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• Operational Case Study exam (OCS)

CIMA OCS (Operational case study ) Past papers (Updated 2020

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Operational Level

Operational Case Study

Comprehensive online CIMA OCS courses covering every exam window. Now enrolling for May 2024.

• 29 hours of course content
• 3 Mock Exams with Solutions
• Applied theory sessions
• ACCA exam debrief lectures
• 100s of Practice Questions
• 250 exam-grade questions
• Specimen exam debriefs
• 130 exam-grade questions
• Award-winning training
• Exam debrief lectures
• Theory review lessons of key topics
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• Mock exam debriefs

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HD video lectures covering the entire syllabus delivered by expert tutors. Crisp audio and vivid examples, accessible from anywhere.

Prepare with realistic exams designed by CIMA gurus for each window. Our online simulator offers real test conditions to practice with precision. Model answers included.

Download detailed course notes on the complete syllabus. Crafted with clarity, these concise and clear guides are filled with real-world examples.

When you buy an individual standard course, you get access to that course forever . With any future syllabus updates automatically added.

Contact our student support team any time if you have technical issues with your course or doubts about your access.

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Your tutor walks you through every question from two ACCA SBR specimen exams and one mock exam, explaining how you should answer on exam day.

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Handy on-demand review lessons covering the key topics from the E, F and P pillars.

Our famous E/F/P Applied sessions identify the key theories from your OT studies, and model how to apply them in your answers on exam day.

Your tutor walks you through every question from the ACCA AA specimen exam, explaining how you should answer on exam day.

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Andrew is a Chartered Accountant and award-winning tutor. He previously worked as a forensic accountant at a Big Four firm, and spent several years tutoring at Kaplan UK. He was voted PQ Magazine's Lecturer of the Year - Private Sector in 2018. His average student feedback score in 2022 was 9.6/10, having taught over 1,000 learners. He has guided '1st in the World' students on 4 separate occasions.

Andrew is VIVA's CIMA OCS guru and is ready to bring his considerable practical and educational experience to bear and help you unlock the latest pre-seen.

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Our Elite Courses include everything from the Standard Course offerings, plus a range of personalised and exclusive features that will guarantee you pass your exams.

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Elite students get round-the-clock support from their tutor, via office hours, forum access and live interactive sessions.

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*We're so confident in the power of our Elite Courses, that we guarantee your pass. If you meet the conditions and still somehow don't pass, we will grant you free access to the next Elite Course.

Course Syllabus

Operational Case Study covers real-world problem-solving: applying operational theories to practical business challenges. Now enrolling for CIMA OCS May24 courses.

Pre-course work

Choose your exam window.

Select the tab corresponding to your preferred exam window, and then choose between the Standard or Elite Course (features explained in detail above).

The course runs for 6 weeks, starting on Mar 23, 2024.

We offer two payment options.

The course runs for 5 weeks, starting on Jul 06, 2024.

The course runs for 6 weeks, starting on Sep 20, 2024.

The course runs for 5 weeks, starting on Jan 03, 2025.

Trusted by over 10,000 students

Despite very difficult personal circumstances, with VIVA's help I managed to not only pass the SCS but to achieve my highest case study score from the 3 levels. Please keep doing what you do as it's so good!

I passed my OCS with a scaled score of 137 and got a letter from CIMA saying that I obtained the joint third position for the February 2019 case study and I believe that VIVA's materials really helped to make this possible.

VIVA were absolutely key in my CIMA Case Study exam - where I received first position in the world! I felt extremely supported with VIVA throughout the course, and would recommend them to anybody. I just wish I had found them much earlier in my studies!

I would highly recommend VIVA Financial Tuition to any CIMA student looking to achieve a high grade in their exams. Their courses offer remarkable value for money when compared to some of the traditional tuition providers. (World Prizewinner 2017)

I want to thank VIVA for bringing to a successful end my study journey. I only wish I knew about VIVA earlier! Since using VIVA, I have passed my final exams.

I have used VIVA for all three Case Studies, passing first time on all three. I could not have done it without VIVA's help! Hands down, the best resource out there for CIMA Case Studies.

Before I signed up with VIVA's Elite course I was already enrolled with another tuition provider, and the way VIVA runs this course is 100x better! I will highly recommend you to my coworkers who are early in their CIMA journey.

I have passed my SCS using VIVA. I had failed 3 times with other tuition providers. The difference for me was expert feedback on the mock exams.

Exam Resource

Free exam and question tutorial operational case study.

To help you become familiar with the exams, we have free exam and question tutorials. All tutorials are: • Hosted by Pearson VUE • Accessible over the internet

The exam tutorial allows you to gain familiarity with the technology used to deliver the exam. It is also available 15 minutes prior to starting your test - access it at https://home.pearsonvue.com/cima/questiontutorials

The operational question tutorial allows you to gain familiarity with the types of questions encountered in the exam. It can be used to experience the test driver and how items are presented. We have prepared two sample case study exams based on CIMA's 2019 CGMA Professional Qualification. Open the PDF to access all the supporting material you will need before and after you have completed the tutorial case study.

