Exam Success at CSU
How to Prepare for Different Exams Types
Essay based exams | Multiple-choice exams | Maths/statistics exams | Open book exams
Maths/statistics exams
The key to exam success in any mathematics or statistics based discipline is preparation. Very particular skills will be examined in these types of exams, and the student must be well prepared. This means that the student must have reviewed the course material carefully and often, and practised the skills by attempting a range of exercises from all the major course areas. Consistent effort throughout the semester is required in order to achieve this end.
- Most Maths exams require you to solve problems, so the best way to prepare is by working through as many examples as possible.
- Do not look at a solution, until you have really attempted the problem. If you get stuck:
- Do some further reading.
- Try comparing the problem to other similar examples.
- Seek help.
- Try to study all topics.
- Use a variety of resources. This will help your understanding, confidence and make revision a little more interesting. Refer to your study/class notes, text books and past papers. Do, don’t simply read.
- Do not just memorize a previous exam paper. Even if the format of the paper is fairly consistent from year to year, the types of questions asked can vary quite considerably.
Some statistics exams are in the form of an open book exam. The benefits of an open book exam are that students do not have to memorise formulae, and they have access to tables that are in the format and location that they are used to using.
- Students facing this type of exam must be as well prepared as if they were undertaking a closed book exam.
- The student must be able to identify the question and relate this to a specific formula and method.
- Time constraints during the examination period will allow students an opportunity to refer to, not read or study, a formula or a sample example or a set of tables. There will not be time to try to learn a section of work during the exam.
- For a textbook or other resource to be useful during an open book exam, that resource must be thoroughly familiar to the student beforehand. Pages that are likely to be useful should be tagged (if allowed) to allow for reference in a minimum of time.
- Some open book exams allow students to take resources into the examination room, but be clear about what you are allowed to take in. This may give the student an opportunity before the exam period to prepare sample exam answers based on past exam questions that can be taken into the exam and referred to.