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In preparation for this exam I have done 8 paper mock exams. 1 from Ideal Schools, 1 in a book by Dr Peter Marshall and 6 from the ICB shop. While doing these exams I cheated a bit and looked for hints in the answer if I wasn't sure. A lot of the misakes were due to me thinking there might not be enough time and rushing things - I allowed around 35 minutes per question.
Now I'm going to do all 8 over again. There has been a reasonable gap between me doing the first ones and now so I'm not likely to remember the answers. I've ordered the mock online exam. I've also bought a book of practise questions from the ICB shop. (I won't be too happy if these are the same as the exam questions in a different order).
Anyone else gone to these measures in the hope of passing an exam?
Any advice on techniques for when I get to do the real thing at a centre?
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Hi Peasie
I agree with Liz, don't overdo it and put too much pressure on yourself. I think you are referring to the Level 3 manual which I took at the end of June. My advice would be to do the online mock and make sure that you are comfortable with the layout, topics and format in it. if there are areas covered in the online mock that you are not sure of then revise that. I believe the previous mocks are significantly different to the current exam and online mock so I would steer clear of doing those mocks again.
At the end of the day you need to be comfortable with what you have done and feel ready for the exam. Good luck when you do it I am sure you will pass with flying colours after all that hard work!
Karen
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Hi Peasie,
I am so with you on this, my exam is on friday, level 3 i have to say this hasnt been my favourite course, i did the online mock exam just to get an idea of what was what and i didnt do too good, i was gutted, but it helped as i have studied and studied and now feel alot more confident and ready for friday, will listen to lizf on thursday night, i m going to chill and relax (i hope i can anyways lol)
Good luck with you exam
chrissy
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Hi Peasie, Wow that's some studying you've done. I'm also with Ideal Schools,half way through level III manual at the moment. By accident I ordered from ICB on line shop the level III computerised exam instead of the level III self assessment tax returns exam. If the computerised exam is anything to go by you won't have any trouble,Ideal Schools study material is more than sufficient. The problem I've come across with the computerised exam is finding software that will allow for accruals and prepayments without the need to create asset, liability and expense accounts. Sage plus 50 yes but at £600 just for an exam makes it a very expensive exam.
There's also a question that's not possible to answer.A fixed asset register should always include a purchase date,yet the question on depreciation and disposal of a fixed asset does not give one. . There is no depreciation in the year of sale,depreciation is on the reducing balance, how do work out and extract the depreciation for that year without a purchase date. You could assume the information given in the extract from the balance sheet is incorrectly posted for certain items with b/f depreciation and nbv being in the wrong columns but it's an assumption (guess) not a fact and kind of flies in the face of prudence.
Best of luck with the manual exam, you'll be fine.The plastic marker boards and runny ink tip pens will cause more trouble, a disaster if ever there was one.
Tim
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Hi Peasie
That is some amount of studying you have done - though I am with you on that! I too am studying with Ideal Schools ( I am of an age where I read too much into a question and panic!!!) I have also did the mock exam thinking I knew enough to pass, and didn't, but learned enough from that lesson to go over all the things I knew, and didn't!
Today I finished off my Level 111 computerised, and I feel I have really done quite well with it, I will post it off tomorrowand cross my fingers and legs that I have fone as well as I think I have. Good luck Peasie, let us all know how you have got on with your Level III Manual!
Kind regards
Lynda
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Hi Peasie
I took the mock with Training Link (course provider) then 2 online mocks with ICB. I failed the first two before learning from my mistakes. The actual exam was very similar to the ICB online mock and it took me less than an hour to complete. Take some time out and relax. Have a look at Asset Revaluation if you haven't came across it in a mock yet as it was in the exam. Good Luck !!!
Hazel
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Hi Lynda
I noticed in your post that you have just completed your Level 3 Computerised exam. Did it include a written answer section as well as a computerised one? I've just been sent my mock and was a bit surprised to find a written answer section. I just presumed it would be all computerised. 
Thanks
Hazel
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Hi Hazel
Yes the written section is for 30 marks, so you really need to know your stuff before doing the computerised exam!
Kind regards
Lynda
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Hi Peasie, I did a lot of past paper question practice but found that the on line experience was absolutely nothing like doing the past papers or doing the questions in the Kaplan question bank 'advanced bookkeeping' book.
So I would agree that the online mock is the most important - make sure you feel comfortable with this style of questionning and also, just make sure you understand the layout of the balance sheet and the appropriation account. If you understand the basic principles of partnership, sole trader and club accounts, you will whizz through it! You are probably more than ready to take it - go for it!!!
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I'm stuck on Question15 in the Kaplan book. I get exactly the same figures as the answer page but I have blanks for the drawings and sales. I can't get the cash sales because I don't know the drawings and I can't get the drawings because I don't know the cash sales. I have all the other figures for the profit and loss account and the balance sheet. They have workings for all the other figures but this one figure for total sales is plucked out of thin air with no explanation as to how they arrived at the figure.
