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Essay style exams are becoming increasingly popular because they give colleges and companies an insight into a person's ability to think clearly and logically. If you will be taking such an exam, there are several things to keep in mind that can increase your score. Read Each Question Carefully When you're working on an essay style exam, take a look at each question and determine the topic and type of answer needed. Read the question very carefully. Oftentimes, test takers simply scan questions and then start writing, thinking that they'll save time by doing this. However, that's the worst thing you can do. Take a few minutes to completely understand the question and therefore answer the question correctly. If you need to, circle the key words in the question so that you can simply glance at it every so often to make sure you stay on topic when you're writing. Give Your Ideas Room to Flow When you're reading the questions, you may immediately think of responses. Jot down these ideas in the margin of your test booklet. Use single words or short phrases; write anything that will help you remember your initial thoughts when you return to that question. Writers have known for years that increased creativity and clarity result from "releasing" their ideas on paper, thereby allowing more ideas to come into their minds. Capture all the thoughts that come into your mind as your read the questions. Use the Stress Like it or not, your stress level is going to increase during an exam, and this is normal. However, this can also be an advantage to you, since your mind is going to work much faster than normal. If you completely focus on the test in front of you, you'll do much better. If you do this, you can come up with an amazing amount of information. Stress is your body's response to being put under pressure, and it can also increase your ability to form logical thoughts and sentences. So accept that the stress is going to be there and use it to your advantage. Take a Moment to Outline On average, it takes about 2 minutes to outline an essay, but that time spent will increase your ability to write it. Once you thoroughly understand the question and have jotted down a few immediate thoughts, sketch an outline for the essay to follow. The subheadings on the outline will turn into the first sentences of your paragraphs, saving you time and increasing your logical progression of thoughts. Don't Ramble Using an outline will also prevent you from rambling. The person who will be reading your essays has been trained to spot rambling. Stay focused at all times and use your outline as a guide. State your key points and move on. Don't elaborate on the topic just to fill up the white space on the paper. Keep Track of Time If you have been given a certain amount of time to answer each question, make sure you keep track. When your time is up, stop and go on to the next question. Don't put finishing touches on your essay at this point. You're going to need all the time you've got to simply complete the essay at all. In addition, essay questions might become progressively harder and you have to stay within the timeframe for responses to ensure you finish. Finish Up You may not be satisfied with your finished essay, but this is a completely normal response. Essay-style tests don't have definitive answers, like multiple choice tests do. Keep in mind that the scorers of your essays understand the time limits you were under and therefore are not looking for perfection. You will be scored on your progression of ideas and the ability to communicate your key points. Stay focused during the exam and you will finish well.
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