Before the exam, take into account the following recommendations: concentrated and attentive reading, intense study, organized materials and writing practice are bound to calm your nerves. First of all, thorough study is essential in order to have all the necessary knowledge well-set in mind – not only a basic idea about each topic discussed in class – when the time of the exam comes.
Don’t learn mechanically, but rather reflectively. Secondly, if you are allowed to use materials – if, for example, you can consult your book, or the teacher allows you to use tables or summaries – prepare them carefully. Pay attention to keywords, underline, highlight the main ideas and distinguish them from the secondary ones. Finally, if the exam questions require elaborate answers, exercise some answers of this kind at home, to practice writing before the moment of examination.
During the exam, it is paramount to organize your time well. For example, if you have two hours to answer eight questions, don’t spend more than 15 minutes for each question, otherwise you won’t have time to answer all of them. Start by solving the questions that you find easiest, don’t waste time going over and over again over a subject you don’t master.
There are certain mistakes that are frequently made during written exams, and that can affect the final grades for the worse. Fortunately, once we become aware of them, we can prevent doing them.
May 12, 2015
