PRINCE2® Foundation Exam - Technique 1

PRINCE2® Foundation - Choose One Answer From Four

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In my previous post I covered the basics of the:
PRINCE2® Foundation Exam.

I'll now move on to some tips on exam technique.

On the surface the mechanics of the exam are pretty straightforward.

Complete 75 questions, multiple choice, four options for each question. One of the four is the correct answer. One hour to do it. Score 50% to pass. Simples !

The odds are also in your favour. You could expect to score 25% if you knew nothing and answered the questions at random. A chimpanzee could do the same or maybe slightly better. Even a Chav or Aston Villa supporter would be in with a good shout.

The exam is definitely eminently passable and most candidates do so.

But its not quite that simple.

Good preparation is absolutely essential - the subject of another post.

Assuming that you've done that here are some hints on tackling the exam itself. A little bit of exam technique can definitely help you to pass.

Time.

Do keep an eye on this. Keep more or less on track - running out of time or having to answer the final questions in a rush could be disastrous.

Three Pass Approach.

Work through the whole paper once, answering the questions where you are fairly confident of your answer. Mark the harder and more "wordy" questions on your question paper (not the answer sheet!) with a pen or highlighter. Tick a possible answer on the question paper if you can, but leave it off your answer sheet for now. Do a second pass - take a little more time reading the questions you left previously and answer them as best you can. Remember that you don't have to get all of the questions right. Do a final pass to check that you haven't missed out any questions. There is no point leaving any answers blank - if you are completely stuck you may as well just choose one of the four possible answers, you have a one in four chance of getting it right.

Fifty - Fifty.

If you are stuck on a question a good approach is to "reverse" your approach. Rather than looking for the right answer eliminate the two least likely answers, leaving you with a choice of two. Then choose the most likely from the two as your answer. The odds are 50 / 50 that you'll choose the right one. Spread over the whole paper this will definitely score you some marks towards the magic total.

Fifty - Fifty - Example.

Which of these is a heading in a Risk Register entry ?

A. Quality Assurance.

B. Tools and Techniques.

C. Probability.

D. Blame Indicators.

Clearly A and D are not likely. Quality Assurance would be part of a Quality Management Strategy, nothing to do with risk. Blame is not generally part of the PRINCE2® philosophy. Both C and B look feasible answers - but at least the odds of getting it right are reduced. The correct answer is in fact C - the Risk Register does not include Tools and Techniques according to the Product Description outline in the manual - this heading appears in the Risk Management Strategy.

Transcription Errors.

If you miss out any questions as you work through be careful as you fill in the answer sheet. If you get any answers out of order you can correct them as you'll have used pencil and can erase. But this will cost you time.

If you attend an accredited PRINCE2® Foundation course you'll get further help from your course tutor and a chance to tackle some practice exam papers. Their advice may differ slightly from what I'm saying here, some things are a matter of opinion - so take on board what they tell you.

I have run many courses and marked many of these exams. I currently work with accredited PRINCE2® training provider Vi²dus.

I'll give you some more hints on Foundation and Practitioner exam technique in future posts.