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by Pippa Riley 18 May 2004 Diploma in Financial Management Relevant to All papers

One of the secrets of success in exams is adopting the various tricks known collectively as 'exam technique'. Even the most marginal and borderline candidate can increase their marks significantly by using these techniques, and that increase can make all the difference between success and failure. You will maximise your chances of passing if you follow some of the basic rules introduced in this article. Start trying to apply them now as you practise revision questions, so that they are second nature when you come to sit the exams.

Attempt questions in order?
Most students tend to start at the beginning and tackle the exam in the order in which it is presented to them. This is not compulsory. It is worth taking five minutes or so at the start of the exam to look through it and decide how you are going to tackle it. Here are some suggestions:

• Complete the whole of one subject area before you start the other one. For example in Module A, complete multiple-choice questions (MCQs) 1 to 10, on Interpretation of Financial Statements, followed by your chosen one or two questions on Interpretation of Financial Statements. Then, having finished with the first subject area completely, you can put it out of your mind and concentrate exclusively on the ten MCQs and the one or two written questions for Performance Management. This means that you will focus entirely on the relevant subject area, rather than jumping from one to another.
• Decide on the order in which you are going to answer the questions. Some students like to answer the MCQs first, because you will be thinking about several syllabus topics, which may help when you come to the written questions. Other students prefer to attempt the written questions first, so that they can concentrate on a specific area.
• If your preference is to attempt the written questions first, consider whether to attempt your best question first, so that you can get a good mark under your belt and build up your confidence right at the outset, or whether you would rather attempt another question first to 'warm up', so that by the time you reach your best question you are raring to go and have got well into the swing of things.

Multiple-choice questions
Altogether, the MCQs make up 40% of each exam, so you will need to perform well in them if you are to be confident of passing. They are each worth two marks, which means that you should allow up to around three and a half minutes for each one. Some will take far less time than this, such as the purely factual questions testing knowledge, and you should not be worried if you find yourself racing through some of them. However, others such as some of the Financial Strategy and Risk Management MCQs require lengthy calculations, and you may find yourself spending up to five minutes or more on some of these.

Altogether, allow around 72 minutes for the MCQ section. If you have not finished at the end of this time, you should hazard a quick guess at the remainder and then move on to the written questions. Don't worry if you finish the whole MCQ section in under the time allowed. As long as you have had a good attempt at each one, regard the extra time as a bonus for the written questions. Here are some tips for tackling MCQs:

• Read the wording very carefully because it can sometimes be quite complex. Watch out for negatives. For example, 'Which of the following statements is incorrect?' or 'Which of the following options is not a requirement of the Combined Code on corporate governance?'
• Have a go at the question and then see if your answer matches one of the options: if it does, you must still be careful because the incorrect answers (distractors) are usually answers incorporating common errors, especially in numerical questions. Check carefully that you have covered everything.
• If the options do not match your answer, work out the differences between the available answers and your own. The difference may be a figure that is in the question, in which case you may have identified the problem.
• If you still haven't got an answer, re-read the question, eliminate any obviously wrong answers and then opt for the most likely looking answer from the remainder.
• If you look at a question and you have not got the first clue about how to tackle it, just guess. You have got a one in four chance of being correct. Never leave an MCQ unanswered. You are not penalised for incorrect answers.

Written/essay questions
In each exam you must attempt three 20-mark written questions. These could be almost entirely numerical, traditional essays or a mixture of the two. A popular form with examiners is the style of question where part (a) requires some form of calculation while part (b) requires you to comment on the results from part (a). Whatever the style of question, here are some golden rules to follow when attempting them:

• Allocate your time for each question, and make sure that you do not exceed it, even by a minute or two. You should allow 36 minutes for each 20-mark question. When you have reached the allotted time, stop and move on to your next question. It is far easier to gain the first few easy marks on the next question than it is to scrabble about for a further mark or two on the question that you have been working on for over half an hour.
• Read the requirement of the question first, even though it is at the end. Some questions are very long and contain a lot of information. If you are aware of the requirement as you read this information you will find that your mind is already starting to focus on how you are going to tackle the question. This means that you avoid the risk of reading through all of the data and only then discovering the requirements of the question.
• Read through the whole question at least twice. On the second read-through highlight key aspects or annotate the question paper. Think about how you can use the information given in your answer. Examiners seldom provide superfluous information - most of what you are told will be necessary for your answer.
• Make a plan for your answer before you start writing. You should spend anything up to about 30% of the time available thinking through and planning your answer. Doing this will enable you to structure your answer logically and give you time to really think through the question. You are also less likely to miss anything out. When planning bear in mind that:
  
  • most essays need an introduction, a main body and a conclusion
  • your essays should contain points that are clear and well-linked
  • every paragraph should contribute to answering the question
  • no paragraph should be too long: a couple of sentences per paragraph should suffice
    and
  • your answer should be in a logical order.

Note that planning is not only essential for pure essay questions - in a numerical question you need to plan the order in which to complete calculations, work out which are the most important and which might be the easier ones you need to do first. Also plan the layout of your answer in terms of space needed, column headings and so on.

• Use headings and sub-headings to break up your answers and provide a clear structure. This is especially useful when the question is not broken down into separate sub-sections.
• Always show your workings for any calculations that you do. Some of the calculations in Financial Strategy and Risk Management can be very complex. If you show your workings, you will get credit from the marker for your method. If you have made a small error, the marker will work through your calculations and only penalise you for wrong figures once. Therefore, you can get the answer wrong but still earn most of the marks available.
• Cross refer figures in your answer to the supporting working so the marker can easily see where the number comes from. For example in a profit and loss account, your answer may show:

  	£000
  Depreciation (W1)	65
  Administration expenses (W2)	143

The workings sheet attached to your answer should show the calculations you used to arrive at these figures.

• If you make a mistake, cross it out neatly with a ruler, and write the correction above or alongside. Do not use correcting fluid, as you may leave it to dry and then forget to come back and insert the correct answer.
• In discussion questions try to argue both sides of a point and discuss advantages and disadvantages where you are asked to do so. Reach a conclusion if the question asks you to - either expressly or by implication.
• If you have time left at the end of the exam, go back through your paper and check your answers. Read essays for sense, structure, use of English and the extent to which they answer the question. Read through numerical answers for consistency and to try to spot simple errors that can be corrected easily. Check that the figures in the main answer are cross-referenced to, and agree with, your supporting workings.

Revising your subjects thoroughly, and following advice the advice in this article will ensure your best possible chance of passing. Good luck in the exams!

Pippa Riley is range manager for the DipFM suite of publications and editorial project manager at BPP Professional Education.

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