R06 Exam and Study Techniques

Preparing for the CII R06 Exam

The next CII R06 Financial Planning Practice exam is approaching fast and the case studies will be published on Friday 15th September. In preparation of this, we have put together some useful exam techniques to give you the best possible chance of exam success.

How to approach the questions:

1. Read the questions carefully before you start, and read them twice – this gives you the framework of the assessment and allows you to plan accordingly.

2. Find the question that gets you into the exam – you can answer questions out of order and you need to find the one that settles you down as the adrenalin will be pumping.

3. Leave questions you’re not immediately sure about as time is tight – this keeps you efficient.

4. How much time is a question worth? – it’s usually about a mark a minute so if a question is worth 10 marks and you’ve spent significantly more than 10 minutes on it, it’s time to move on.

How to construct your answers:

Don’t forget these wise words from Dr Suess “So the writer who breeds more words than he needs, is making a chore for the reader who reads” This is so relevant as you really need to make it easy for the examiner to give you the marks, so:

1. Write in bullets – it keeps you concise and measured… it’s also what the markers template will look like

2. When should I write a little more/add? – you’re done and you find you have 20 minutes left. Questions like ‘factors to take into account…’ or ‘what additional information….?’ lend themselves nicely to mopping up extra marks if you have time at the end of the examination.

3. The exam is not negatively marked but don’t contradict yourself or hedge your bets – for example, stating a product pays returns tax fee, paid gross but taxable and net of tax gets you no marks.

4. Calculations. – always ‘show all your workings’ and break it down into steps to maximise the marks available

5. Abbreviations… avoid them unless they are well established (IHT or LTA for example are fine)… if in doubt, write it out – ‘This will be chargeable to tax’….. Which tax? Income tax? CGT? IHT? Make sure you are specific!

Needing extra support?

If you want to give yourself the best preparation and chance of success, then look at our full analysis of the case studies with technical knowledge referenced to the relevant R0 text and technical support via our online forum….and if you want more you can join us on our 1 day workshop.