FROM FAILURE TO SUCCESS

What went wrong in December 2013 and what went right in June 2014?

In the lead up to the December 2013 exam, I had underestimated the level of preparation that would be required to pass this paper. Of all the Fundamentals level exams, I performed strongest in Paper F5 and therefore I assumed Paper P5 would be an easy follow-on option. I was wrong.

The examiner has a wide syllabus to draw from and there are a number of technical and challenging subject areas. I had fallen into the trap of trying to question spot. This approach is not a confident one, and will set most candidates up for a fail.

In the lead up to the June 2014 exam I made sure to study all areas of the syllabus, and this allowed me to walk into the exam hall feeling confident about sitting down and opening the exam paper. Thankfully, this approach helped me to pass.

What advice would you give to other Paper P5 students who have failed?

Spend time identifying weaknesses in your subject knowledge. The best way to do this is by practising past exam questions, which will quickly highlight any areas where you are lacking. You may find yourself gravitating towards the topics that you know best because this is easy, but feeling uncomfortable about attempting a question on a certain topic should sound alarm bells in your mind as an area for you to focus on. It is fine to be uneasy about a certain topic in the lead up period to your exams as this is the time to make your mistakes and learn from them.

I was fortunate that my employer Harding Lewis supported my tuition at MPES (Manx Professional & Educational Services) and I really benefited from the guidance of my tutor, Eddy Kewin. At the Professional level, having a second pair of eyes to read your answers to practice questions and mock papers is invaluable. Not answering the exact question that is being asked of you will be the downfall for many candidates sitting this paper, and a tutor can offer guidance on how to ensure you always answer the specifics of the question.

What would your best advice be to pass?

Practise answering past exams questions – all of them. Applying syllabus knowledge to the scenario given is the most challenging aspect of sitting Paper P5, and being able to do so under time pressure is critical to success. The more you practise, the more fluent you will become at identifying the key points of the scenario and being able to respond to them quickly.

Second, it is important to remember the ‘easy’ marks in this exam. The paper offers professional marks, which are both the easiest marks to gain as well as to lose. Don’t just assume you will be able to get these when it comes to sitting the exam. Practise format, presentation and ‘white space management’ so that you know exactly how you expect your answers to look, and this should help the marker have confidence in your abilities.