How Do I Survive The IGCSE Exam Season?

If you’re a Year 11 student with absolutely no clue what you should be doing during your exam season, then you’ve come to the right place. Preparation and organisation is key at this time for you to ace your exams and I’ve shared some strategies I used that can help you!

During Study Leave

Know when your exam is!

This probably sounds stupid but you’ll be surprised to know that there are people who mix up dates and study for the wrong exam or miss their exam date - Do NOT be one of them! 

If you haven’t done so already, add your exam timetable to Google Calendar or any other app that you use. I know that some people like to just add their exam dates to a spreadsheet but personally, I wouldn’t recommend that. If you add it to a calendar, you’ll be able to see how many days you have in between each exam which can help you make a clear plan in your head.

Reflect on your mock exams

Although this may seem like a waste of time, I strongly advise that you don’t skip this step. When reflecting on your mock exam, these are the key things you should be asking yourself:

1. What subjects were my best and worst?

2. Which topics did I struggle the most with?

3. What type of questions did I struggle with?

4. What could I have done differently?

If you didn’t do this in class and your teacher still has your mock exam paper, I strongly advise that you ask to see the paper again. This would really help you decide what you should be prioritising during study leave and allow you to have a focused revision session because believe me, you cannot cram your entire syllabus. Study your priorities and revise the things you did well in. 

This is not the time to make notes

If you don’t already have good notes for a subject, I know it can be very tempting to do it now. This is not going to help you, in fact, it’s going to make you more stressed. 

What you could do is watch YouTube videos specific to each syllabus statement and jot down key points. It's fine if they look messy but this would save you some time and you would get an understanding of the topic. 

If you already have good notes for every topic, then don’t just reread them. Use flashcards or make mind maps and refer back to your notes to make sure you’ve got it right. Once you’re confident with every single topic in that subject, start doing past papers. 

Take care of your health

There’s a quote that I read from Pinterest which can be applied to a lot of things, including this: “If you don’t take a break, then your body will force you to”

There’s no point in going to an exam if you aren’t well enough to write it. So remember to take breaks frequently, drink plenty of water, eat healthy and hang out with your friends every now and then to avoid getting burnt out. 

Day Before Exam

Sleep!

That’s it. That’s the most important thing you gotta do. Get your 8 hours of sleep if you don’t want to be brain dead during your exam. 

Exam day

Check you’ve got everything

I’m sure the teachers have drilled this into you by now. Make sure you’ve got everything, and remember to pack the night before. You do not want to come to school without your exam pass or any other writing materials. It’s going to stress you out and you’re gonna lose focus. 

Arrive Early

Arriving at school early is a great way to get used to the atmosphere and get into the zone of taking an exam. You can use the time to do some revision and even if you’ve forgotten anything, you would have plenty of time to sort out the problem. 

Avoid nervous people 

Sometimes, being around nervous people can make you even more nervous. The last thing you want to do before an exam is make yourself anxious. If that person is your friend, try to tune them out or tell them you want to be alone. 

Remember to breathe

Like I mentioned before, you don't want to be anxious before an exam. Do some breathing techniques when you’re waiting in line or inside the exam hall. If you’re too anxious, you’re going to panic and forget everything you studied. Just breathe and tell yourself ‘you’ve got this!’, because you do!

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I hope you’ve found these tips useful and The Lion’s Crest team wishes you good luck!