Will you, won't you, will you PASS your chosen paper in June 2006. Well that very much depends on you, your application, your commitment and your self-discipline.

The ACCA qualification is valuable and precious. For it to have any value it has to be rare and only those who apply themselves with single focus can expect success.

Your intelligence is a gift. You are bright enough to PASS but will you? There is no short cut in the quest to success.

So what do you need to do to win the marks you need to achieve this precious thing??

1. Understand your Syllabus. You should make sure that you are familiar with the syllabus - the core topics - so that you can understand where to place emphasis in your studies.

2. Understand the Examiner. Be familiar with the manner in which he/she sets the examination. This does not mean simply the structure of the paper - Section A - 3 compulsory questions, section B - 2 questions from a possible 4. No. Understanding the examiner will mean that you should know his/her name and the way he/she uses the examination to test you on the syllabus. There is very little point in studying around the fringes of a paper while ignoring the heart of the syllabus. All examiners display a variety of idiosyncrasies. They each have their own individual subject likes and dislikes. They all have their little individual ways of asking a question and their own use of English. You should also be aware of the articles that they publish in the Students Accountant. To be ignorant of the simple fact of the examiner's name is inexcusable. All the articles in the Student's Accountant are important but some are more important than others!! Most of the examiners use the Accountant almost as a signpost for the forthcoming examinations. The examiner is your focal point and you should concentrate on understanding how the examiner works. Some are very prescriptive and follow an examination format, some examine topics on a very regular basis and other examine on a fairly random basis - so just because a topic was examined in the December paper does not mean a topic will be omitted from the June paper.

3. Understand the Examination Setting Process. Many ACCA students do not seem to realise that the exam setting process for June 2003 was concluded around March 2002. With many papers the events of the time will influence the examiner. For example the event of 911 and the aftermath could cause a flurry of questions on terrorism and the resulting auditing implications, money laundering, system failure, disaster recovery. Similarly Enron could give rise to "off balance sheet transaction" accounting questions and also audit related topics.

4. Understand the Marking Process. The ACCA is a remarkable, well run professional organisation but consider the realities of the marking process. A marker will often be given 400 - 500 exam scripts, which have to be marked quickly and accurately. They have limited time and after the first say 30 scripts they can achieve a marking speed of one script every 12 - 15 minutes, depending upon the subject. It is simply not practical or commercially realistic to mark any slower. The markers are also human - very professional but human. So imagine the level of fatigue of marking say 500 auditing scripts. Many markers will not mark one script at a time but mark one question for every paper. So you may find that a marker marks in blocks of 50 question 1s at a time and then moves onto to 50 question 2s. Therefore there can be a high level of comparison between the standard of one student's answer to the next.

So what you should be your strategy??

These are professional exams. They are not like GCSEs, A' Levels or even a degree. You should not approach them in the same way as you have approached exams in the past. You need a very clear strategy. You need to view the whole examination taking process strategically.

So your strategic thinking should include the following:

1. Syllabus. As soon as you have decided which papers you are going to be attempting in June you should download the relevant syllabus from the ACCA web site - www.accaglobal.com. Study the syllabus, making particular note of the core topics - read it carefully and fully understand it. The current examiners take a lot of time to orientate the examinations to the objectives and weighting of the syllabus. Remember that the syllabus is only a guide not a definitive document, therefore you must expect some questions which are based on the content of the syllabus, requiring a wide understanding.

2. Past Examination Papers. Next you should download all the past examination papers including the pilot paper. Make sure that you review the examinations carefully looking at the answers and the tutorial notes that the examiner makes. Also note how the answers are laid out and the marking schemes at the back of the answers. Review each paper and familiarise yourself with the structure of the paper, for example the marks awarded and the length of each question. Then you should create a grid, which analyses the topics that have been examined by question number and year. This will give you an indication of the core topics in an examination format.

3. Tuition. Enroll early with a tuition provider - classroom tuition or home study - but make sure that you make up your mind as early as possible. You can either attend classroom tuition on a full time or a part time basis.

4. Study Text. Typically ACCA students receive high quality reading material - by the Kilo - but a common practice is to read and read (or at least attempt to read). It is very easy to set yourself a chapter to read and by the end of it be none the wiser. This is not because of the quality of the text but usually because the reading target is too ambitious. The best way to tackle a subject of a very technical nature is to read little and often. Fifteen or twenty minutes at a stretch 3 times a day is probably the most effective approach. Much more can be achieved by action than by activity!! Do not kid yourself. If you are not absorbing or understanding the text stop and return to it when you are fresh and alert.

5. Practice Questions. Reading alone will not usually bring you examination success. You need to practice examination style questions and practice them properly - not simply reading the question and then flicking to the answer. Of course you can if you wish but exam failure is very likely if you take this approach. Proportionately you need to spend more time practicing questions than reading study texts. Practicing questions can be very boring but then so is failing - so you choose.

6. Revision Course. As the examination approaches you should consider attending a revision course. These are crucial regardless of how you have been studying - home study or classroom tuition. A good revision course should focus you onto exam techniques and also force-feed you exam style questions.

7. Finally - attempt at least one or preferably two mock examinations, under exam conditions - no biscuits, music or T.V!! You should try the mocks about ten days before the real exams so that you have plenty of time to perform any surgery of your knowledge gaps. It is very important that you experience a full three-hour examination under examination conditions in each paper you are going to sit before you attempt the real thing. Many students express surprise when they fail an ACCA examination but often the first time they experience a full three hour examination in their given subject is on the day of the exam. It is very difficult to understand why they should feel surprised at their failure.

To win the ACCA qualification you need a Strategy Toward Success. This article has attempted to focus you on the key issues and the strategic considerations that you should make. If you apply yourself correctly in a committed and disciplined way, you will PASS and own a rare and valuable thing - "your little precious" - The ACCA qualification.

Article by FTMS London