How to avoid getting basic facts wrong in an exam? I suffer from the problem that during an exam, I cannot recall basic facts, such as:


In a given equation, is a given variable the numerator or the denominator?
Is this a capacitor or a inductor?


I’ll know everything afterwards, but I will get stuck on these simple things.

I had nearly the same question on a practice test that doesn’t count and had proper mental clarity on the answer. However, as soon as it comes down to it, I get confused, waste time, and end up writing the wrong answer when my first natural instinct was the right one.

A little googling shows that it could be stress related, but I don’t really feel that that’s the case with me.

How can I address this issue?
Exam stress and anxiety is a real thing and is most likely what you're experiencing, despite your subjective experience. By being under pressure that this the exam you're taking is the real thing and not a practice, you're likely to second guess yourself and overthink things to a degree that makes you unable to easily recall the basic knowledge.

An analogy to this is 'red light syndrome' that musicians experience in the recording studio. From Urban Dictionary;


  Red light syndrome: Where a person has musical talent, but once they are being recorded, they fall to pieces. symptoms of red light syndrome include pale skin, cold sweats and frequent mistakes.


You're simply more likely to make mistakes when you're under pressure to perform correctly than when you're just studying or practicing.

Doing exams, like a lot of things at University/school, is something you need to learn how to do properly. You get better at test taking by doing it, much like you'd get better at performing a song in front of a crowd by doing it more often. The more you expose yourself to it, the more confident and relaxed you will become with it.

Replicating exam conditions as much as possible during practice papers is a first step. Go through the motions of sitting down and timing your exam, turn off your phone, don't look up an answer when you get stuck, etc. Doing this can help you feel more relaxed in a real exam situation.