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Top tips for operational case study examination.

• Application is so important. Generic textbook answers do not score well. The secret here is assimilation of the technical knowledge with the context and details of the pre-seen scenario.
• Use the company name/ staff members/ key themes of the pre-seen -eg environmental or innovative plans to underpin your suggestions & make them relevant & applied.
• Make sure you know your pre-seen inside out… eg if the company does not offer credit sales at the moment, be careful not to suggest debt factoring as a way to ease cashflow!!
• CIMA examiner has asked that students assume life as normal for their case-study answers (Eg a life before COVID pandemic began)… Although, all relevant comments will be awarded if correct and in context, but you should avoid excessive references to COVID/ lockdown/ impact of health social distancing etc on the company.
• Students should be familiar with the CIMA Blueprint… particularly the I – CAN statements. 

https://www.cimaglobal.com/Documents/Future%20of%20Finance/1901-9263%20Operational%20Exam%20Blueprints%20FINAL%20ONLINE%20v4.pdf

The ‘I CAN pages from this link are pasted below..

These tell student the weightings and mix of the topics they can expect in EVERY OCS exam…

For example -from the ICAN table..– Section F ( working capital) will be between 7 and 13% of every op case study exam paper – so this table shows the importance of those topic areas – eg we know from this that working capital will be examined in EVERY OCS exam paper going forward (at least 7% of the marks) – so this topic is guaranteed…

Use your objective test knowledge ( 2019 syllabus) notes & Open Tuition lectures to revise – bearing in mind P1 is the LEAD paper for OCS, but F1 and E1 both important too,

When working through your P1/ F1/ E1 notes –try to keep a high level overview – rather than drilling down to the detailed calculations – instead be able to explain/ define/ know the pros and cons of techniques and whether they would be ‘useful’ for the pre-seen company in your scenario.

Graphs are common in the OCS – so be sure you can explain and interpret graphs ( linear programming for example).

Always write enough – ensure you expand/ explain & apply. Leave lots of white space – use subheadings to present your answers & help markers award marks that you deserve.

Avoid bullet points – unless you are out of time

Use the percentage weightings of each exam SUBTASK to guide how much time to spend on each part of your answer

Visit CIMA website & find detailed examiner reports & past exam questions to see errors and weaknesses made by students in recent sittings. Also a good way to see the types of questions to expect and level of detail CIMA are requiring in their answers.

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CIMA Operational Case Study

‘How to pass the case study’ mini-course

“The main reason people fail their CIMA case study exams is not lack of theoretical knowledge, not lack of pre-seen preparation – it’s poor exam technique. People just don’t know how to write answers in a way that scores marks, how to plan to focus what they say and how to manage their time across the exam to maximise marks in each section.” – Nick Best, Astranti CEO

The case studies are difficult to pass, with around 40-50% of people typically failing each sitting , and for most, it’s because they don’t fully understand what it takes to score highly in the exam.

They don’t know how to:

• Produce answers that meet the examiner’s needs
• Play the role assigned in the exam
• Plan effectively
• Manage their time to create balanced answers
• Write answers that score high marks

Having helped thousands of students pass the case study, Peter Stiff, Astranti’s case study expert, has pooled his years of experience teaching CIMA case studies and produced over 10 hours of video content to show you exactly what you need to pass your CIMA case study exam .

We’ve also written a comprehensive study guide for you to work through alongside the video series , so that you can cement your understanding and begin to apply it to your exam.

“Everything I needed was included and it helped me untangle what my priorities should be in revising, as well as teaching me the best exam techniques. Passed first time which I put down to the excellent course structure, materials, and very communicative and helpful staff.”

CIMA OCS Student , January 2022

“I purchased the full course and it was brilliant; the preseen analysis was very useful, the exam technique was absolutely vital, and I was really grateful for the marked mocks and support from tutors (and other students on Yammer).”

CIMA Qualified , July 2022

Learn what it takes to pass

Understand what the examiner says you need to do to pass

Learn why people fail and how to avoid the same mistakes

Learn how to play your role in the exam to score highly

Perfect your exam technique

Learn the skills to master your time management

Develop your writing style to make clear focused points

Learn how to create effective answer plans

Maximise your marks

Review past students’ scripts and see how to improve yours

Learn what it really takes to pass from the examiner’s reports

See how to review your mocks to improve your answers

Take a look for yourself…

Part 1 – What does it take to pass the exam?

Part 1 - What's covered?

Chapter 1 –  the keys to passing the OCS

What are the most important factors in passing the CIMA Operational Case Study exam and what do you need to do to achieve that? Our first video answers these key questions as well as providing a general introduction to the exam.

Chapter 2 –  the exam

In order to pass the exam you need to understand what it looks like! We review the nature of the exam and run you through what you will be faced with on exam day.

Chapter 3 –  your role

CIMA provide you with a ‘role to play’ for your exam. What is that role and what does this mean for the way you answer the questions in the exam? The examiner has commented that people playing the role well score more marks, so this is critical to you passing.

