Memorizing practice questions on any exam can present issues. For FINRA and NASAA exams specifically it can obscure where you really stand. In this post, we’re going to discuss how you can solve the problem of memorizing your practice questions. Some solutions may be obvious, while others take some effort.
Memorizing Practice Questions: Knowing Problems, Not Solutions
A very common situation we see with students at Professional Exam Tutoring is when someone has seen the same question a dozen times, and knows exactly the correct multiple-choice answer…but does not always understand the rationale. While recognizing questions can somewhat help on the actual exam, inflated scores as a result can also leave a student confused about how much they know, and whether that’s enough to actually pass the exam.
For shorter exams, such as the SIE exam, this often happens for someone on their third attempt. A student’s first two attempts tends to exhaust a curriculum’s question bank, so using the same material for the third is not always much help. Practice problems will be much too familiar.
One little trick that we suggest is to try to focus on the wrong answers in the multiple-choice question. For instance, out of four possible multiple choices, if you know that the answer is “A”, then try to be able to understand why answer B, C, and D are incorrect.
Ideally, you want to be able to explain the reason why they’re incorrect in detail.
Time for New Study Material?
The most simple solution, of course, is to try some new study material. Depending on your exam, we rarely recommend that you stick with the same material after two failed attempts. Some exams such as the Series 86 exam, don’t have much of an alternative.
That said exams, such as the Series 7, the SIE, or the Series 63, all have multiple curriculum options. For example, if STC doesn’t help you do the job, then try to switch over to Kaplan.
Aim Higher
Lastly, we suggest not going in to the next exam until your practice scores are far higher than any of your previous attempts. On your third attempt at an exam, we highly recommend you try to crack at least 90% scores, two or three times in a row to make sure you get yourself over the finish line. This is especially relevant if you think you’ve been memorizing questions and answers – you’ll need to leave some buffer room.
Overall, memorizing some practice exam questions is perfectly normal. However, if you believe most of your score is due to memorized answers, consider one of the options above, or reach out to us for some more advice. Good luck!