WHAT SHOULD YOU DO ONE DAY BEFORE THE EXAM AND ON EXAM DAY
By CA, CPA Vinod Kumar Agarwal
DAY BEFORE THE EXAM
- Day before the exam RELAX!!!!
- First and foremost, ask yourself to calm down.
- You have been preparing for this day for the past 4 months. Now, you just have to bring it together.
- Few students fear that they won’t be able to remember what they have studied at the time of writing exams.
- Don’t worry, in exams you would be able to remember most of what you have studied.
- Bring out the notes – Ideally, notes should be prepared for most subjects so that a ready summary is available.
- Go through only the prepared summaries or highlighted portions.
- Sleep as you wish – Sound sleep is essential. It keeps you alert during the exams.
ON THE EXAM DAY
- We would repeat our mantra, RELAX!!!!
- Reach the centre at least half an hour before the exam, adequate stationary, admit card, etc.
- Just an hour to go before exams- Do what makes you more confident when going to the examination room.
- We would, however, suggest at least 30 minutes as cooling off period before the exam starts.
- You have got the paper in hand- So, you don’t know the answer to the first compulsory question. Or our esteemed Institute has again a good on you?
- You don’t have to answer every question in order to clear the exam.
- By answering we don’t mean mere attempting but writing the correct answers.
- You may have attempted 100% of the paper correctly is too much to ask for.
- Focus your efforts on answering the question you know and try attempting the rest of the question.
IN BETWEEN THE EXAM
Total time for paper | 180 Minutes |
Time required for things like glancing through paper initially, writing roll number, signing attendance sheet, trying up sheets, etc | 10 Minutes |
Minimum time for revising the paper | 10 Minutes |
Time left for writing paper | 160 Minutes |
Total Marks | 100 |
Time available per 1 mark question | 1.6 Minutes |
- Do not devote too much time to a single question at the expense of others.
- The last ten minutes- Generally this is the time to revise. But revision is not really possible at times.
HOURS AFTER THE EXAM
- Just handed the paper to the invigilator. The exam is over, again the whole cycle starts for next exam
- Don’t check the paper yourself
- Don’t discuss the paper with your fellow students or start searching for answers in the books.
- The best thing to do is to head home.
WRITING AN EXAM
- An examination is the only window through which you interact with the examiner.
- What sets your paper apart is not just the correctness of your answers but also their presentation.
HOW TO ANSWER PRACTICAL QUESTION
- The examiner is interested in knowing how you have derived those answers.
- He wants to knows whether your thinking process was on the right lines.
- Explain the answer to the examiner in a step-wise manner.
HOW TO ANSWER THEORY QUESTION
- Theory question are easy to attempt but difficult to evaluate.
- Break down your answers into paragraphs or points.
- Underline the headings or main points.
- Make the examiner read what you want him to read.
- Institute prohibits the use of pencil or highlighters.
- Bad handwriting and grammatical mistakes create negative impression on examiner.
A GOLDEN RULE-
“If you make it easy for examiner, he’ll make it even easier for you”.
- You should plan your answer first before writing it.
- An effective presentation begins with planning.
All the Best !!!