Blog

Iskakov Yeldos

2021-03-02

Will I still need to revise?

Yes! Every assessment in any form is designed to ensure you have met the unit’s learning outcomes, so you should be as prepared as you would be for any other assessment. 

During the open book examination you will have the opportunity to refer to books and search the Internet, but this should be supplementary to thorough and robust revision and preparation.

Although this is an open book examination, it is important that you still revise and familiarise yourself with your notes. You will have a limited time to complete and submit your answers and you will be surprised how quickly this time will pass.

How can I best prepare?

Work with your tutor and Learning Partner and take advantage of all teaching and support available. Follow their revision and preparation advice. This will include:

• studying your course materials
• making sure you understand all the learning outcomes (detailed in the qualification specification on the relevant qualification page of our website)
• conducting wider research to understand how your studies relate to the real world.

As part of your preparations we recommend that you complete wider reading so you don’t have to do this during the examination. You want to be able to focus on the scenario and the questions being asked and be capable of retrieving relevant information fast. To do this you must be familiar with your notes, organising them in advance so you can find anything you need quickly during the examination.

How long do I have to complete my examination?

Open book examinations vary in length. Please refer to the specific qualification page or your Exam Entry Confirmation for details of your unit.

Am I meant to take the full assessment time?

We give a specified time frame to complete and submit your open book examination. You are not expected to work for all that time. NEBOSH learners are based in multiple time zones and everyone will have work and family commitments. The exam time window takes these factors into account and gives you the option to pace yourself by breaking your work on the examination into smaller ‘chunks’.

How do I plan my examination time?

It is important that you do not leave everything until the last minute to avoid running out of time. Make sure your plans allow you to draft, reflect and amend your answers before the deadline, allowing time for breaks.

Build in some time to deal with any unexpected challenges such as slow internet connection or technical issues that may require assistance.

Where do I complete my examination?

You can complete your open book examination at home or other suitable location. To allow you to concentrate during your examination it is important that you prepare a comfortable space to work.

We recommend you organise the following before your examination time starts:

• a desk or table that gives you space to refer to reading materials and prepare your answers
• a comfortable chair
• good lighting
• comfortable temperature
• a clock so you can monitor your time and meet the submission deadline (remember the deadline will be UK local time so if you are completing the examination outside of the UK you will need to make sure you consider any time zone differences)
• a supply of refreshments and snacks to maintain your energy levels.

Please remember to look after yourself making sure you eat, rest and sleep.

Am I allowed to refer to my course books, notes, or any other materials?

You can refer to written and online materials to help you prepare your answers. However, the work you submit must be entirely your own and, for the duration of the examination, you must not:

• communicate with Learning Partner employees on the topic of the assessment
• communicate with other learners on the topic of the assessment
• seek advice or contribution from any third party, including proof-readers, friends, or family members.

During the examination you can use textbooks, learning materials and other resources for reference. Be careful not to copy directly from the reference books. Use your own words applying the knowledge gained during your training course.

Please do not copy and paste information from materials as this will not gain you the marks you need to pass. You must link your answers to the scenario given in the question paper.

Will I need to reference study material?

It is important to reference any materials used during your examination because your answers will be scrutinized for plagiarism and collusion (please see the section on Malpractice later in this guide for further information).

The level of referencing expected will be to simply list the sources of information you have used. This can include textbooks, journals, articles, and online sources. Forexample:

• Textbook: title, author(s), year published)
• Website: the url and area/documents used
• your course materials (tell us who you studied with).

Making your reference list while you are writing responses will help to ensure you do not miss any references. Your reference list does not count towards the overall word limit.

Your reference list needs to be at the end of your answer document. If you are using the NEBOSH answer sheet, there is a place to put your references. If you are not using the answer sheet, please include them at the end of your work.

Is there a word count for my examination?

Your examination will specify a word count. 

Your overall word count must be no more than +10%

of the recommended word count, remember you are being assessed on relevance and quality rather than quantity of words. The recommended word count is there to aid learners in focusing on the subject and context requirements of the open book examination and to avoid digression into areas that are not mark worthy.

If your overall word count is significantly below the recommendation it will be more difficult to achieve a pass.

Do I need to practice an open book examination?

You do not need to complete a mock examination. However, completing an examination at home is very different from sitting in a room under exam conditions. It is important that you practice completing work in your prepared environment to make sure you can concentrate and are comfortable. We recommend that you practice using the sample paper on our website: http://www.nebosh.org.uk/obe-resources 

What standards of behaviour do NEBOSH expect during an open book examination?

You are expected to act responsibly and with integrity. In the context of an open book examination, this means you are:

Permitted to:

• refer to your own course and revision notes
• look up information in offline or online resources, for example textbooks or online journals.

Expected to:

• include a list of the sources of information you have used or quoted during your examination in a reference list.

Required to confirm:

• that the work that you are submitting for the open book examination is entirely your own, except where referenced; and
• that you have not copied from the work of any other learner, nor consulted or colluded with any other learner/person during the examination.

Tags: NEBOSH Open Book Examinations, OBE, NEBOSH,