ESIC Stenographer common mistakes
ESIC Stenographer · Understand the traps and how to avoid them.
Spending the first 40–50 seconds of the 10-minute dictation reading back the previous passage and settling the hand position before writing the first phrase, so the opening 80–100 words are lost and the transcription starts mid-sentence.
Candidates treat the pre-dictation pause as free time and are still arranging the shorthand pad, pen, and seat when the first sentence begins; the passage is never repeated, so the loss is permanent.
What to do instead
Practise a fixed 15-second start ritual: pen uncapped, pad squared, date and passage number written in the margin, hand resting on the baseline. In mock dictations, deliberately begin writing on the very first word and review how many words of the opening sentence survive.
Writing shorthand outlines at full size with elaborate vowel signs and intersections during dictation, then running out of pad space or falling 3–4 words behind the speaker by the second minute.
Classroom practice is done at slow speed where perfect outlines are rewarded, so the habit of writing textbook-perfect shorthand persists even when the dictation speed is 80–100 wpm.
What to do instead
Train two distinct modes: a fast dictation outline (minimal vowels, phrases, abbreviations) and a slow reading-back outline. Time yourself at 100–120 wpm and count how many outlines you can read back unaided after 24 hours; simplify any outline you cannot read.
Transcribing the dictated passage verbatim, including every filler, repetition, and grammatical slip, instead of silently correcting obvious slips while typing.
Candidates believe fidelity to the dictation means word-for-word reproduction and fear that any change is an error, so they type hesitations and false starts that make the transcript ungrammatical.
What to do instead
Adopt the standard transcription convention: reproduce the sense, correct evident slips of the tongue, and keep punctuation and paragraphing clean. In practice, mark a passage where the speaker says 'the the' or restarts a sentence and confirm you render the corrected version.
Leaving punctuation and paragraph breaks until after the full passage is typed, then running out of time with an unpunctuated block of text.
Typing speed feels like the bottleneck, so candidates postpone punctuation to protect keystrokes, underestimating how long it takes to re-read and insert 40–60 marks at the end.
What to do instead
Insert capitalisation and full stops as you type, and press Enter for a new paragraph the moment the speaker pauses. Reserve the final 60 seconds only for proofreading, not for inserting all punctuation from scratch.
Attempting the cloze and reading-comprehension passages before the grammar and vocabulary items, then rushing the last 15 questions with 90 seconds left.
Comprehension passages feel more substantial and candidates want to 'bank' the big marks first, but each passage consumes 6–8 minutes and the discrete grammar items are quicker and more reliably scored.
What to do instead
Sequence the paper in three passes: first all one-line grammar, vocabulary, and error-spotting items (about 12–15 minutes), then comprehension passages, then a review pass. In mocks, log the time each section actually consumed.
Choosing an answer for an error-spotting or fill-in-the-blank item by ear ('it sounds right') without identifying the grammatical category being tested.
Everyday spoken English tolerates forms that the written standard rejects, and candidates have never been trained to name the rule (subject-verb agreement, article use, preposition collocation) before choosing.
What to do instead
For each practice item, write the rule in the margin before selecting an option - for example 'uncountable noun, no plural -s' or 'since + point in time'. Keep an error log of the rules you miss and revise it weekly.
Solving reasoning puzzles such as seating arrangement or blood relation by drawing a fresh diagram for every sub-question instead of committing one master layout and answering all five questions from it.
Candidates treat each sub-question as independent because the options look different, so they redraw, re-derive, and burn three times the time available.
What to do instead
When a set of questions shares a common stem, build one definitive arrangement, verify it against every clue, and answer the whole set from that single diagram. Practise sets of five with a stopwatch to internalise the saving.
Attempting every arithmetic question in order, spending four or five minutes on one time-and-work or boat-and-stream problem while ten easier percentage and average questions remain untouched.
Sunk-cost thinking keeps candidates on a problem they have already invested in, and there is no pre-set rule for when to abandon a question.
What to do instead
Adopt a 45-second rule: if no clear solution path appears, mark the question and move on. Return only after all easy items are secured. In mocks, count how many abandoned questions you later solved correctly - that number is your recoverable score.
Memorising static general knowledge lists while ignoring the previous six to eight months of current affairs, especially appointments, schemes, sports events, and budget figures relevant to a central-government recruitment exam.
Static material is easy to source and feels productive to revise, whereas current affairs require a dated, disciplined monthly habit that most candidates never build.
What to do instead
Maintain a monthly one-page current-affairs sheet (national appointments, schemes launched, awards, sports, economy figures) and revise the last eight sheets in the week before the exam. Test yourself with dated quizzes rather than undated compilations.
Practising typing on a personal laptop keyboard with a different layout and key travel, then losing 8–10 wpm on the exam centre's desktop keyboard during the typing test.
Muscle memory is tied to a specific keyboard, and candidates never rehearse on the hardware and layout they will actually face, nor do they check whether backspace is permitted.
What to do instead
Practise on a standard desktop keyboard with the same layout as the notified test, at the exact duration and font size. Run at least five full-length timed attempts in the final two weeks and record gross and net speed separately.
Typing at maximum speed for the first two minutes of the typing test, accumulating errors that exceed the permitted percentage, and failing despite a high gross speed.
Candidates focus on the advertised words-per-minute figure and overlook that the qualifying criterion is net speed after error deduction, so raw speed with 8 per cent errors scores worse than controlled speed with 2 per cent.
What to do instead
Set a target pace 10 per cent below your maximum and prioritise accuracy. Track net speed (gross minus error penalty) in every practice run, and stop to correct only errors you notice immediately rather than hunting backwards.
Answering computer-knowledge questions about shortcuts, file extensions, and MS Office menus from casual phone use, confusing Ctrl and Alt combinations or the difference between Save and Save As.
Everyday exposure to smartphones and social apps creates false confidence about desktop operating systems, spreadsheets, and networking basics that the exam actually tests.
What to do instead
Build a one-page reference of the 40 most-tested items (common shortcuts, extensions, default file types, basic networking terms, generations of computers) and drill it with flashcards until recall is instant.