17 Top Tips to Pass CeMAP 3

1. Read the question to see whose shoes you should put yourself in. Sometimes it may be a mortgage broker; other times a building society manager. Put yourself in that person’s shoes and try and imagine you are them before you answer the question.
2. Think generic products. Although your own product range will undoubtedly help you, the exam is based around generic products not specific ones which you may deal with.
3. Questions in CeMAP use very cautious lending policies rather than the very adventurous ones available in the market. Unlike any other lenders on the market, the CeMAP paper operates standard income multipliers, it always charges higher lending fees, it doesn’t lend to people with CCJs, it promotes both repayment mortgages and interest only mortgages with ISAs and endowments. It is the perfect lender and adheres to the CeMAP syllabus.
4. Be aware of the sections. Section A and B cover applying for a mortgage - all areas when a mortgage is applied for right up until the mortgage offer is issued. Section C covers all things that occur after completion of the mortgage, invariably handled by the lender’s head office or branches. Section C also covers a lot of Mortgage Conduct of Business Rules as do sections A and B.
5. Know that you have 2 hours for the whole paper but be aware of how much time to spend on each case study. In the paper you will have 6 case studies all consisting of 10 multiple choice questions. We recommend 20 minutes on each case study
6. Revise your calculations before the paper. There will invariably be questions which require you to do a calculation. Percentage advances, higher lending fees calculations are just two examples
7. As you read the case studies, if they involve clients, try to imagine they’re sitting in front of you and drift into this state. Read the case study again with the new image in your head. Jot down key words and phrases from the case study. Then tackle the questions. Really get a handle on the case study as every question will relate to it in one way or another.
8. Try Mind mapping the Mortgage Conduct of Business Rules to bring it to life and make it easier to study.
9. In a standard multi choice exam, like the CeMAP 1, its good advice to leave out questions you’re not sure of and come back to them at the end. In this exam this is not so good, since all the questions relate to a case study which you have to swallow first before you answer the questions. By all means, leave out those questions you don’t know the answer initially and come back to them before you move onto the next case study.
10. If you need glasses for computer usage, don’t forget to take them. Sitting in front of a screen for two hours can hurt your eyes otherwise. If your company gives you free eye tests if you’re a computer user, get one done before the exams and buy your glasses as soon as you can. Doing an exam with an excruciating headache is no fun.
11. Remember standard multiple choice question strategies. Read the question first twice without glancing at the answers; cover the answers with your hand if you have to.
12. Always relate the question back to the case study information as this will help you enormously.
13. Have you ever seen a line of dominoes on the floor where the first domino is toppled and this nocks the next one and so on and so on. I think the Guinness Book of Records states that the longest row of dominoes is in the thousands. Anyway this image will help you realise the way CeMAP 3 questions work. Many questions link to the next question. For example the first question may ask you to select an appropriate product. The next question would then ask a question relevant to that product. Sometimes, if you’re unsure of the answer to question one, either the question stem or possible answers to question 2 may jog their memory. So it’s a good idea to look at the other questions for hints at the answers to others.
14. Use elimination with CeMAP for every question – it’s the best technique going and can invariably lead you to an answer that you weren’t too sure of. Even if you are fairly sure of the answer, eliminate the wrong answers as this helps you to keep concentration going. Remember after 90 minutes, you will become tired and will begin to miss things. Things that are obvious when you have lots of energy just get missed when you’re tired. Using elimination makes you focus on very option and not miss anything.
15. Keeping yourself active during the exam helps concentration. Take a blank piece of paper for each case study and make notes of the key information as you read the story. In the Pearson Vue system you receive a small whiteboard to write on which can be wiped clean every time you move onto a new case study
16. Don’t forget the older mortgage schemes and methods crop up in the exam. For example stabilised and low start mortgages haven’t been sold since the early 90’s but people may still have them and thus they are tested.
17. Try a technique to forget the case study entirely. One delegate suggested you close your eyes and think of England/Wales/Scotland before you move on. Others have suggested some sort of visualisation, maybe, your last holiday lying on the beach. Whatever you do, try to rid your mind of the last case study from your mind, before you move onto the next one.
    

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