Preparing for Electrical and Computer Engineering: Exam Reflections

[exequor]

I've taken the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Exam in Math, Physics, etc. For physics the topics for unit two were: electricity and magnetism, electronics, and modern physics. The thing is I know the topics well but I just can't finish the exam (I don't think anyone did) but the thing is I want to study electrical and computer engineering and I'm wondering if I'm too slow to make it in the field. what do you think about this?

 

[Pyrrhus]

No, you are not too slow. You need to keep practicing new problems (more difficult) to be sure you understand the concepts.

 

[Poop-Loops]

After every physics exam we take, the instructor always does it all on the board for us to see the next class. We have 2 hours to do them, and it takes him 20 minutes. Is it because he is super fast? No, he just approaches each problem methodically, so he only needs to try it once to get the right answer.

I have a friend who is like molasses in an igloo during tests. Why? Not because he thinks slow or anything. It's just that he has a horrible approach to tests. For example, in multiple choice questions, instead of deducing which answers were wrong simply because they are bogus, he checks ALL of them to make sure. That can be up to 4x as much work. And it eats up time FAST.

Practice the problems, and approach each problem methodically. By that, I mean, don't jump straight into short-cuts, go through it the long way. If you do it right the first time, it will save you a lot of time in the long run.

PL

 

[exequor]

When I do questions I write down everything, because you are asked to show all working. I mention every detail such as what method, relationship, etc. I'm using, I can not write many things and just rearrange a formula in my head and just go straight to the answer. I guess practice is the key here, I'll definitely bear that in mind for the future.

 

[brewnog]

A lot of exams are un-finishable for mere mortals. If everyone else is struggling to finish too, don't worry about it at all, just prioritise which questions you answer first!

 

[moose]

A good thing you could do is when you stumble across a question which might take you slightly more time than others, put a mark next to it and skip it. Once you are done with the last question, just go back to the marked ones if you have time. I always do this even when I am farely certain that I will have enough time because it can't hurt you.

 

[brewnog]

Oo oo, and if you get told how many marks each question is worth, then that can be a pretty good indicator of how long (on average) you should spend on each question!