Thursday, April 29, 2021

How to Stay Cool, Calm and Collected During Your Proctored Exam


Do you have an upcoming proctored exam? Has your college, university or governing organization requested that you book one through a local testing provider? Exam proctoring services provide you with a fair and accurate evaluation of your skills, but you may be experiencing some very normal added stress and nerves at the prospect of taking your exam. Try not to be too hard on yourself about that, as we all get nervous and stressed out sometimes. Here is a short and succinct breakdown of how to stay cool, calm and collected on the day. 

How to Stay Cool 


How do you stay cool under pressure? It helps to remember that your individual proctored exam is not a competition with other people who happen to be writing their exams at the same time as you. You may see fellow exam writers moving quickly from section to section or even getting up out of their seats to hand in their exam when you are still working through the first half of your exam. This is nothing to worry about. Try to remember that your exam success is yours and yours alone. It does not matter how quickly someone else completes portions of their exam. Take all the time you need. 


How to Stay Calm 


Try to collect your thoughts and ground yourself so that you can focus on doing your best during the exam. Meditation is an excellent tool to help you stay calm before the exam and during any waiting periods or break times. You could also consider repeating a nice, positive affirmation for yourself while you wait to begin the exam. Tell yourself a positive message, reminding yourself that you have already put in the work to prepare yourself and that you are determined to do the best that you can. It helps to remember that there are so many factors outside of our control, and we can instead focus on the things which are within our control. If you are really struggling to feel calm during your exam, remember to take some slow, deep breaths as a quick way to ground yourself.


How to Stay Collected 


To feel collected and equipped for success on your exam, the most important thing that you can do is study ahead of time, methodically and gradually. Devote a little chunk of time each day to your study materials so that you do not feel pressured to learn everything in a rush the day before the exam. Research various strategies so that you can find what works best for you and maximize your studying time. Are you a kinesthetic learner? Or are you more visual or auditory? Try to gear your studying towards the learning style that you are most suited for. You could also look at an online preparation program to help you out with the specific material that you need to cover. For example, if you are preparing for a language proficiency exam, such as the CELPIP General or General-LS, then you can put your best foot forward by taking a CELPIP preparation program with an accredited instructor. By going that extra mile, you will be much more relaxed during the exam. 


Another thing that you can do to help yourself out on the day is to strategically manage your time. Try not to get too caught up on one particular question or section that you find challenging. You may end up accidentally robbing yourself of valuable time for later sections. By managing your time wisely, you will not only feel more collected and confident, but you will also increase your chances of hitting your target score on the exam. 


Next Steps 


When you feel ready to book your exam, look for a testing venue that puts your health and safety first, such as ATS (Ashton Testing Services). Our professional exam proctoring services provide you with a clean and comfortable testing environment so that you can stay cool, calm and collected during your exam. 


Written by CJ McGillivray