know everything on this outline?
Purchasing this study outline does NOT guarantee any specific exam outcome.
How effective this study outline will be depends on the extent to which you are able to learn and apply the material in it.
IS THE STUDY OUTLINE ALREADY FILLED IN FOR ME?
YUP! All the work is done for you!
However, it’s important to note that lactation is a relatively new field of study that is still evolving. The information in this outline is as up-to-date as possible at the time of publication, but just in case new information becomes available, I made sure to include designated space on every page of this outline for you to add your own notes.
IS THIS A Physical Product?
At this time, the IBCLC Exam Study Outline is NOT a physical product. It is a downloadable PDF. You can print it to take notes on it directly, or Android/iOS apps like GoodNotes and Notability will allow you use a tablet to highlight and annotate PDFs on a tablet.
How do I pay? CAN I purchase this from Outside of the US?
Click the buy button below to be redirected to a secure payment portal powered by PayHip. This ensures your payment info is protected. And YES! You can definitely purchase this if you are located outside of the United States. Please note that EU and international customers are subject to the taxes that apply to their region.