UL Entrance common mistakes
UL Entrance · Understand the traps and how to avoid them.
Reading a passage question stem as 'according to the passage' when it actually says 'which of the following can be inferred', then choosing an option that is stated word-for-word in the text rather than one that follows from it.
Candidates under time pressure default to keyword matching: they locate a sentence containing the option's wording and stop there, without distinguishing restatement from valid inference. This is the single most common source of lost marks in reading sections because the literal-restatement option is deliberately attractive.
What to do instead
Before answering, underline the command word in the stem (stated, inferred, suggested, main idea, tone, except) and classify it aloud into one of three buckets: literal, inferential, or global. For inferential items, eliminate any option that is a direct quote or near-quote of the passage, since it cannot be an inference; then check that the remaining option requires combining at least two pieces of textual evidence. Practise with 20 stems where you only classify the question type without answering, to build the habit.
Spending a fixed amount of time per question in the reading and writing sections, so a single dense passage consumes eight or nine minutes and the final passage is answered in a rushed ninety seconds.
Candidates transfer a habit from school tests where all items carry equal difficulty. Entrance reading passages vary widely in density, and many candidates also re-read the same sentence repeatedly when anxious, which inflates time on the hardest item without improving accuracy.
What to do instead
Adopt a two-pass strategy: first pass answers every item you can resolve in under 60 seconds; second pass returns only to flagged items. Set checkpoint targets before starting (for example, halfway through the section at the halfway time mark) and practise with a visible timer until the checkpoints are automatic. Log the time per passage for five practice sets to see whether the overrun is concentrated in one passage type.
Writing an essay or extended response that answers the prompt only in the final paragraph, after two paragraphs of general background about the topic.
Candidates have been rewarded in school for long introductions and broad context. Under exam marking, content and task-fulfilment criteria are applied to the whole script, and an unfocused opening reads as an off-task response even if the conclusion is on point.
What to do instead
Use a thesis-first structure: sentence one states your position or the direct answer, sentence two previews the two or three reasons, and every body paragraph opens with a topic sentence naming one reason. Delete any sentence that could be moved to a different prompt without change. Before writing, spend two minutes producing a one-line answer plus three bullet reasons, and check the finished script against that line.
In algebra items, moving a term across the equals sign without changing its sign, or dividing both sides by a variable that could be zero.
Candidates learn 'move it to the other side' as a shortcut phrase rather than as subtracting the same quantity from both sides. The shortcut hides the operation, so sign errors go unnoticed. Dividing by a variable feels natural when simplifying and silently deletes a valid solution.
What to do instead
Write the operation explicitly on both sides for every line during practice until the habit is automatic; never write 'move'. Before dividing by an expression containing a variable, state whether it can be zero and handle that case separately. Build a personal error log of every sign slip and re-solve those exact items after one week.
Treating percentage change, percentage of, and percentage points as interchangeable, producing answers that are off by a factor of the original amount.
Everyday language uses 'percent' loosely, and candidates read 'increased by 20%' as 'became 20' rather than 'became 120% of the original'. The distinction between a change in percentage points and a relative percentage change is rarely drilled in school.
What to do instead
Force a multiplier translation before calculating: 'increased by 20%' becomes multiply by 1.20; 'decreased by 15%' becomes multiply by 0.85; 'A is 30% of B' becomes A = 0.30B. For successive changes, multiply the multipliers rather than adding the percentages. Solve ten word problems by writing only the multiplier expression first, then computing.
Guessing at a geometry diagram's lengths or angles from how it looks, or assuming a figure is drawn to scale when the item does not say so.
Diagrams in entrance papers are frequently schematic, and candidates who are used to scale drawings in textbooks transfer that expectation. Visual estimation is fast and often approximately right, which reinforces the habit on practice items where the figure happens to be accurate.
What to do instead
Adopt a rule: no number enters your working unless it is given in text, marked on the figure, or derived. Redraw the figure yourself with exaggerated distortion to break the visual anchor, and check whether the answer changes. For angle and length items, write the governing theorem (Pythagoras, similar triangles, angle sum) before substituting anything.
Reading a data table or graph by comparing bar heights or line slopes visually instead of reading the axis values, especially when axes do not start at zero.
Charts are designed to make trends visually obvious, and a truncated axis exaggerates differences. Candidates also confuse the largest value with the largest change, and the highest point with the steepest segment.
What to do instead
Before answering any chart item, read and note both axis labels, the units, and the starting value of each axis. Then answer by extracting the actual numbers and computing, not by looking. For 'largest increase' items, calculate differences between consecutive values rather than comparing heights.
In science items, answering from everyday intuition (heavier objects fall faster, heat and temperature are the same thing, plants get food from soil) rather than from the stated principle.
Naive physics and biology are acquired early and are highly resistant to instruction; under exam pressure the intuitive answer arrives first and feels correct. Candidates recognise the scientific wording but still select the option that matches lived experience.
What to do instead
For each science topic, write the naive belief explicitly next to the correct principle, then explain in one sentence why the naive belief fails. Practise with 'predict-then-check' items: commit to an answer, then test it against a formula or a counterexample. Keep a misconception list and review it before practice sets rather than re-reading notes.
Confusing correlation with causation, or confusing a control group with a constant variable, when interpreting an experiment description.
Experimental design vocabulary is taught with definitions but rarely applied to novel scenarios. Candidates see that two quantities changed together and conclude one caused the other, or they label any kept-constant factor as the control group.
What to do instead
For every experiment item, write four labels before answering: independent variable, dependent variable, controlled variables, and control group (if present). Then ask whether the design permits a causal claim and whether an alternative explanation exists. Drill with short scenario cards where you only label the four elements, without answering a question.
Leaving multiple-choice items blank when unsure, or changing a first answer to a second one without a concrete reason from the text or working.
Candidates believe a blank is safer than a wrong answer, or that a second thought must be better than a first. In most entrance formats there is no penalty for a wrong answer, and answer-change research consistently shows unjustified changes reduce scores.
What to do instead
Confirm the marking rule for your exam in advance; if there is no negative marking, never leave an item blank, and use a defined elimination rule to choose among remaining options. Only change an answer when you can name the specific evidence that contradicts your first choice; otherwise keep it. Track changes in practice and compare your changed-answer accuracy to your kept-answer accuracy.