LAFD FCA common mistakes
LAFD FCA · Understand the traps and how to avoid them.
Reading the written passage once at normal speed, then answering comprehension items from memory of the gist rather than from the text, so answers reflect what the candidate expected the passage to say.
The passages are short and familiar-sounding, so candidates assume the questions will test obvious points and skim. The items are written to hinge on a single qualifying word or a stated exception, which a gist-level read drops.
What to do instead
Use a two-pass method on every passage: first pass for structure only (who, what, where, and any contrast words like but, except, only, unless), second pass to underline those contrast words before looking at the options. For each option, point to the exact phrase in the passage that supports or contradicts it, and eliminate any option you cannot anchor to a phrase.
Treating audio comprehension like a live conversation, letting attention drift after the first sentence and then reconstructing the missing part from the answer choices.
The recording plays once, at a fixed pace, and candidates are used to pausing or replaying media. When a detail is missed, the mind wanders while trying to recover it, and the next two details are lost as well.
What to do instead
Practice with single-play audio and a fixed note scaffold: write the speaker's role, the main request or problem, and any number, time, or location, in that order. When a detail is missed, deliberately abandon it and write a placeholder dash so attention stays with the live audio. Answer only from notes, never from a re-imagined version of the clip.
Spending disproportionate time on one reasoning item, then rushing the remaining items and leaving several blank or double-marked.
Reasoning items feel solvable with just a little more time, so candidates over-invest. The exam is timed per section, and the last items are often the easiest to answer quickly if reached.
What to do instead
Set a per-item ceiling before starting (roughly one minute for reasoning). At the ceiling, mark a provisional answer, flag the item, and move on. Build the habit in practice by using a visible timer and reviewing how many items were left unreached; the goal is zero unreached items before zero mistakes.
Solving arithmetic in the head under time pressure, especially multi-step word problems involving rate, unit conversion, or percentages, and mis-tracking intermediate values.
Mental arithmetic feels faster and candidates worry about running out of time, but working memory drops digits when a second operation is layered on, and the wrong intermediate value propagates into a confident wrong answer.
What to do instead
Write every step, including the units, on the scratch paper: set up the operation, estimate the expected magnitude first, compute, then compare the result to the estimate. For percentage and rate problems, convert to a single sentence with numbers before computing (for example, amount per hour times hours equals total).
Second-guessing correct first answers on reasoning and comprehension items, changing them to a less-supported option late in the section.
Fatigue and time pressure make later options look more plausible, and candidates interpret the discomfort of uncertainty as evidence the first answer was wrong. The first answer usually came from a fuller reading of the item.
What to do instead
Adopt a change-only-with-evidence rule: revise an answer only if you can name the specific word in the prompt or passage that the original answer ignored. Otherwise leave it. Track changes during practice to see whether they help or hurt, and use that record to justify the rule on exam day.
Skipping the instructions and any worked example at the start of a section, then applying a format assumption from a practice test that does not match this section.
Candidates assume all sections work the same way and want to bank time. Item formats and directions can differ between sections, and a wrong assumption about what counts as a correct response costs points even when the underlying reasoning is right.
What to do instead
Read the directions for each section even when they look familiar, and check the specific mechanics: number of correct options, whether an answer can be changed, and how blanks are scored. Do this in the first 30 seconds of the section, before the first item.
Attempting to memorize facts from a study guide instead of practicing retrieval and application of new material under time.
The aptitude domain rewards how quickly and accurately new information is absorbed and applied, not prior knowledge. Rereading notes produces a feeling of familiarity that does not survive a novel question built on the same material.
What to do instead
Study new material by reading it once, closing it, and writing a summary from memory, then answering applied questions about it. Space the review across days. Measure progress by the number of new-material questions answered correctly on first attempt, not by hours spent reading.
Answering an inference item with a true statement about the world rather than a statement supported by the given information.
The options are often written so that one is generally true and plausible, which pulls candidates toward outside knowledge. The item asks what follows from the passage or scenario, and outside truth is not the criterion.
What to do instead
Before evaluating options, restate the question as 'which of these must be true given only what is written.' Reject any option requiring a fact not stated, even if that fact is common knowledge. Practice by labeling each option as stated, inferable, or outside knowledge.
Losing place in a multi-step arithmetic problem and answering the intermediate quantity instead of the quantity the question asks for.
Word problems bury the final question after the setup, and the last number computed feels like the answer. Candidates under time pressure stop at the first clean result.
What to do instead
Read the final question sentence first, underline what is being asked, and write the target unit next to the scratch work. After computing, reread the question and confirm the units and magnitude match the target before selecting an option.
Scheduling study only in long, infrequent blocks, so the candidate is unpracticed at sustaining attention across a full timed section.
Long sessions build content knowledge but not the pacing and stamina the exam requires. Fatigue-driven errors appear in the second half of each section, where scores are lost fastest.
What to do instead
Run at least two full-length timed sections per week under exam conditions, no pauses and no phone, and review errors by category (pacing, misread, arithmetic, outside knowledge). Keep shorter daily drills for weak categories. Treat the timed run as the primary training and content review as support.