🎯 Exam Strategies

Week Before Exam:
☐ Complete final practice test
☐ Review all weak areas identified
☐ Make flashcards for problem vocabulary/grammar
☐ Practice reading passages daily (30 mins)
☐ Listen to Japanese audio daily (30 mins)
☐ Review common mistakes from practice tests
☐ Get exam location details and plan route
☐ Gather required documents (test voucher, ID)

3 Days Before:
☐ Light review only - avoid cramming
☐ Focus on confidence builders (things you know well)
☐ Prepare exam day materials
☐ Check weather forecast
☐ Plan what to wear (comfortable, layers)

Day Before:
☐ Final light review (2-3 hours max)
☐ Pack exam bag completely
☐ Prepare healthy meals/snacks
☐ Relax and get good sleep (8+ hours)
☐ Avoid alcohol and heavy meals
☐ NO late-night cramming!

Required Items:
✓ Test voucher (受験票)
✓ Valid photo ID (passport, driver's license)
✓ Multiple pencils (#2/HB) - at least 3
✓ Good eraser
✓ Watch (not smart watch - basic analog/digital)
✓ Water bottle (clear, no label)

Optional but Recommended:
✓ Pencil sharpener
✓ Tissues
✓ Light snack (chocolate, banana - for break)
✓ Sweater/jacket (rooms can be cold)
✓ Eye drops (if needed)
✓ Reading glasses (if needed)

Do NOT Bring:
✗ Cell phone (or turn OFF and store in bag)
✗ Smart watch
✗ Dictionary
✗ Reference materials
✗ Electronic devices
✗ Food that makes noise/smell

Recommended Time Allocation:
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Part                    Questions    Time    Strategy
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Kanji Reading           5-8 Qs       8 min   Quick, know or don't
Vocabulary              15-20 Qs     12 min  Eliminate wrong first
Grammar                 15-20 Qs     20 min  Pattern recognition
Reading (Short)         3-5 Qs       15 min  Question first
Reading (Medium)        4-6 Qs       20 min  Main idea focus
Reading (Long)          5-8 Qs       25 min  Skim before reading
Information Retrieval   3-5 Qs       10 min  Scan, don't read all
Review Time            ---           5 min   Check marked answers
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
TOTAL                   55 Qs        105 min

Time Checkpoints:
✓ 30 minutes: Vocabulary complete, starting grammar
✓ 50 minutes: Grammar complete, starting reading
✓ 100 minutes: All questions answered, reviewing

If Behind Schedule:
1. Skip difficult questions, mark for review
2. Prioritize reading sections (more points per Q)
3. Use elimination method on grammar
4. Don't leave blanks - guess if needed

Listening Strategy (Audio-Controlled Pace):

Before Each Question:
- Read the situation quickly (5 seconds)
- Identify question type (task/point/overall/response)
- Note what information to listen for
- Don't panic if you miss it - move on

During Audio:
- Focus completely (no re-play available)
- Take minimal notes (keywords only)
- Listen for conclusion/summary at end
- Mark answer immediately

Key Points:
✓ Cannot control pace - audio dictates timing
✓ Read ahead during pauses
✓ Mark answer even if unsure
✓ Don't dwell on missed questions
✓ Stay focused - one lapse = multiple misses

When Unsure of Correct Answer:

Step 1: Eliminate Obviously Wrong
- Grammatically incorrect
- Opposite meaning
- Illogical in context
- Wrong formality level

Step 2: Compare Remaining Options
- Which fits context better?
- Which sounds more natural?
- Which matches grammar pattern?

Step 3: Trust Your Gut
- First instinct often correct
- Don't overthink
- If 50/50, choose and move on

Example:
Q: 彼は忙しい___、手伝ってくれた。
1) おかげで ✗ (wrong logic - busy isn't reason for help)
2) ために ✗ (wrong usage - need to help isn't mentioned)
3) のに ✓ (despite being busy - makes sense!)
4) ので ✗ (because busy - contradicts helping)

Eliminate 1, 2, 4 → Answer must be 3

Marking System:
○ = Confident answer
△ = Somewhat confident
? = Complete guess

Strategy:
1. First Pass (80% of time):
   - Answer all ○ questions
   - Mark △ and ? for review
   - Never leave blank on first pass

