50% of students found the exam to be more difficult than they expected. See the results from our survey...

Learning from the experience of past CIMA Management Case Study students can be the recipe for success!

So it's been a couple of weeks since we launched our MCS Experience Survey, and the results beginning to emerge are very interesting.

Learning lessons from CIMA students who have been through the exam can really help you to achieve success. Find out below how difficult students found they exam, their most common mistakes, and where they felt they should have spent more time during their revision.

Don't take it lightly

We asked students how difficult the exam was compared to their expectations:

Much More Difficult - 7.7%    More Difficult - 38.5%    As Expected - 46.2%    Easier - 7.7%    Much Easier - 0% 

The most important thing to note from this result is that nearly 50% of students found the exam to be more difficult than they expected, with only 7% of students stating they found the exam easier than anticipated!

This should leave you in no doubt about how seriously you should be taking this exam, and how much preparation will be required.

Time Management

Many students fail to prepare themselves for how they are going to answer as many questions as possible within the time limit. 

The exam will ask a lot of you and you need to ensure you manage your time as effectively as possible.

Here are some quotes from the survey:

"Time management - plan on screen if possible"

"Timing - struggled to answer all sub tasks on one task in time."

"Timing, knowing how to approach questions"

Simple techniques such as planning your answers on screen and practising as much as possible before the exam, will help you get to grips with your time management.

Learn the theory

One of the earliest trends to come out the survey was that students wished they had spent more time revising the theory. 

You can see that this was the one topic most students wished they had spent more time on. 

The examiners will not be afraid to test you on any part of the syllabus so you need to make sure you have a sound understanding of everything from F2, P2 and E2. 

When creating your revision plan, ensure you dedicate enough time to revision of the theory, as this really will help you to pass the exam. 

Help is on hand

We have a number of resources, such as our Study Text which cover all of the topics listed above, from Time Management to key theory. 

Why not take a look at all of the resources we offer for the MCS exam?- Click here