Preparing for exams

Exams and assessments are part of university life, and the fear of the unknown can create a lot of pressure which can lead to exam stress and sometimes fear of failure.

If you're feeling stressed about your studies or exams, it could be helpful to speak to your personal tutor, module convenor or the university's wellbing support services.

You can also discuss your concerns with classmates or talk to friends and family to ease your worries. Remember, feeling a bit anxious is normal, but the important thing is to try to keep things in perspective.

Everyone copes differently with exams; the essential thing is to find what strategies work for you to effectively manage exam preparation, minimise stress, and help you to improve your grades.  

Worried about assessments? Find support, services and resources to help

Everyone approaches revision differently and that’s OK. However, it’s a good idea to explore different revision techniques to understand what suits you best and to organise your time.

Here are some useful revision techniques you might find helpful: 

As you approach, or think about your upcoming exams, thorough preparation can be a powerful tool to help alleviate stress and anxiety throughout the exam period.

Making effective notes throughout the academic year can save you essential time in the review process. 

What do examiners expect?

It's important to consider what the examiners are looking for depending on the type of exam you're doing. 

Remember that they are not there to trick you, they’re there to check that you meet a specific set of criteria. An examiner marks candidates’ responses in accordance with the pre-defined mark scheme, whilst adhering to guidance and examination procedures. 

It can be tempting to think that you need to write a lot in an exam. However, examiners are looking to give you marks for points that you make. An examiner will look at how relevant your answer(s) are in response to the question(s). 

Read on for tips on what to try to cover in the different types of examinations you may encounter at university, to help improve your overall mark.

Types of exams

As a student at the University of Nottingham you may typically experience exam essays, practical exams, oral speaking exams and multiple-choice questions. You may also experience other types of exams too. 

• Exam essay: These exams are the most known type of exams that are timed. This style of exam assesses your comprehension, critical thinking skills, analytical abilities, and writing proficiency while under pressure. 

• Multiple-choice questions: Multiple choice exams are tests where you pick the right answer from a list of choices. They are used to assess your understanding of a topic or subject. 

• Take-home exams: These exams are completed outside of the classroom where you’ll have more time to complete these as opposed to traditional exams. 

• Practical exam: In a practical exam, students show how well they can do tasks or use skills in a real situation, rather than their theoretical knowledge. 

• Project-based assessments: Some courses may ask you to complete projects, dissertations, do research papers, or presentations as the main form of assessment. On some courses you may have the option to do project-based assessments as opposed to exams. 

• Open-book exams: These exams allow you to refer to notes or textbooks whilst in the exam. The reason these exams allow you to take materials in with you is because they assess your understanding of the subject matter and your ability to apply it in the exam. 

• Oral-speaking exams: In an oral exam, students are evaluated on how well they speak and communicate. They usually talk about a topic or answer a series of questions by an examiner.