Welcome to the the FD1 2023 Cycle!
With the 2022 examination results day firmly in the rearview mirror, and the revision cycle for FD1 2023 laid out before us, we’re at the beginning of what will hopefully be a successful run up to complete and pass the PEB’s law paper.
In this post, I wanted to point you to the various resources I have provided for past years which I think will be helpful for you in preparing for this year’s paper. I also want to provide you with some suggestions about how to prepare most effectively in time for the examination on Monday October 16th, 2023. If you have any other useful resources, shout about them in the comments below for other trainees to see.
Resources provided by the PEB
Law Changes - The PEB has summarised relevant law changes for this years examination, here. Of particular note is the change to divisional compliance periods, for which the government has published guidance. I’d recommend revising this as a matter of course. I’d check to see if anything else sneaks onto this section of the website.
Syllabi - The relevant syllabi for FD1 are the FD1 syllabus (of course), and the FC4 syllabus insofar as it relates to designs. These can be found here. Note that as of the date of this article, the UPC is not on the syllabus as the cut off for law changes is 1 April 2023 and the UPC is not ‘in force’ until 1 June 2023.
The PEB also provide past examination papers, mark schemes, Examiner’s comments, and example pass scripts for your review. There is Examiner’s Guidance too (here), which may be of interest, particularly the summary of topics the Examiner’s think candidates are generally weak at.
Articles of interest* provided by Loki’s Patent Blog
I wrote a summary of resources available for studying for these exams here.
I wrote a three stage exam technique series which I implemented the year that I passed (Part I, Part II, and Part III).
There are a number of other articles looking at aspects of the papers, how the marks break down, and other techniques and preparation techniques relevant for different parts of the revision cycle. If you sign up to my Coffee Table Question mailing list I’ll include these in there at some point.
*I think they’re interesting, okay?
Ideas for this revision cycle
Sign up to my question mailing list to receive Part A style questions every Monday until the exam.
Arrange a coffee break or a group discussion once a week with other trainees to discuss the question.
Tee someone up to mark your mock paper attempts in the run up to the exam - objective 3rd party feedback is critical to fixing your weaknesses.
If you’re a resitter, sign up for a mentor to give you focussed feedback on knowledge gaps you need to fill and what you need to fix in your technique (sign ups here).
Sit down with this year’s syllabus and map out how you are going to ensure that all of the knowledge required for the exam will be revised and implanted in time for the exam.
Watch for communications regarding exam format, key dates (registration for example), and other information from the PEB.
Get your IT set up as early as possible, and test it when you can - reduce the chance of IT stress on the day by controlling what you can.
Final thoughts
Don’t rest on your laurels - now is the time to begin planning how you are going to pass this examination. Start now to give yourself as much time as possible to get into peak condition for passing one of the most challenging exams in the profession.