Chapter 4 –  how to analyse the pre- seen

The CIMA examiners regularly comment that people do not use the pre-seen information enough in their exam. We provide a step by step approach to analysing the pre- seen to get the most from it which is useful to those people who don’t use the Astranti case study analysis.

Chapter 5 – answering the question

The examiner’s most common criticism of student scripts is ‘not answering the question asked’. The problem is people not properly identifying the requirements – it’s harder than it sounds! This video shows you how to avoid this most common of errors.

Total video running time: over 3 hours

Part 2 – Exam planning and writing

Part 2 - What's covered?

Chapter 6 – why you must plan your answers

Planning is one of the keys to passing the CIMA Operational Case Study, yet most people don’t plan. In this video, we outline why planning is so important and why it is key to passing.

Chapter 7 – the 8 stages of exam planning

Our 8 step planning approach ensures you create answers that meet all the key requirements the examiner requires from a script. Follow these steps as the first stage in producing an excellent answer.

Chapter 8 – planning practice

You will only excel at planning through practice. Having been shown how to plan, it’s now your turn! We provide a question for you to plan, run through the solution and show you what an excellent plan for that question would look like.

Chapter 9 – writing approach

Using the right writing style makes a significant difference to the mark you score. So what is the style you should use that will enable you to score the most marks from the ideas you generate? This video demonstrates the style that markers say helps them give you the most marks.

Chapter 10 – writing practice

Can you produce a script like the good scripts you’ve just been shown? You will be given a question and will be shown how to evaluate that script to ensure you are writing your answer in a way that is scoring the most marks from the points made.

Additional content – lessons from student scripts

We examine a range of student Case Study scripts. You will see the good scripts, so you’ve got a clear idea what to produce in the exam, and the bad scripts, so you can learn what not to do!

Total video running time: over 4 hours

Part 3 – Scoring high marks on the pre-seen

Part 3 - What's covered?

Chapter 11 –  how is the OCS marked?

By understanding how the Operational Case Study exam is marked, you can tailor your answer to ensure you pick up all the key marks and miss out things that aren’t scoring well.

Chapter 12 –  time management

The most important skill to master to pass this exam is time management. That’s not just us saying that it’s the top answer to the regular post exam poll we conduct of our students. Why is this so important and how do you master your own time management in the exam? This video will show you.

Chapter 13 –  the optimum approach to preparing for the OCS exam

As you approach the exam what do you need to do to prepare in the best way? We will guide you through the steps you need to take to ensure you pass.

Chapter 14 –  application to the OCS

Having the ability to apply your knowledge of the theory to the pre-seen scenario is crucial when preparing for the OCS exam. This section provides a series of templates and guides for you to do just this, linking in with some of the key theory and models from operational level.

Additional content – the examiner’s analysis of a real student script  

There’s nothing better than hearing what the CIMA examiner wants from your Case Study exam. Luckily the examiner has provided us with an analysis of a real exam script with her commentary on what’s good and how it can be improved. We analyse this script and her comments and pick out the key learning points so you can produce a script which meets her needs.

Additional Content –  The marking grid

Our marking grid is tailored to give you feedback on the key areas of exam technique required to pass the OCS exam. In this video, we review each of these key areas and show you how to use the feedback given from your marked mocks to improve.

Additional Content –  Review of examiner post exam reports

At the end of each exam, the examiner provides guidance on the key strengths and weaknesses in that set of exams. By examining a range of reports over a number of years we learn what she is looking for from your script, what you need to do to score well and what traps you need to avoid. We also examine how her feedback has changed over the years so you understand her current thinking.

Total video running time: over 3 hours

What our students have to say…

Please see our  testimonials page  for our latest student reviews. Here are a couple of examples:

“I’ve just passed my SCS and couldn’t have done it without Astranti.

I purchased the full course and it was brilliant; the preseen analysis was very useful, the exam technique was absolutely vital, and I was really grateful for the marked mocks and support from tutors (and other students).

This was my first case study having completed the other levels many moons ago before they introduced case studies at every level. I’d self studied the Strategic OTs and scraped through but there’s no way I could have passed the case study on my own.”

“Fantastic course for the Operational Case Study CIMA exam. I normally study for my exams with textbooks, but as I didn’t know where to start with the first case study exam, I purchased the full Astranti OCS course, which was well worth it.

Everything I needed was included and it helped me untangle what my priorities should be in revising, as well as teaching me the best exam techniques.

Passed first time which I put down to the excellent course structure, materials, and very communicative and helpful staff.”

Passed CIMA OCS , January 2022

Purchase the ‘how to pass the case study’ mini-course

The ‘How To Pass The Case Study’ Mini-Course is also part of our OCS Premium and Essentials Courses. Head to the course page to find out more.

OCS ‘How To Pass The Case Study’ Mini-Course £165

To qualify for the pass guarantee you need to ensure you complete ALL of the following steps. Failure to complete all of these steps will mean you will not qualify.

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