How to write faster in exams?

How to write faster in exams? I'm at disadvantage as my exams are so time reliant but I write slow.. Hence I lose a lot of marks as I don't finish the paper

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Reply 1

King Leonidas

Surely the only was to do that is write faster?

Reply 2

This Honest

Practise? Have to get all your ideas and concepts planned out, you can write much faster without wasting time to think.

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Reply 3

username1082842

Don't stress too much about writing really neat; just make sure your handwriting is readable. Make sure you have a good pen with you, because some pens are a lot easier to write with than others making it faster for you and also do you write joined up? If you don't, you can try that.

Reply 4

NatashaLee

I had this problem in my law exams, usually i'd try writing neat for a couple of lines and gradually it would deteriorate.
However for my final law exam i decided i was gonna go straight in with big messy handwriting, i actually finished on time with 5 minutes to spare so yeah my advice apart from practicing would be to forget about neatness, i wouldn't even start out neat (:

Reply 5

Jarred

Throw away all of your biros and get yourself a nice rollerball ink pen (not ballpoint), they are ever so smooth and reasonably cheap (I'm using a Tesco own brand one right now and I prefer it my old Parker fountain pen, it's lovely). Getting a nice smooth pen makes it much easier to write quickly.

After this, all I can say is go crazy and forget completely about neatness. These people have been marking exams for years and can read pretty much anybody's writing. My writing is absolutely atrocious but I can write faster than the average bear, and it always seems to work out alright in the end. So long as it is reasonably legible, you'll do okay. It doesn't have to be a work of art, if it communicates the information across it should be okay. It takes a bit of practise but armed with the right pen and with the knowledge that it doesn't have to look nice on the page, you'll quickly become comfortable writing quickly.

My only problem is that I can't remember how to write neatly anymore.

Reply 6

Gary

Mhmm I think one of the reasons why I write so slow is i tend to keep it neat as I tend to have like OCD when I write out stuff lol

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Reply 7

Knalchemist

I write quite fast - which is a pain as I end up missing words out, and/or my fingers and hand gets cramp -_-

Reply 8

Of_the_hook

Time yourself with past papers if you have any.

Reply 9

Champagne Supernova

Grab yourself a new pen - anything but ballpoint.
Grab a past paper, or an essay question, or anything uesful to your revision!
Practise, practise, practise.

Reply 10

Gary

Was wondering, would bigger forearms/biceps/triceps help? Lol

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Reply 11

cdoyle

There's a bump in my fourth finger in my right hand. My guess is all those years of exams.

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Reply 12

scking1187

I have this problem too.. I have for years! I get cramp so easily and can't seem to get my ideas down on paper in the time! Think I will try the smooth pen thing.. It sounds like it should work!

Reply 13

Jack93o

whats wrong with biros?

Reply 14

Tabzqt

Are you allowed to use rollerball pens in exams?

Reply 15

LovePeaceAwesome

If you use those inky pens, won't that make the writing smudge?

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Reply 16

Sagacious

Original post by Gary

Was wondering, would bigger forearms/biceps/triceps help? Lol

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Yeah, get shredded brah.

On a serious note, loosening your grip on the pen might help.

Reply 17

willbee

joined up handwriting!! Some people prefer not to use it, but if you're writing quickly it's a must. I don't know if you join-up already, but it's the only way I can think of to speed up your writing. Also, be concise with your points and don't use unnecessary adjectives. Don't ramble, just say everything that you need to and move on. If it's an essay, I wouldn't bother with a big intro, just sort of rewrite the question to show you're gonna answer it and then jump in and answer it. If you're running out of time, resort to bullet pointing if it'll win you extra marks.

Don't be fussy with your handwriting or your language and you should speed up in exams.

Edit: with regards to pen choice, I go for biro, it doesn't smudge so easily, and I smudge everywhere with a rollerball pen. I think you're more likely to get handcramp with biros though, especially if you squeeze the pen or press hard into the paper.

(edited 11 years ago)

Reply 18

chchboa

I have this problem and wound up failing my art prelim because of it. If I try to write fast my words just become lines on the paper and my arm tenses up and stops moving. When I write normally I take forever to do one word and since I'm left handed smudgy pens are a big no-no. Should j give in and ask for a scribe do you think?

Reply 19

ellawhite4686

this isn't technically 'writing faster' but this is what i do to help me:

i very quickly write down a brief answer for each question but leave space after each one, that way i know each question will at least get a bit of an answer, i then go back if i have spare time adding an extra detail or two each time i go over it!