Exam tip 1
Thickness Calculations: Round to the third decimal place, and don’t round-up/down. The right answer will be far apart from the wrong answers so as not to pose a problem
Example #1) “.0075” - is “.007” - (same as on test)
Example #2) “.0993” - is “.099” - (may be shown as “0.100” on test)
Example #3) “.9998” - is “.999” - (may be shown as “1.00” on test).
Example #4) “239.3 psi” - is “239 psi” (same as test)
Example #5) “1007.9 psi” - is “1007 psi” - (may be shown as “1008 psi” on test) Example #6) “999.99 psi” - is “999 psi” - (may be shown as “1,000 psi” on test)
Exam tip 2:
Since both metric and British units are used; sometimes, the data are given in inches or foot but the multi choice answer may be in mm or meter. So, be careful on unit conversion.
Exam tip 3
API Exam NEVER uses the following type of answers:
⇒ All of the above
⇒ Both A & B
⇒ None of the above
Exam tip 4:
Use common sense. Reason it out!
It is likely a correct answer to a very easy question.
Exam tip 5:
A lot of questions are derived from basics; definitions, meaning, scope, exclusions.
Exam tip 6:
Try using the PDF copy of reference documents as much as possible when solving open book questions; it helps navigate through documents more easily during the exam.
Exam Tips 7
Sitting for an exam can be stressful specially for such day long gruesome exam, so, try to sleep early the night before and stop reading on the exam day; just peruse the important parts of the reference documents or look at the figures and charts for around half an hour maximum. Let your brain rest. You need to be alert and full of energy to endure the day long core exam.
Exam Tips 8:
During the exam, you can increase your chances of choosing the correct answer by eliminating the obvious wrong answers.
To eliminate the wrong answers, hold the mouse on the answer you think is wrong and right click, it will cross it helping you to concentrate on the remaining possible answers.
You can challenge any question you may wish by writing on its comment sheet but please note that the clock keeps running so you shall be spending from your allocated time.
Exam Tips 9:
During practice sessions and the mock exams, try actually solving the calculation type mock questions on the paper (not in your mind) even if it is a simple mathematical equation and looks easy.
Until you don’t practice solving the questions, you would not get the feel of it. Practice also helps you solving the calculations a lot faster while avoid making silly mistakes during the exam.
Exam Tips 10:
Significant number of questions is aimed at verifying your comprehension of principles and theory, so try to understand the basics rather than simply memorizing the numbers as it would be of little help.
Remember, API does not normally want you to memorize the numbers or formulas during the closed book examinations unless extensively used in the industry, is of everyday use or specifically mentioned in the body of knowledge. During the remaining modules, we shall show you which figures you may need to remember.
Exam Tips 11:
Some questions include irrelevant information that might look confusing. API wants to verify that you can differentiate between the relevant and non relevant information.
The trick is to understand the question (what is wanted) and then look at the relevant formula to find out what information is required to calculate the answer. Make a quick list of known and unknown parameters dismissing the irrelevant information; then simply use the formula to solve the equation.
Exam Tips 12
Pay particular attention to charts, tables, figures, and also the footnotes within the reference books and try to understand the rationale.
We shall explain major tables, chart and figures and shall point out those important footnotes during our e-learning course and classroom trainings.
During open book examination, if you can’t find a topic within a code, look at the table of content, the list of figures and the list of tables.
If you still can’t find it within 1-2 minutes; then flag it off, make a note of question number on the paper and go to next question; there is high chance of encountering the topic when looking for other topics on subsequent questions in which case you can go back to the flagged off question and solve it within seconds.
More exam tips are discussed during other modules and also the classroom trainings if you have opted for the blended package.