Top 10 Common Mistakes Students Make in the NCEE Exam
Every year, thousands of pupils sit the National Common Entrance Examination (NCEE) hoping to secure a place at one of Nigeria’s top Federal Unity Colleges.
Many are well-prepared, yet still lose marks because of simple, avoidable mistakes.
These errors — from rushing through questions to misreading instructions — can make the difference between admission to a first-choice school and disappointment.
This guide from The Exam Coach highlights the 10 most common NCEE mistakes and offers actionable tips to help your child avoid them.
Overview: Why Small Mistakes Matter
The NCEE is designed to test not just knowledge, but accuracy, timing, and focus. Marks can easily slip away through carelessness, poor planning, or nervousness.
By identifying where pupils typically go wrong, parents and tutors can address weak habits early — long before the exam day arrives.
Think of this article as a checklist for smarter preparation — a way to make sure every mark counts.
1️⃣ Misreading Questions
One of the most frequent reasons pupils lose marks is simple: they don’t read the question carefully.
Children often rush, assuming they know what’s being asked, but miss key details such as “choose two correct answers” or “find the difference.”
How to fix it:
Train your child to underline keywords like not, difference, total, two, most likely.
Encourage them to read each question twice — once to understand, once to confirm before answering.
👩🏫 Exam Coach Top Tip: The NCEE rewards careful readers. Slow down at the start to go faster overall.
2️⃣ Spending Too Long on One Question
Pupils often waste precious minutes stuck on a single difficult question. By the time they move on, they’ve lost marks on easier ones that came later.
How to fix it:
Teach your child to skip any question they can’t solve within one minute.
Mark it for review and come back if time allows.
Practise with a timer during mock exams to develop pacing instincts.
3️⃣ Leaving Questions Blank
There is no negative marking in the NCEE. That means pupils should always attempt every question — even if unsure.
How to fix it:
Remind them that an educated guess is better than no answer.
Practise multiple-choice elimination techniques — rule out obviously wrong options first.
4️⃣ Ignoring Instructions
Every paper includes specific directions — sometimes at the start, sometimes within individual sections. A pupil might answer with words instead of letters, skip the back page, or forget to write their exam number correctly.
How to fix it:
During practice sessions, ask your child to read instructions aloud.
Reinforce habits like checking for page numbers and ensuring all answers are recorded.
5️⃣ Weak Time Management
Even strong pupils lose marks if they don’t finish the paper. Most NCEE questions are short, but time adds up fast when children hesitate or recheck too often.
How to fix it:
Use a stopwatch during home practice.
Encourage “10-minute checks”: every 10 minutes, pupils should see if they’re on track to complete.
Practise writing quickly but neatly.
6️⃣ Poor Handwriting and Presentation
Untidy handwriting can make it difficult for markers to read answers clearly, especially in written sections like English composition or maths working steps.
How to fix it:
Have your child practise writing neatly under time pressure.
Use lined paper and proper spacing between answers.
For mathematics, always show clear working steps.
👩🏫 Exam Coach Top Tip: Presentation is communication — if the examiner can’t read it, they can’t mark it.
7️⃣ Weak Revision Strategy
Many pupils focus too heavily on one subject (usually English or Maths) and neglect others like Reasoning or General Studies. This creates imbalance — and those “smaller” sections often decide borderline results.
How to fix it:
Follow a balanced NCEE revision timetable with daily rotation of subjects.
Dedicate short review sessions (20 minutes) for weak areas.
Take at least one full mock every two weeks to test all subjects together.
8️⃣ Ignoring Past Questions
Past questions are the best predictor of NCEE question types, difficulty level, and timing. Many pupils underperform simply because they’ve never seen how NECO structures the paper.
How to fix it:
Practise regularly using NCEE Past Questions and Answers.
Review not just answers, but why each option is correct or wrong.
Repeat older papers until scoring consistently above 75%.
9️⃣ Exam-Day Anxiety
Even well-prepared students can freeze up due to nerves. Anxiety reduces focus, increases careless mistakes, and wastes time.
How to fix it:
Rehearse exam-day routines at home — waking up early, getting ready, and arriving “to the exam” on time.
Teach calming techniques like deep breathing and positive self-talk.
Praise effort, not perfection — reassurance builds calm confidence.
💡 Exam Coach Tip: A calm mind performs faster and remembers more. Confidence is part of preparation.
🔟 Not Checking Work Before Submission
Many pupils finish just in time and never recheck their answers. Simple arithmetic or spelling errors go unnoticed — marks that could have been saved with one quick review.
How to fix it:
Train your child to always leave 5–10 minutes at the end to double-check.
Start rechecking from the last question backwards — it forces a fresh focus.
Confirm that all pages are answered and numbered correctly.
Bonus Mistake: Overconfidence
Sometimes pupils who perform well in school assume the NCEE will be easy. They rush through questions without verifying their work, leading to unexpected drops in scores.
How to fix it:
Remind your child that confidence is good — but accuracy matters more.
Encourage a calm, consistent mindset for every paper, regardless of perceived difficulty.
Time Management Tips for the NCEE
Good timing can raise your child’s total score by 10–15 marks without additional knowledge.
Here’s a simple system:
Spend no more than 1 minute per question in the objective sections.
For written parts (like English composition), divide time evenly among tasks.
Keep 5–10 minutes for checking at the end.
Encourage your child to use a small wristwatch during the exam — digital timers aren’t allowed. Knowing the clock keeps them calm and in control.
Final Advice: Turn Mistakes Into Strengths
Mistakes are valuable teachers. Every missed question, wrong formula, or misunderstood passage shows where to focus next. The goal isn’t perfection — it’s progress.
Here’s how to turn mistakes into learning power:
Review each mock test result carefully.
Record every error type in a notebook (“reading error,” “maths miscalculation,” etc.).
Revise the same topic within 24 hours.
Retake similar questions until accuracy improves.
This reflective loop builds mastery faster than endless repetition of topics your child already knows.