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Hi Peasie,
I had the same problem with Q15, I think there is a missing piece of info in the question wording. You need to know the total sales figure (with they give in the model answer).
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I, also, had the same problem with Kaplan Workbook Q15 and agree with the last comment!
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I've now done 6 of the 8 mock paper exams for a second time - this time with looking at the answers for hints when I got stuck. I'm still making lots of errors but they (mostly) are down me using mental arithmetic (not a good idea) or a calculator with buttons that stick (again, not a good idea). Very few of the mistakes are due to me getting bookkeeping principles wrong.
I'm glad I've done them all a second time. I learn more from mistakes (second time around) than getting hints for the right answer. I might try and get the final two paper exams done tonight and then do the mock online tomorrow afternoon.
Regarding the Kaplan book. I've kind of stopped using itaround question 20. I may use it again if there is going to be a significant gap before I get the real exam. It's kind of hard to trust it now if I don't know what the answer is or if they have missed something out and that's why I'm not getting it. I'm still not convinced there is something missed out in question 15 and I still think I must be missing something.
One technique I am using for the paper exams is writing out journal entries for all the notes with a PL (profit & loss) or BS (balance sheet) before each entry and then tick them off as I go along with the Profit & Loss Account and then Balance Sheet. It also helps me think things through rather than just write figures down.
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I've sat the mock exam online now and got 94% - and I HATE this style of exam. All through the mock paper exams I was getting the questions on gearing and other ratios wrong. So it was no surprise that all 6 points I lost were related to gearing and ratios. Even cheating didn't help me as the two points I looked up a past paper for help on I still got wrong.
So I'm in a dilemma - do I go ahead and book the exam for the soonest available period and hope there aren't any more questions in the real exam of this type than in the mock. Or do I delay a month in the hope I may actually remember these things. I think I know the answer already - although there may be a slight delay enforced on me anyway because of Pearson Vue and the dentist.
One thing I did do because I knew I was going to have a bit of time to spare was for one of the questions that didn't actually require a balance sheet I went ahead and did one anyway. Just as well as two stupid mistakes were picked up but because other sub totals would have been affected I could have lost even more marks still.
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Hi LizF
Don't panic or despair!!! I took the level 3 manual mock and got 79%. I did a little "I am not good enough" routine then took a look at the report and discovered there were 2 areas I needed to work on. I then proceeded to get a distinction in the exam a few days later. I found because the new style exam is so different from the old style it confused me slightly. In the mock I made a mistake and instead of working through the question calmly I panicked and thought I didn't have the knowledge. I have been lucky enough that I don't tend not to panic in exams so this was quite strange for me!!!!
So my advice, stay clam, do a post mortem on what you got wrong, identify what you need to work on, work on this / these. I then redid the mock once I had done the revision and did much better! Then in your exam just take a deep breath before you start and calmly proceed to answer all the questions in the exam without a problem! You will do fine!
Good luck for Saturday, I look forward to seeing the post saying you have passed the exam with flying colours!!!
Karen
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Hi All
I do feel myself panicking before & during an exam. If I manage to calm down during the exam , then I'm OK.
So study & practice questions (don't over do it) . Most importantly try to relax before the exam.
During an exam, I find tackling a couple of easy questions helps me relax, & remember what I've studied, then things
start to fall in place !!
Relax & Good luck.
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Well Done LizF!!!
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Income in advance and in arrears - I don't really have a problem with these. I'll just ask myself "are these related to the year I'm working on?" , if not they'll go in brackets. The problem I have is with subscriptions accounts. I can never get the b/f and c/f in the correct place. So I can get the correct amount for subscriptions for the 'Inc & Exp a/c' I just can't get the actual subscriptions 'T account' right.
Even with the mock exam I was getting stressed out because of the time limit and also the pages were refusing to load. The one thing in my favour when I do the exam is I won't be able to swear (as loudly) or throw calculators and pens about the room (especially as there is only one pen and one calculator in the real exam).
I just hope they don't throw in something that hasn't popped up in previous mock exams - I'll go to pieces with something new even if I know how to do it.
Congratulations on your pass Liz.
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chrissysaid:
“Hi Peasie,
I am so with you on this, my exam is on friday, level 3 i have to say this hasnt been my favourite course, i did the online mock exam just to get an idea of what was what and i didnt do too good, i was gutted, but it helped as i have studied and studied and now feel alot more confident and ready for friday, will listen to lizf on thursday night, i m going to chill and relax (i hope i can anyways lol)
Good luck with you exam
chrissy”
Hi Crissy, just reading this post from a while ago as I'm stressing about my manual L3 exam this month! Just wondered how the actual exam went for you? My practice questions aren't going at all well!
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