January 2018 R06 exam
The case studies for the R06 January 2018 exam are now available. If you haven’t yet seen these, click here and then click on Assessment Information and Supporting Exam Documents.
What do I do now?
You have from now until the exam at 9.30 on the 22nd January to prepare. The case studies are issued in advance for a reason. They include a range of different aspects of financial planning that are based on two client scenarios. You won’t know the actual questions until the day of the exam so it makes sense to prepare for any eventuality before then.
What areas should I focus on in the January 2018 R06 exam?
Based on the case studies, we believe that you may be required to have a knowledge of the following topics in the R06 January 2018 exam to :
Case Study 1: Suresh & Anya
• Methods of repaying unsecured debt
• Retirement funding, e.g. how auto-enrolment works and other potential options for them
• Protection Plans, especially critical illness and income protection
• Lifetime ISAs (LISAs) & Help to Buy (HTB)
• Socially Responsible Investments (SRI), e.g. positive and negative screening
Case Study 2: Adam & Kathryn
• Onshore investment bonds
• Dividend and Personal Savings Allowance
• State benefits on death
• DB scheme death benefits & commutation of income for PCLS
• Using class 3 NICs to get additional State Pension
• Death benefits for someone with a GPP
• Discretionary will trusts
• IHT mitigation, e.g. residence Nil rate band (NRB), life assurance protection under trust
There will be questions on all or some of these areas.
What should I be doing now to prepare for the January 2018 R06 exam?
I have to say that there are some familiar themes that we have seen before in the R06 exam. Typically, there is an ‘at retirement scenario’ and a ‘young family’ scenario. This exam is no different. What this means is that you can learn a lot from looking at past papers which have featured the same client goals as the exam you are about to sit. This doesn’t mean they always test the same goal in the same way, but the examiner’s do tend to be consistent in how they test them. This will also enable you to practice the all important exam technique before the big day.
Click here to go to FREE past R06 exam guides. If the link doesn’t work for you directly, visit www.cii.co.uk click on knowledge, then on Learning support and then on Past exam guides. It’s a bit fiddly but your reward is three free genuine past exam papers and answers.
You might also consider buying specific model practice questions for this exam. Google it and you’ll find firms that provide these for you.
Familiarise yourself with the clients circumstances, right down to remembering the children’s names! Although the case studies that you will have in the exam are identical to what you have already, you should know their circumstances well. You should also be able to apply your knowledge to their circumstances – generic answers will not score well.
Revise and read around the technical aspects. Google is a good place to start or use the CII R06 study text.
Preparation is the key if you want to pass first time. Good luck.
The Diploma Doctor
