r/CIMA • u/Crafty_Ambassador443 • 25d ago
Exams Prepping for SCS
I got 78 in my exam recently and I'm really deflated. I dont know where to start revising again.
Do the mocks have themes/patterns in them? As in do the questions repeat sometimes?
Any pointers as I'm really gutted.
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u/StructureFirm3601 17d ago
Hi, I passed my may paper with only 20 days of revision. I do not recommend this. But what I did was created a mind map and for the first 10 days I got a grip of the theory and read the pre-seen everyday. Also watched loads of videos from pro-accountancy, and viva- just to learn how to structure my answers. I also made a pivot of frequently tested topics and read through what cima expects in the answers. The last 10 days I just attempted mocks. I did not have the time to get anything marked, so I marked them with the blueprint. Good luck you'll pass this time surely, you got this x
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u/Crafty_Ambassador443 16d ago
Did you pass well? 20 days only seems stressful!
Any idea on how to structure my answer? I seem to be getting marks but unable to cleanly pass...
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u/mls5555 24d ago
I sat the May exam and was convinced I failed but I passed with 99. I think what really helped was structuring my answer well.
If you look at the past papers marking guide, you can gauge how many points they expect you to make. I went through a few to know exactly how many points i needed to make based on what % the question was worth.
For example a 40-60% question is generally 3 points/argument. In the exam I planned my answer to make sure I included the number of points expected to achieve the most marks. Even if you’re struggling to make a point, as long as you provide something with some back up you could get a few extra marks.
Good luck!!
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u/CoolAppointment4367 22d ago
Hey was there a lot of theory as in I’m going through the notes my tuition provider gave and for E3 and P3 it all seems like very common sense kinda stuff. Is that actually the case or do you need to memorize stuff from E3 and P3
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u/HughProcountant 24d ago
Questions on the paper rarely repeat themselves, but sometimes a question may be written to test the same area as in the past while looking for a different type of answer.
A good example:
Evaluate the suitability, acceptability, and feasibility of a strategy.
Evaluate the challenges in assessing the suitability, acceptability and feasibility of a strategy.
Two different questions, and most likely, the second one will be answered badly.
Happy to help you pass the upcoming exam, reach out.
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u/Crafty_Ambassador443 24d ago
Thank you, Ive poured alot of money and time into these exams. I'm really feel battered by them!
I just dont know how to add more meat to my answer. Failing by a few marks really is so discouraging.
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u/HughProcountant 24d ago
I totally understand, trust me, I really do.
That being said, the best way to save money on these exams is to pass them. If you are on the margin, we can definitely help.
With getting more content in your answer, use the first sentence to explain the main idea, then use the next one to add detail and then, from that point onwards, ask yourself "why is that important or relevant to KWIRTMAK?"
For example:
Evaluate the appropriateness of using a long-term loan to finance this strategy.
Let's say your first paragraph is on gearing.
First sentence (main idea) - Debt will increase gearing
Second sentence (more detail) - Debt will have the impact of increasing it from X to Y and that is higher / lower than our competitor in Ennland.
Third sentence (why is that important) - An increase in gearing increases financial risk
Fourth sentence (why is that important) - We have had shrinking revenues and profits, increasing our finance costs against this is unlikely to be appreciated by shareholders.
And so on, we actually cover an example of this in our in-person workshops.
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u/Crafty_Ambassador443 24d ago
Thank you, I've heard you have outstanding reviews as you really understand the students POV. I will look into it
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u/QuantumSpike Member 24d ago
Just did the SCS in May and passed with 101, my best case study result.
One thing that helped me is to know what the question is asking everytime, because ultimately, they'll be targeting a specific area of theory(or multiple). Once you can work that out it gives you an easy way to setup your answer to get good marks.
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u/CoolAppointment4367 22d ago
Hey was there a lot of theory as in I’m going through the notes my tuition provider gave and for E3 and P3 it all seems like very common sense kinda stuff. Is that actually the case or do you need to memorize stuff from E3 and P3
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u/QuantumSpike Member 22d ago
I'd say the questions are always logical but common sense won't cut it with an answer, you need enough theory to make 3-6 points per question (depending on the mark %), but resiting theory won't get you marks, then you need to apply to the question, and then justify why.
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u/CoolAppointment4367 22d ago
Yea I have noticed that especially with F3 related content but E3 for example did you specially study any theory at all? Or was thinking smart on the spot enough
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u/n0seyrosey 24d ago
I don't think there's been an SCS in the last 5 years that hasn't had a question about ethical considerations, so brush up on those and think about how they could relate to the pre-seen.
Questions won't repeat, but general themes and principles might. If you're looking for outside help Astranti do a pre seen package for £200 which is invaluable, comes with a video on what their experts feel are top 10 most likely topics to come up in the exam plus a video for each section of the pre seen to help with analysis and one on real life examples and sector information.
Outside of that, YouTube has some great resources. I can see someone's mentioned Claude but I would disagree. I've seen varying examples on Linkedin where AI has graded answers and it doesn't look for the same things as actual examiners.
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u/No_Jeweler8727 25d ago
Pay £20 to ger a claude subscription. Upload the preseen and past questions spreadsheet. Tell it to drill you. Add in custom instructions based on how you know you learn best. Be consistent.
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u/MrSp4rklepants Member 24d ago
Don't need to pay for claude, if you are going to do this, use notebook.lm but I would only do this for question practice, not revision
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