How to Ace Your Test

Often the most overlooked aspect of DECA competition is the written test. While the 100 point exam may seem insignificant in comparison to the role play, a high score can be the difference between advancing to ICDC or going home empty-handed. Here are a few tips for maximizing your test score and your chances at floating down the Hilton Orlando’s lazy river.

Practice Makes Perfect

The questions that comprise the written test are designed to make studying very difficult. That doesn’t mean preparation is unnecessary. In fact, taking practice tests is the most effective way to prepare for the exam. Repeated exposure to the style of questions asked makes the questions on the real test all the more easy to recognize (and answer correctly). DECA practice tests are easily accessible online and will help boost that score.

Process of Elimination

The best way to increase your odds of answering a question correctly is by eliminating some of your options. For example, if a question asks, Which of the following is a respectful way to introduce yourself to a potential employer?, immediately eliminating options that are clearly too extreme, such as Shout in anger, will help increase the likelihood of selecting the correct answer.

(Educated) Guessing

Occasionally, you will be faced with a question to which you do not know the answer. Certain questions may ask about specific laws or policies, and others may ask about business practices relating to a field you know nothing about. Not knowing is OK. There is no guessing penalty on the written test, so answering every question, even with a guess, is the best strategy. Using context clues, combined with the aforementioned “Process of Elimination,” will help you maximize your chances of getting the right answer. And remember, if you’re really stumped, choose C.

Overall, it’s extremely important not to take the written test for granted. Prepare sufficiently with practice tests, and make the best use out of test taking strategies for those extra-tough questions. And who knows, maybe you’ll even win an instructional award too.