Sitemeter, a tool no blogger can do without, has provided me with 2 interesting trends of late. When it comes to the WSET, it seems that 2 types of people come to my site via a Google search. Either they are looking for books on the topic (for which i have written about previously), or either, they are looking for exam questions.

This begs the observation. Either the 1st group represents keen students who are eager to learn and the 2nd group represent students who are eager to cut corners. Or, come to think of it more generously, either the 2nd group might also be keen students who want to have more opportunities to test their knowledge...

Now, let's be clear about something, the WSET is very very strict against anyone who either makes a note of exam questions or copies of the exam. An Approved Program Provider (APP) can lose its license should it be caught in the act. They are very serious about this and it has happened before that they have shut down an APP for this reason.

As I understand, they go a step further, as quite a few number of student are allowed to resit the exam, the WSET will send the APP various versions of the exam. And so, nobody can know for certain what questions will be asked. Neither the APP, nor the Internal Assessor and/or invigilator, and certainly not the Tutor.

But, what puzzles me is why would anyone want to look for exam questions OUTSIDE of what the WSET themselves already provides?

Upon starting any program, students will be provided with books, study specs, and even a study guide. Levels 2 & 3 is provided with excellent books on the topics they need to cover for each respective qualifications.

Each study guide offers a clear, concise synopsis of each topics. Each chapter lists several potential questions that may appear in the exam so that students can test their knowledge. For the level 3, there are even written questions to practice with.

The study specifications outline very clearly what is expected of students, listing, section by section how many questions they can assume will be on the exam. The specs even shows examples of exam questions....

For the level 4 Diploma, the WSET even gives student access to a website full of information, including Examiner's Reports from the past several years, which not only includes past exam questions, but the examiner's opinion on how each questions could have been answered.

Each time I teach a class, I am surprised at how little students refer to the materials provided. Really, these are treasure troves of information which should be as carefully studied as the books themselves. They provide fundamental information as to what the objectives of each program is and give critical clues as to the areas of emphasis are.

Frankly, there are not that many questions one can ask about wine at various stage of wine studies. If one does not have enough with the study guide and the specs, then one should be a bit creative and change a word or two in each questions so that one can explore a totally different direction.

For example, take a question taken directly from level 3 study guide, page 37:

#10> Which ONE of the following is best known for rosé wines?

This could be easily changed to:

Which one of the following is best known for....

- Sparkling Wines?
- Fortified Wines?
- Brandy?
- Whisky?
- wines made with Pinot Noir?
- wines made with Chardonnay?
- etc...

The subject of wine is so vast, yet, the more I pursue my studies, the more I realize that themes come back over and over, no matter where in the world you are located. The strength of the WSET is to have "structured" and organized this knowledge in topics that can be applied for practically any types of wines and any regions of the world.

If you were looking for exam questions by coming to this post, sorry to disappoint, you will not find them here...