What should you do after your mock results come back?

What should you do first?

Ask for the marked paper and the mark scheme. A grade tells you how the paper went. The marked script tells you why, question by question, and the why is the part you can fix. If the result has upset you, give it a day. Then set aside about as long as the paper took for each subject. By the end you want every lost mark accounted for and a short list of what to do next.

How do you sort the marks you lost?

Go through the paper and give every lost mark one of four labels. A single score can hide several different problems, and each one has a different fix. The psychologist John Dunlosky, reviewing the research on study strategies, notes that most students who use practice tests say they do it to find out what they know and don't know. A sorted mock does the same job across a whole paper.

• Knowledge: you didn't know the fact, definition or method. Fix: relearn the topic, then test yourself on it from memory.
• Technique: you knew it but lost marks on how you wrote it down, such as no working, rounding too early, too few points for the marks, or no conclusion. Fix: read the mark scheme for that question type and practise writing full answers.
• Timing: you didn't reach the question, or rushed it. Fix: practise to time and know roughly how long each question should take.
• Misreading: you answered a different question from the one asked, such as missing a command word, the units or the accuracy required. Fix: underline what the question asks for before you start.

What does this look like on a real paper?

Here is an example. The student and the marks are made up, but the format is real: a GCSE Maths Higher calculator paper in the AQA style, 80 marks in 1 hour 30 minutes. The student scored 46 out of 80, which is 57.5%, and lost 34 marks. Added up, knowledge cost 15 marks, technique 7, timing 8 and misreading 4. Only 15 of the 34 lost marks need new learning. The other 19 came from how the paper was sat, which needs a different kind of practice.

Example (made up): where 34 lost marks went on a GCSE Maths Higher calculator paper

How do you turn lost marks into a topic list?

Rank the knowledge gaps by marks lost, biggest first. Then add one habit for each of the other three causes. For the example paper, the whole list fits on a sticky note. Keep it to five or six topics per subject. If you sat mocks in eight subjects, make a list for each and start with the subjects where knowledge gaps cost the most marks.

• Simultaneous equations with one quadratic: 5 marks.
• Pythagoras in 3D: 3 marks.
• Upper and lower bounds: 3 marks.
• Reverse percentages: 2 marks.
• Area of a triangle (½ab sin C): 2 marks.
• Technique habit: write every line of working, keep full calculator values until the last step, and end every proof with a sentence.
• Timing habit: 90 minutes for 80 marks is just over a minute a mark. Move on from any question that has taken much longer than its marks, and come back if there is time.
• Misreading habit: underline the form of answer, the accuracy asked for and any condition, such as “without replacement”, before you start.

What does a 3-week re-test plan look like?

Fixing a topic once doesn't show the fix has stuck. Space the re-tests out: learn it, test it a few days later, test it mixed with other topics about a week later, then redo the original questions after about two weeks. Dunlosky's review rates two strategies as the most effective: practice testing and distributed practice, which means spreading study out over time. Compare the two sorted papers at the end. A topic that still costs marks in week 3 goes back to the top of the list. A cause that has shrunk can come off it. Keep each session to 30 to 45 minutes and fit your other subjects around it. For the week 3 paper, use a past paper from your exam board that you haven't seen before. If you want another marked paper, Revise Right runs free mocks: original practice papers written by Revise Right, timed and AI-marked. Results show your percentage, an estimated grade worked out from last summer's grade boundaries, and a topic-by-topic breakdown, which gives you a start on the topic list.

Example: a 3-week re-test plan for the Maths mock above

What should you say to your teacher?

A specific question is much easier to answer than “how do I improve?”. Take your sorted list with you, so the conversation starts from what the paper showed. Any of these is a good opener.

• “Which two topics would you fix first?”
• “Did the mock include anything we haven't been taught yet?”
• “Can I see the mark scheme, or the examiner's report for the paper it was based on?”
• “Is there a past paper I could do on these topics and hand in for marking?”
• “Am I on the right tier for this subject?” Ask this one if the mock was well below your target grade.

What if your mock grade is far below your target?

First, check what the grade was measuring. A mock grade is an estimate. Ofqual explains that real GCSE grade boundaries are set after the exams are marked, and new boundaries are set each year to reflect the difficulty of each paper. Any boundaries used on a mock were made for a different paper. A mock can also include topics you haven't been taught yet. Second, look at the causes. A gap that is mostly knowledge in five or six topics is a list of work. A gap that is mostly timing or technique needs practice on full timed papers. Either way, the sorted list tells you more than the distance from your target does. Nobody can tell you how likely you are to close the gap. Leading Tuition, a tutoring company that looked for the evidence, reports that no published UK dataset tracks GCSE mock exam results through to final grades. So claims about how many grades students usually go up after mocks have no published data behind them. In tiered subjects, a mock far below target can raise the question of which tier to sit. In AQA GCSE Maths, for example, Foundation tier covers grades 1 to 5 and Higher tier covers grades 4 to 9. Talk this through with your teacher before anything is decided.

What is different after A-Level mocks?

The sorting works the same way. In essay-based subjects, read the level descriptors in the mark scheme for each long answer and note what the next level up needed. If you knew the content, that gap goes under technique. The bigger difference is timing. Year 13 mocks often come after your predicted grades have gone to UCAS, so a low mock won't usually change your predictions. It still matters, because your real results decide whether you meet your offer.

How can parents help after a mock?

Ask what the mock showed, and let your child show you. A sorted topic list is easy to share: what cost marks, what they are fixing first and when they will re-test it. It gives you something specific to ask about each week. If you're a student reading this, share your progress with a parent by showing them that list and your re-test dates. NHS advice for parents during exams is to listen, give support and avoid criticism. Talk about the plan more than the grade. If you think your child isn't coping, the NHS suggests talking to their teachers, and getting help if anxiety or low mood is severe, persists and gets in the way of everyday life. Seeing a GP is a good place to start.

Sources

John Dunlosky, “Strengthening the Student Toolbox”, American Educator (2013): A review of study strategies that rates practice testing and distributed practice as the most effective, and notes students use practice tests to find out what they don't know. AQA GCSE Mathematics 8300: specification at a glance: Three papers of 80 marks in 1 hour 30 minutes each, and the grades available on Foundation and Higher tier. Ofqual: GCSE 9 to 1 grade scale explained: How grades are set after marking, and why grade boundaries change each year. Leading Tuition: Do GCSE Mock Grades Predict Final Results? (September 2026): Reports that no published UK dataset tracks GCSE mock exam results through to final grades, after checking four organisations. Leading Tuition: What GCSE Mock Grades Are Actually Used For (September 2026): Explains that a mock grade carries no official status in the exams system. NHS: help your child beat exam stress: NHS advice for parents on listening without criticism, talking to teachers and when to see a GP.