Before the exams

• Plan and organise your revision so that you time is spent effectively. Don't just revise the subjects you like and don’t leave topics to the last minute. Seek help if you need it, either from friends, work colleagues or your tutors.
• Practice questions in exam conditions. It gives you experience of the demands of writing answers within strict time limits. It may also highlight gaps in your knowledge
• Look at pass exam papers and the examiner’s reports ! Reviewing recent exams will tell you how topics are likely to be examined, what techniques are tested and what the examiners are looking for in the answers.
• Ensure that you take off some time for relaxation and that you eat and sleep properly in the run up to the actual exam.
• Ensure you know where the exam hall is situated and plan the journey to give yourself enough time to allow for traffic jams or delayed trains.
• Ensure that you have the necessary equipment in advance of the exam day; pens, pencils, rule and calculator with spares. Don’t forget the open text books that you are allowed in the exam.

In the exam

• Quickly read all of the exam paper to get a feel for the questions and where the easy mark maybe.
• When you come to start answering the question ensure that you read the question again, properly and in full.
• There will be clues in the question. Information given in a question (e.g. a dynamic 60 year old owner) will be there for a reason.
• Ensure that you understand the requirements and answer the question as it is required in the paper, not what you think the question is. Look to see if the answer is required in a specific format e.g. letter, report or memorandum.
• Do not get distracted by other events in the exam hall. Concentrate on answering the questions and speculating or worrying about how well everyone else is doing.
• Use the mark allocation in the questions as a guide to the required depth of the answer and how much time to spend on each question.
• Ensure that you present your answers in a clear and easy to read manner so that the exam marker is easily guided to the points that gain the marks.
• Plan the structure of your answers. Be succinct and try to culminate in a conclusion.
• Answer the questions with the easy marks but do not ignore seemingly difficult questions. If possible break the question into parts and start jotting ideas down. Relate them to the question and it might jolt something in your mind. T he question may not be as bad as it appears once you've started and may be there to test your ability to come up with realistic assumptions. So make some and just make sure that you clearly state them in your answer.
• Finally, do not panic and good luck.