How to Study & Revise for your CII Exams Len Wilkins ,

How to Study
Insurance Institute of London Revision Lecture
Xchanging Building
1.15pm, Monday 18th January 2010
How to Study & Revise
for your CII Exams
Len Wilkins FCII, Consultant
& Chris Paine Dip CII, Consultant
Chairman : Alex Booth
Partner, Elborne Mitchell - Solicitors
IIL Revision Lectures are kindly sponsored by Xchanging
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
1
How to Study
Health Warning
 Imperative you obtain copy of new 2010
Cert/Dip/ACII Brochure
 Modernisation of General Insurance (GI)
syllabus ‘Changes at a Glance 2010 – 2011’
 Evolutionary not an immediate explosion
 Many changes to some ‘old favourites’
 Please contact CII Face-to-Face Training for
further information on 0207 283 3117
 After all, it’s only in Fenchurch Street
 Please go and talk to the team there
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
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How to Study
Enhanced CII Exam Process
 CII placing greater focus on testing
practical application of knowledge levels
 Certificate : fundamental level
 Diploma : technical & supervisory
 Advanced : sophisticated knowledge
application
 CII will achieve this by offering enhanced
subjects, realignment of units, study
pathways, modified completion criteria,
streamlined content and improved learning
& revision materials & other tools
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
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How to Study
Planning your CII Route
 April 2010 will be last sitting for :
 PO1 Insurance Practice & Regulation
 PO4 Business Practice – Dip compulsory
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October 2010 will be last sitting for :
P10 Commercial Insurance Practice
745 Principles of Property Insurance
785 Principles of Reinsurance
 More subjects will be removed after
October 2011 sitting – 510, 770, 815 & CITIP
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
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How to Study
Planning your CII Route
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7 new subjects already introduced in 2009
April 2010 will be first sitting for :
P91 Aviation and Space Insurance
P97 Reinsurance
990 Insurance Corporate Management
 Then in October 2010 :
 P90 Cargo and Goods in Transit Insurance
 Plus 7 more new subjects from April 2011
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
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How to Study
New CII General Designation System
 CII introduced important changes to
structure of obtaining CII qualifications
 Award in Insurance (FIT)
 Certificate in Insurance (Cert CII)
 Diploma in Insurance (Dip CII)
 Advanced Diploma in Insurance (ACII)
 Beyond that is CII Fellowship
 CII constantly reviews syllabus content
 Please check CII ‘Latest Editions’
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
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How to Study
Further General Opportunities
 MSc in Insurance and Risk Management at
Cass Business School
 Chartered Status & Chartered Firm Titles
 New CII Faculties – Underwriting, Claims,
Insurance Broking, London Market
 CITIP (up to October 2011)
 Certificate in Contract Wording
 Diplomas in Life & Disability Underwriting
and Life & Disability Claims
 Lloyd’s & London Market Introductory Test
(LLMIT)
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
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How to Study
CII is working for you
 Ongoing CII intiatives include :
 ‘RevisonMate’ facility – free e-learning
revision aid now part of many textbooks
 New ‘How to Study’ courses at Fountain
House & elsewhere – useful for those who
have returned to study after long break
 Improved access to past exam guides as an
aid to help you structure & write answers
 Access to copies of recommended reading
textbooks
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
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How to Study
I don’t want to do this – don’t worry,
nobody does
 You’re not going to believe it, but
studying can be fun
 For those of you used to studying, some
thoughts
 For those of you who struggle, or are
studying for the first time, some ideas !
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
9
Firstly, why people fail !!
How to Study
Research has show that students fail CII
exams for three reasons
 ONE - they did not PREPARE
 TWO - they did not FINISH examination
paper
 THREE - they did not PRACTISE
answering questions
You have been warned – so you need to
study properly to avoid these traps
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
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How to Study
How to Study
 We’re going to look at :
Studying
Recalling
Reviewing
Revising
Although CII exams are not typical academic
exams, exam techniques still vital – please
attend ‘How to Pass Your CII Exams’
At Xchanging 1.15pm Monday 15th February
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
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Five Golden Rules to Studying
How to Study
 Rule One – organise yourself
 Rule Two - activate your brain - find out
what motivates it - if you’re bored, so is
your brain !
