As for study hints: the way I studied was by "collecting
results" -- basically get an overview of the material
one thinks one could ideally/realistically hope to
be responsible for in all 6 = 5+1 areas.  Actually I 
subdivided my specials into 3 areas so I was collecting
results from 8 = 5 + 3 areas.  Then I systematically 
covered those areas, mostly getting theorems and their
proofs down.  Then I tried to review those results
as often as possible.

Here's what I would do differently:  I would break down
the terrain as mentioned, but I would, for all but the
most central results, forgo the learning of the proof 
in favor of trying to come up with the simplest possible
example or application of the theorem.  My panel didn't
ask me to prove anything, but they did ask me to apply
many theorems in dimension 2, or with a state space of 3
states, etc.  They wanted to observe intuition about 
what the results *meant*, and to do so they seem to
ask very simple questions that one hasn't thought of.
Trying to ask oneself simple questions about the results
is, I think, the best way to prepare for that.
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