Exam Mode guide

Logging mock exams

StudyRise Help·6 min read·Last updated: July 2026

Mock exams are the single biggest input into whether StudyRise thinks you're on pace to pass. Log each full-length mock with its per-subject breakdown and StudyRise gives you a readiness band, a score trend against the exam-ready line, and your pace. This guide covers the form, the bands, the breakdown, and why the breakdown matters most.

The Mock Exams screen (the /mocks route) is where your full-length practice exams live. The habit that matters: log every mock you sit, right after you sit it, with the subject breakdown filled in. That data feeds your Dashboard's pass projection, your Analytics, and your weak-area rankings everywhere else.

Log a mock

Open Add Mock Exam Result and enter the basics. As you fill it in, a live score preview shows your percentage and its readiness band, so you see where the mock lands before you even save.

  1. Enter the title, date, total questions, correct answers, and time in minutes, plus optional notes.
  2. Watch the live score preview update with your percentage and readiness band.
  3. Save it. Your latest mock becomes the hero card on the screen.
Illustration: the mock log form with the live score preview.

Readiness bands

Every mock score lands in one of four readiness bands. They're a fast read on where a single mock sits — but remember the trend across several mocks tells you far more than any one score. Use the bands to check direction, not to celebrate or panic over a single result.

  1. Unsafe — below 55%.
  2. Improving — 55–60%.
  3. Borderline — 61–64%.
  4. Exam-ready — 65% and above.
Illustration: the four readiness bands.

Per-subject breakdown

This is the step worth the extra two minutes. The optional per-subject breakdown grid lets you enter total and correct for each subject, so StudyRise can see exactly which topics are dragging your overall score down — and it warns you if the parts don't add up to the whole.

  1. Open the per-subject breakdown grid and enter total and correct per subject.
  2. If the breakdown totals don't match your overall total, StudyRise shows a warning so you can fix the typo.
  3. This breakdown is the single biggest input to your pass projection — see how the numbers combine in readiness and projections.
Illustration: the per-subject breakdown with the total-mismatch warning.

Your trend and pace

Your latest mock shows as a hero card with a score trend chart — a dashed reference line marks the 65% exam-ready threshold so you can see at a glance whether you're climbing toward it. Alongside it sits your average pace: seconds per question against your target, which defaults to 72 seconds.

  1. Read the trend chart: are your scores climbing toward the 65% line, or flat?
  2. Check average pace — your seconds per question vs your target (default 72s, adjustable in Settings). Finishing on time matters as much as accuracy.
  3. If you have an active Revision Sprint, a Sprint mocks section suggests when to sit your next scheduled mock.
Illustration: the score trend against the 65% line, with average pace.

Frequently asked questions

What are the readiness bands?
Your mock score falls into one of four bands: Unsafe below 55%, Improving 55–60%, Borderline 61–64%, and Exam-ready at 65% and above. The bands are a quick read on where a single mock lands — the trend across several mocks matters more than any one.
Why should I fill in the per-subject breakdown?
Because it's the single biggest input into your pass projection. Entering total and correct per subject lets StudyRise track which topics are dragging your score down and feed your weak-area rankings and Analytics. Without it, a mock is just one number; with it, it's a map.
What is average pace and what's the target?
Average pace is your seconds per question, compared against your target pace, which defaults to 72 seconds per question and is adjustable in Settings. It tells you whether you're working fast enough to finish the real exam in time — accuracy matters, but so does finishing.
What if my subject breakdown doesn't add up?
StudyRise warns you if the totals in your per-subject breakdown don't add up to your overall total, so you can catch a typo before it skews your data. Fix the mismatch and the warning clears.

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Know if you're on pace

Start free — no card required. Log your mocks with the breakdown and StudyRise turns them into an honest read on whether you're ready.