 Rule Three - you can’t revise until you’ve
learned your subject - you should allow
8 weeks to revise
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
12
Five Golden Rules to Studying
How to Study
 Rule Four - if your existing study
methods don’t work, perhaps it’s time to
find new ways of learning (we call this
‘learning styles’)
and lastly, and perhaps most importantly,
 Rule Five - promise yourself you will
study NOW and NOT day before exams
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
13
How to Study
Step One
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Decide on correct examination route :
Award
Certificate
Diploma
Advanced Diploma
Decide number of study subjects - no more
than 2 at any one sitting, please
 Establish how long it will take to study
various subject levels
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
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Study Time & CII Credits Required
How to Study
 Cert CII Average 50 hours ( 40 credits)
 Dip CII Average 100 hours (110 credits) *
 ACII
Average 120 hours (290 credits)
 * Dip CII increases to 120 credits in 2011
 CII has changed credit requirements
 Please see CII website for full information
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
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How to Study
Step Two
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Buy stationery supplies
Pads, pens, highlighter pens
Drawing pins or ‘Bluetack’
Sticky tape
Tape recorder
Old posters or flipchart
 Now make up study plan allowing for
study and play time – then STICK TO IT !
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
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How to Study
Step Three
 Start with copy of syllabus - CII identifies
its learning outcomes, so please see what's
important and what extra reading is
recommended
 Exams set from syllabus, so make sure you
know what is important and how much
detail you need to know
 Shame to study something CII doesn’t
worry about or removed from syllabus two
years ago – please see Latest Text Editions
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
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How to Study
Step Three
 Look at previous exam guides for past
2 years (last 4 exam sessions)
 Look at topics that have been used for
compulsory questions, essay questions
and short answer questions
 Produce list, grid or ‘matrix’ of what
comes up regularly and what never
seems to be examined
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
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Exam Grid or Matrix
How to Study
 CII Examiners sent grid showing syllabus
points and when topics were last examined
 Great idea to do similar exercise, so obtain
examination guides for last 4 sessions
(we have prepared short example for 530)
 £11.00 from CII website or CII e-mail for
members (£12.00 for non-members)
 www.cii.co.uk or [email protected]
 CII Customer Services 0208 989 8464
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
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How to Study
Time to make plans
 You need to plan your time
 Work out when you are most responsive to
new ideas - weekends, early mornings, late
at night
 How much time will you need ?
 Fit studying around work, social life,
holidays, study assignments, revision
times
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
20
How to Study
Time to make plans
 Do this and you will accept study time
more easily, realise your aims are feasible
and stand a chance of keeping your sense
of humour (and your partner’s support)
 Once you’ve made this plan, KEEP TO IT !
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
21
Weekly Time Plan
How to Study
 Weekly Study Time for each Subject Level
 Cert CII - 3 to 4 hours a week
 Dip CII - 6 to 8 hours a week
 ACII
- 8 to 10 hours a week
 In today’s society, this is a ‘big ask’
 You will have to make some sacrifices
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
22
How to Study
How to Plan
 Start studying early in November for April
exam session (yes, immediately after
October exams – sorry)
 Mid-November to mid-February = 13 weeks
 Revision should begin around 1 March
 Gives you 8 weeks for revision
 Maximum 2 exams per sitting (once again,
this is sound CII advice)
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
23
How to Study
Step Four
 Assess syllabus and course textbook to
see what study time required – try not to
allow set time for each chapter
 GRADE subjects into degrees of difficulty :
 HARD – much thought & concentration
 DIFFICULT - some hard work
 EASY - needs revising, simple background
reading
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
24
How to Study
Step Five
 Now allocate your time over these subjects
on 3:2:1 ratio
 3 hours for hard
 2 hours for difficult
 1 hour for easy
 Please allow sufficient time to complete and
send in your Continuous Assessments (CA)
& Final Assessment in good time – 10% of
your marks if successful
 Cut-off date for April 2010 exams is
12th March and not more than 2 CA papers
to tutor at any one time, please
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
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How to Study
Study Suggestion
 Try to get face-to-face tuition - if not, try to
arrange your own study group at work
(‘peer or group pressure’)
 Time to start studying – scan read book,
ignore bits you don’t need - take text you
consider important and rephrase into your
own style (‘judges notes’)
 Summarise or highlight text passages
 Please try to practise writing essays under
exam conditions – when was the last time
you put pen to paper for so long ?
