RankHighCompetitive Exam Prep

Memory, attention and space

Memorization

Retaining details of written or pictorial material studied for a fixed period, then answering about it after the material has been withdrawn. Distinct from reading comprehension, where the material stays available.

Exams on RankHigh that test this

What follows is our approach, not an official rule. What each question type measures is set by the body that runs the examination. How to work one is RankHigh’s method — it is what a good tutor would tell you, and there is more than one way to be right. Where an examination publishes its own instructions, those govern on the day.

Memorization

Tested as “Memorization” on NYPD Police Officer, NYC School Safety Agent, NYC Correction Officer.

Remembering words, numbers, pictures and procedures after the material has been taken away.

Where people lose it

Trying to hold everything. A booklet has far more in it than can be retained, and the candidate who reads it evenly retains none of it.

How to work itRankHigh method

  1. Decide what KIND of fact you are looking at before trying to hold it — a plate, a time, a name attached to a place.
  2. Store facts in pairs. A number alone is hard; a number attached to a person is much easier.
  3. Give the hardest three items a second pass and let the easy ones go.
  4. Expect every wrong option to be a real detail from the same material.

Pairs, not lists. Every number belongs to somebody.

Observation and Recall

Tested as “Observation and Recall” on FCTC Firefighter.

Taking in a scene at a glance, losing sight of it, and reporting afterwards what was there, where it was and how many there were.

Where people lose it

Watching the interesting thing. Attention goes to the dramatic part of a scene and the questions ask about the ordinary parts — the number of vehicles, which door was open, what was written on the sign.

How to work itRankHigh method

  1. Sweep the scene in a fixed order every time — left to right, near to far — so nothing is skipped because it was dull.
  2. Count things while you can still see them. Counts are the first thing memory loses.
  3. Fix positions relative to something that will not move, not to your own point of view.
  4. Name what you see in words as you look. Anything you have said to yourself survives much longer than anything you only saw.

You get one look. Spend it systematically rather than staring at whatever moves.

Public Safety Bulletin

Tested as “Public Safety Bulletin” on POST Dispatcher Battery.

Studying a one-page shift bulletin for a short, fixed period, then answering questions about it once the bulletin has been taken away.

Where people lose it

Reading it as prose. The bulletin is several unconnected paragraphs about different events, and questions ask which event a detail belonged to — so a detail remembered without its event is worth nothing.

How to work itRankHigh method

  1. Count the events first, then give each one a hook: a name, a street, a vehicle. The study period is enough to place details, not to read twice.
  2. Within each event, the details worth holding are the ones a dispatcher would broadcast — descriptions, times, plates, directions of travel.
  3. Numbers are what the questions turn on and are the first thing to go. Say them to yourself as you read.
  4. Do not try to hold every paragraph equally. Two well-held events beat five half-held ones.
  5. When the bulletin is withdrawn, answer the ones you are sure of and leave the rest blank rather than guessing — a wrong answer costs a fraction of a point and a blank costs nothing.

A short study period, then the material is gone. Structure beats rereading.

Remembering Facts and Information

Tested as “Remembering Facts and Information” on NYS Court Officer-Trainee.

Remembering the important facts in a short passage accurately enough to answer questions after the passage is no longer available.

Where people lose it

Remembering the general story but losing the exact relationship between a person, place, sequence, description, or number.

How to work itRankHigh method

  1. On the first read, identify the people, places, actions, and numbers that could distinguish one answer from another.
  2. Organize details into small groups instead of trying to memorize every sentence word for word.
  3. Build a simple mental sequence: who did what, where, and in what order.
  4. When answering, choose the option supported by the remembered fact rather than the one that merely fits the overall situation.

Remember relationships and sequence, not the passage's exact wording.

Carry this into the room

  • Memorization: Pairs, not lists. Every number belongs to somebody.
  • Observation and Recall: You get one look. Spend it systematically rather than staring at whatever moves.
  • Public Safety Bulletin: A short study period, then the material is gone. Structure beats rereading.
  • Remembering Facts and Information: Remember relationships and sequence, not the passage's exact wording.

Practice it on your own exam

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