It’s that time of year again; exams are looming and students are looking for top exam technique tips to help them really make the most of the revision they have done when they get into the exam room. Essay writing itself is a skill with many techniques, but exam essay technique has several important differences – writing a long essay over several days with your texts in front of you is quite a different matter than trying to cram in all the facts you have learned into a single exam essay in a one or two hour paper. Online study skills might help with general essay writing practice, but read on below for our top tips for excellent exam essay technique!

Exam technique tip 1: be prepared

The best way to prepare for exam essay writing and boost your confidence about tackling the paper is to be as familiar as you can with the format you will face on the day. All the major exam boards have past papers available to download for free on their websites, so pop on and have a look at the paper from last year. This will help you to plan your time and even to see what you should be focusing on in your revision. Look for patterns – if there is a question every single year about a character, then make sure you revise characters. If the first section is only worth 5 marks but the second section is worth 20 then plan to split your time accordingly on the day. Don’t be afraid to ask friends to see essay examples from similar exams to give you some inspiration and ideas!

Exam technique tip 2: writing an exam essay plan

Under time pressure it may seem tempting to skip the planning stage and launch straight into your essay. In fact though, exam essay technique is much easier to pull off successfully with a clear plan. It allows you to pull together all the relevant ideas and facts from your revision and set them into a clear, ordered argument so that you can go ahead and write your exam essay without having to stop and think of your next idea and without missing out important points.

Exam technique tip 3: checking it through

Of all exam technique tips this is one of the most important. Students regularly make small grammar and spelling slips under the time pressure of exam essay writing. Most exams have marks available for correct spelling and punctuation, so plan ahead and make sure you leave yourself five minutes at the end of the paper to check through what you have written and correct your mistakes.

Above all remember to stay calm, stick to a clear structure, have a watch in front of you and remain aware of the time you have left. Good luck!