Part 2 of 5: Satisfying the requirements of a question

This article is relevant for all candidates preparing to sit the ATX–UK exam. It is one of a series of five short articles on exam technique. The five articles cover:

• Reading exam questions
• Satisfying the requirements of a question
• The importance of thinking
• Time management
• The importance of question practice

These articles are likely to be particularly useful to those candidates who are not attending a course with a tuition provider, such that they are not receiving ongoing guidance and advice on exam technique. 

Marks are awarded in the exam for satisfying the requirements and not for other information (regardless of how interesting or technically accurate it may be). Accordingly, it is vital to identify the particular requirements and then address them in the correct amount of time.

Addressing all of the requirements

It is very important to attempt to satisfy all of the requirements in the exam. Accordingly, you must answer all three questions: the Section A question and the two in Section B, and you must answer all of the parts of the three questions.

The reason for this is that there are some easier marks in almost all question parts, such that where, for example, there are 10 marks available for a part of a question, you will find it easier to increase your mark from zero to four marks as opposed to from four marks to eight marks. Accordingly, you will benefit from attempting all parts of all three questions rather than spending extra time on some question parts and less, or no time, on others. You will have time to do this provided you manage your time carefully, and do not allow yourself to be sidetracked.

The nature of the requirements

The structure of the requirements of a Section A question is different from that of a Section B question.

The formal requirements of the Section A question as shown in the requirement window are simply to respond to the instructions in the email from your manager - the ‘work to be carried out’ exhibit is actually where the detailed requirements (and mark allocations) can be found. In a Section B question, the formal requirements in the requirement window also contain the detailed tasks to be performed.

The detailed requirements should be seen as a list of tasks, all of which need to be performed. You may find it useful to copy and paste these requirements into the word processor response option and use them to start structuring your answer. Where there is a number of tasks within a particular area of the question, some initial thought will be required to determine the time available for each task. This requires you to identify the relative size of each of the tasks by thinking about what needs to be done to carry them out.

Think about the best way of satisfying the requirements and relate your approach to the time available (by reference to the number of marks). Work your way through the tasks in an organised and consistent manner.

Take advantage of any guidance provided in the question

When planning what needs to be done to carry out a task you should take into account any guidance provided by the manager in the question and the command words used in the requirement.

The guidance from the manager may suggest a particular approach to take, a good place to start or simply point out matters that do not need to be addressed. This guidance is intended to help you carry out the tasks within the time available.

The command words used in the requirement provide an indication of the level of detail required. For example, ‘state’ requires no explanatory detail, ‘outline’ is asking for something brief, whereas ‘explain’ expects a detailed explanation. ‘Calculate’ requires calculations in order to arrive at a figure; it does not require explanations unless they are asked for separately. The command word used in the requirement is another way of providing you with guidance to help you complete the answer in the time available.

Answer the question set

You should not think of a question as being about a particular technical area. If you do, there is the possibility that you will answer the question in too narrow or too broad a manner. For example, where a question includes a group of companies, one of which has made a loss, it is not helpful to think of the question as being a ‘group relief’ question. This is because there will be marks available for other technical areas – for example, single company loss relief, inter group transfer of assets, transfer pricing, VAT, and so on.

Also, if a question is thought of as relating to a technical area, there can be a temptation to write about that area in great detail when such detail is not part of the requirement. Your answer should focus on the specific issues and facts of the question and you should avoid generalising.

Accordingly, rather than thinking of a question as being about a technical area you should see it as being about a set of circumstances and a series of requirements that relate to those circumstances. You should take the time necessary to understand the circumstances and to determine how best to satisfy the requirements.

Conclusion

Good exam technique will help you to perform to the best of your abilities in the exam and to maximise the number of marks you earn. As a result, you will be able to earn the marks that all of your hard work prior to the exam deserves.

Accordingly, as you prepare to sit your exams, in addition to adding to and refining your technical knowledge, you should be aiming to continually improve your exam technique.

Written by a member of the ATX–UK examining team