need help — OpenTuition Forums

SSaline13y ago

Sir, I need your guidance. I am doing p4 for the fourth time and hopefully final time.
can u please guide me what approach shall i follow to clear the exams.
I love this subject a lot.
But I don't know why I am not getting through it.
Please give your valuable advice on what approach should i follow and which study material and in what way do i use them.

Thank you so much

John MoffatTutor13y ago#1

I assume that you have worked through a text book already - if not then you really should.

Also, you should practice as many questions as you can. Certainly all the past exam questions, but if at all possible also from one of the Revision/Exam kits.

In P4 there is usually no one correct answer, so make sure that you state your assumptions and that they are clear to the marker. If the assumptions are at all sensible and you have then done things properly on your assumptions then you will get the marks (even if the answer is different from the examiners answer).

Show your workings clearly and leave a lot of space. (For example, in a NPV question there will be marks for the cash flows and also marks for calculating the cost of capital - make sure each bit is shown clearly so that even if you have got bits wrong, you can still get marks for the bits you get right).

In particular, make sure you are happy with the written parts of questions. The best way to study for them is to learn from the examiners answers to past questions, to read all the examiners articles, and to read a good business paper (the general economic articles in the Economist are always very good).

Watch for the professional marks. Very often one of the compulsory questions asks for a report. There are marks simply for setting out the report properly (whether the content is right or wrong) - to lose these marks is dreadful.

Do write something for every part of both compulsory and two of the choice questions. Even if you do not know what to do or write for part of a question, still do something (however little). It may only get you one more mark, but one more mark is enormous if it makes the difference between 49 and 50 :)

For calculations, if you understand what is being asked, then prove it even if you cannot decide what numbers are relevant from the question. (For example, if there is a question on option pricing, then prove you know how to use the formulae, even if you have to guess what figures to use in them. You will get some marks because you know how to use the formula.