Appearing for a govt exam can often be stressful for students. Especially for students from middle class families who don’t have any generational wealth.
When I was preparing for govt jobs I used to study whole day and my only wish was to get a job and start earning to contribute to my family. It’s not just about earning – what puts a lot of pressure is the nagging and comments of relatives and neighbors.
What’s the exam setter doing now
One of the things that helped me make my journey fun was thinking what’s the exam setter doing now?
I didn’t know much about the process of setting an exam paper at that time. But thinking like this helped question what can I do to make sure I outsmart him. Okay, I imagined him to be 58-something man, with specs, reading books and newspapers, noting down questions to be asked for the exams.
What if you could peak into the exam-setter’s notes? What if you could see what kind of books is he reading?
It’s a fun game of studying to outsmart an exam setter
Try this fun exercise.
I loved this game and if you understand the mindset of an exam setter, you can make your preparation even more effective for success in government job exams.
Here are 5 more strategies to help you outsmart the old exam setter with specs:
Good news, exam setter is working within a boundary
What kind of exam are you preparing for? Truth is the exam setter must ask questions from the syllabus given for the exam. It includes GK and the compulsory subjects also.
They can’t go beyond the boundary (of course, nothing stops them) but chances are when you study previous year’s papers you’ll be able to understand the boundary. Now, you just got to field properly by devising a smart strategy.
Do you know what are his favorite subjects?
What about the exam setter’s favorite subjects? ALL the subjects are his favorite subjects. What are the important subjects for you? Now think about your strengths and weaknesses.
As a science student I had never read constitution, polity, etc. until graduation. But I did that paying attention to my weaknesses.
Psst… He knows what you’re doing
These days there’s plenty of free online material. Many edutech apps give free access to model papers. You can go through them analyzing your strengths and weaknesses. Of course, if you get good results don’t assume you can outsmart the exam setter.
Chances are he’s lurking on those forums and noting down stuff he would avoid for the exams. This mental model can keep you on your toes – always learning and improving so that you focus on your growth.
Hide your weaknesses from him. Really?
This is critical. It’s not just about studying. It’s also about observing, thinking, and resting. When you do that your mental capacity increases.
The exam setter doesn’t want a walking encyclopedia. He wants a smart person who can think about things – who can observe what’s going on around them. And that’s when the exam setter begins to like you. Of course, with better time management you divide your time to get the best outcome for you.
You can never outsmart him
Accept your human side. Embrace that you’ll never be able to outsmart the exam setter.
There was one question which I answered wrongly in my officer interview and at that time I didn’t even realize it. But it’s okay. You’d never know everything. When I was corrected by one of the interviewers – I just said ‘oh yes, sorry my mistake…’ and I smiled. That’s it.
Conclusion
Exam setter is a friendly person – he isn’t out to eat you alive.
When I started visualizing that… I gained a new confidence and started believing in myself.
Remember, exam setters are not trying to reject you but rather help you become the best. I hope this new way of thinking will help you improve your study methods and achieve good scores. Now, go ahead, prepare for your exam, and fulfill your dreams of securing a government job.