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
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How to Study
Don’t just write notes
 Don’t just write notes - use colours,
pictures, boxes, rhymes - anything to help
your memory and give your brain
something tangible to hold on to
 Use your imagination – even write your
own short questions in margin
 Use unrelated items – any form of thought
association
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
27
How to Study
Don’t just write notes
 Put important points on ‘flash’ cards,
posters or notes suitable for you - use
acronyms, phrases, triggers
 Tape main points of a passage and replay
them - use gags, music, sing to the text
 Play Insurance ‘Mastermind’ or ‘Trivial
Pursuit’
 Hopefully before you contemplate revision,
you will have read through textbook at
least twice, if not more for certain sections
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
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How to Study
Notes give your brain something to
retain when it gets DIFFICULT
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MOVEMENT
EXAGGERATION
Make them INTERESTING
Make them FUNNY
Use MNEMONICS (system for improving
memory)
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
29
How to Study
Anyone for Tennis ?
 If you have partner in life, don’t forget
about them
 Are they supportive - ask them to test
you
 Get them to use flash cards
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
30
How to Study
Stupid, but it works !!
 Before you start, say out loud : ‘I am going
to pass this exam; in fact, I am going to get
a distinction’
(Okay, you might have to stretch truth there)
 Don’t get bored - give your brain variety
 Work personal reward system
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
31
Now to Revision
How to Study
 Passive Revision - learning, reviewing
notes, re-expressing facts, concepts and
ideas
 Active Revision - answer questions,
memory ‘joggers’ - words, rhymes, tapes,
flash cards or notes for key points and
legal cases - put them round house - mind
maps to link things together and above all
practise under exam conditions !
 Create associations in your mind
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
32
How to Study
Revision
 Use continuous assessment facilities,
correspondence or on-line courses
 Study texts with on-line support
 ed.LEARN, CD-RoMs & Interactive Learning
 Key Facts Booklets, Distance Learning, CII
Revision Days & Workshops, Evening
Classes and CII Knowledge Services
 Examination guides, case study workbooks
 Please contact CII Face-to-Face Training or
your HR Department for help
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
33
How to Study
Revision
 Plan your revision
 Prepare timetable that includes work and
leisure, then stick to it
 Remember, you need somewhere quiet, free
of distractions, equipped with study space
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
34
How to Study
The end is in sight, so keep going
 Revise in attainable chunks - not whole
syllabus all at once
 Study for 40 minutes - revise and review for
40 minutes - 15 minute reward break - then
repeat process
 Lastly review key points you’ve learned for
5 minutes - technique will help put facts
into your long-term memory – start all over
again
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
35
How to Study
The end is in sight, so keep going
 Just before you go to bed, review key
points of all facts you’ve learned during
session
 LASTLY, don’t forget to set alarm clock for
30 minutes earlier than usual - revisit key
facts from previous day
 You will be amazed how many facts you
remember !
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
36
Attitude
How to Study
 Think POSITIVELY
 KNOW your subject (and be able to write
long tracts about it – another mention, so it
is very important)
 Be CONFIDENT
 You are aiming for a DISTINCTION !
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
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How to Study
Remember ……..
 Practise writing answers - you will find out
what you don’t know! Would you have
passed your driving test without driving a
car first ?
 Thousands of people pass CII exams every
year and every year CII appoints hundreds
of new ACII’s, Dip CII’s and Cert CII’s
 Remember, one day this could be
…………..YOU !!!!!
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
38
How to Study
Co-Authors of this Presentation
Len Wilkins FCII
SICAT Training Consultancy
Telephone
01451 821063
Mobile
07970 668849
E-Mail
[email protected]
Chris Paine Dip CII
Independent Training Consultant & Advisor
Telephone
01923 775049
Mobile
07770 671840
E-Mail
[email protected]
With grateful acknowledgement to The Chartered Insurance Institute
Updated C Paine January 2010
39