The following pdf contains a list of past paper questions from Subject SA5 and Subject SA6, which are relevant for those studying the new Subject SA7. The list of questions and the comments can only act as a guide based on a tutor's personal understanding of how Subject SA7 questions will be written and the subject matter that will be tested.
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Past paper questions relevant for the study of Subject SA7
- Thread starter Colin McKee
- Start date
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Georgie Davies
Member
Hi Colin
Page 3 SA6 Qs has Sept 15 and Apr 16 repeated. Just want to double check, should the second Sept 15 and Apr 16 rows be ignored?
Thanks
Page 3 SA6 Qs has Sept 15 and Apr 16 repeated. Just want to double check, should the second Sept 15 and Apr 16 rows be ignored?
Thanks
Ahh yes. It seems some lines have been repeated. I have attached the corrected version (not checked). The key is that most questions are fine but the 4th question in Sept 15 was about the Scottish independence vote which is very outdated now.
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Julian2788
Member
Hi Colin
On the September 2018 question paper, there is a 32 mark question on Private Debt. This was touched on in ST5, but not in close to as much detail as is asked in the question paper.
Was this previously in the syllabus, or were you supposed to answer based on own knowledge?
Yes I agree. this was a tough question, written by someone that had a lot of hands-on experience of private debt. A lot of the marks you could get just by knowing that private debt is:
illiquid with no secondary market, and therefore
has a return premium above quoted and marketable debt
requires a lot of internal credit rating work and legal diligence
is reasonably long term (up to 10 years)
more expensive to have managed by a professional fund manager.
But I agree there is also a lot of detail in there, much of which typical students would not have scored well on unless they had worked in the private debt field. The examiner also gave credit for ideas related to infrastructure characteristics which is another branch of private debt (even though its mentioned as something to potentially compare private debt to), so the mark scheme doesnt show all the marks that would have been available. SA7 is often marked quite flexibly.
PS - no, there was no additional core reading in SA6 prior to this question.
illiquid with no secondary market, and therefore
has a return premium above quoted and marketable debt
requires a lot of internal credit rating work and legal diligence
is reasonably long term (up to 10 years)
more expensive to have managed by a professional fund manager.
But I agree there is also a lot of detail in there, much of which typical students would not have scored well on unless they had worked in the private debt field. The examiner also gave credit for ideas related to infrastructure characteristics which is another branch of private debt (even though its mentioned as something to potentially compare private debt to), so the mark scheme doesnt show all the marks that would have been available. SA7 is often marked quite flexibly.
PS - no, there was no additional core reading in SA6 prior to this question.
C
Chee Lim
Member
Hi Colin, I am looking to sit SA7 this coming September. Given that SA7 is a new subject, the past papers for SA5 and SA6 might both be applicable (and hence, double workload?). May I know how was the experience with the SA7 sitting last sitting? What kind of preparations would be beneficial other than the Core Reading? Would I need to browse through the Financial Times for the past 2 years? Given that SA7 is a new subject, the past papers for SA5 and SA6 might both be applicable (and hence, double workload?).
It is certainly true that both SA5 and most of SA6 feed in to the new SA7 exam. Most of the recent SA6 papers are relevant but only a few questions from past SA5 papers are relevant, so it is not double the workload you will be glad to hear. I have put a grid on the FAQ thread of the ActEd discussion forum showing which questions I believe are relevant from the past papers. It is useful to have a good idea of the big topics that have been in the economic and political press over the past 2 years but it is not necessary to browse through past press articles (or at least it has not been in the past). If you have been aware of the general economic environment and can argue on interest rate changes, QE, BREXIT, ... then you will be fine for SA7. The results for the April sitting have not been published yet so I cannot comment on how the exam compares to previous exams. I hope this helps.
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Aaron Kilboy
Member
Hi Colin, thanks for this summary, its been a very useful aid when prepping for SA7.
I notice that Sept 2018 Q3 isn't included in your table and was wondering if this question is relevant any longer? Part (i) references "3 theoretical political economic obstacles" that I don't recall coming across in my studies thus far. Thanks!
I notice that Sept 2018 Q3 isn't included in your table and was wondering if this question is relevant any longer? Part (i) references "3 theoretical political economic obstacles" that I don't recall coming across in my studies thus far. Thanks!
Yes - this was an odd question, and I think I didnt include it because it was so odd. I felt it would be unlikely to ever see something similar. Part (i) was a bit of SA6 bookwork that didnt survive into SA7. Part (iii) on reflection looks at OK question though. Not sure about part (ii).