2. Second Pass (15% of time):
   - Review all △ questions
   - Try elimination method again
   - Change answer only if clear mistake

3. Final Pass (5% of time):
   - Quick check of ○ answers
   - Ensure no bubbles skipped
   - Don't second-guess too much

When to Change Answers:
✓ Clear calculation error
✓ Misread question
✓ New insight makes different answer obvious

When NOT to Change:
✗ Just feeling uncertain
✗ Second-guessing yourself
✗ No clear reason

Research shows: First instinct correct 55% of time

If You Don't Know Answer:

DON'T:
✗ Panic and waste time
✗ Stare at question for 5 minutes
✗ Leave blank (no points for blank!)
✗ Let it affect next questions

DO:
✓ Use elimination method
✓ Make educated guess
✓ Mark for review if time permits
✓ Move on confidently
✓ Return later if time

Remember:
- One difficult question ≠ failing exam
- Spending 5 min on 1 question = losing time for 3-4 others
- Guessing gives 25% chance, blank = 0%
- Your score = total correct, not perfect on each

Focus Killers and Solutions:

Problem: Mind wandering to results
Solution: "I'll think about that after. Now = focus on this question."

Problem: Noticing others finishing early
Solution: "Everyone's pace is different. I focus on my own work."

Problem: Tired/losing concentration
Solution: 
- Quick 10-second micro-break
- Close eyes, deep breath
- Light shoulder rolls
- Return to exam refreshed

Problem: Mistake on previous question bothering you
Solution: "Past questions done. Can't change. This question matters now."

Problem: Room distractions (noise, temperature)
Solution:
- Accept distractions exist
- Can't control environment, only response
- Refocus on question at hand

Concentration Technique:
Every 30 minutes, mental reset:
1. Put pencil down (5 seconds)
2. Close eyes
3. Deep breath
4. "I am focused. I am ready."
5. Resume with fresh mind

N2 Passing Requirements:

1. Overall Score:
   Minimum: 90 / 180 points (50%)

2. Section Minimum (ALL must pass):
   - Language Knowledge (Vocabulary/Grammar): 19 / 60
   - Reading: 19 / 60
   - Listening: 19 / 60

BOTH Criteria Must Be Met!

Example Scenarios:

Scenario A: PASS ✓
Vocabulary/Grammar: 45
Reading: 30
Listening: 25
Total: 100 (≥90 ✓) Each section ≥19 ✓

Scenario B: FAIL ✗
Vocabulary/Grammar: 50
Reading: 35
Listening: 15 (below 19 ✗)
Total: 100 (≥90 ✓) But listening too low ✗

Scenario C: FAIL ✗
Vocabulary/Grammar: 30
Reading: 28
Listening: 20
Total: 78 (below 90 ✗) Even though each ≥19 ✓

Strategy Implication:
- Can't afford to bomb any section
- Balance study across all areas
- If weak in one area, strengthen it
- During exam, don't sacrifice one section for another

Raw Score → Scaled Score (Approximate)

Section has ~30 questions → scaled to 60 points

Rough Conversion:
90% correct (27/30) ≈ 55-60 points
80% correct (24/30) ≈ 50-55 points
70% correct (21/30) ≈ 45-50 points
60% correct (18/30) ≈ 38-42 points
50% correct (15/30) ≈ 30-35 points

Minimum Passing per Section:
19/60 ≈ 60% raw score (18/30 questions)

Total Passing:
90/180 ≈ 50% overall

Target for Safety:
Aim for 65-70% raw score in each section
This gives buffer above minimum

☐ Pack exam bag with all required items
☐ Check test voucher and ID are in bag
☐ Set 2 alarms (phone + backup)
☐ Plan route and departure time
☐ Prepare breakfast and lunch
☐ Lay out comfortable clothes
☐ Light review (1-2 hours max)
☐ Relaxing activity (movie, music, walk)
☐ No alcohol or heavy food
☐ Bed by 10 PM for 8+ hours sleep

☐ Wake up 3 hours before exam
☐ Eat healthy breakfast (protein + carbs)
☐ Drink water (not too much)
☐ Review 3-5 key grammar patterns (light)
☐ Positive affirmations
☐ Leave early (arrive 30 min before)
☐ Visit restroom before entering room
☐ Turn phone COMPLETELY OFF
☐ Deep breathing before start
☐ Trust your preparation - you got this!