ACCA PM Hits 40%: 3 Section C Fixes for June 2026
PM came in at 40% in December 2025 — the lowest pass rate since September 2021. Six in ten students failed, and the examiner is clear about why: it isn’t the technicals, it’s how candidates handle Section C.
What the December 2025 examiner report actually says
Section C is two 20-mark constructed response questions, drawn from any of syllabus areas A to E. The December 2025 report singles out one in particular — a multi-product CVP question on Kaylene Co, a manufacturer of three washing machine models. The CVP technicals were broadly fine. What sank candidates was the discussion.
The examiner’s wording is blunt: candidates discussed the effect on Kaylene “in general” rather than addressing the two specific measures the requirement called out. That failure to read the requirement strips out roughly half the marks on a 20-mark question. Calculation alone — even fully correct — caps you well short of a pass.
The same report flags a target costing scenario (PU Co, launching a printer called Zone). The technical answer was tidy: a $500 selling price less a $120 target profit gives a $380 target cost. Where students bled marks was on the discussion that followed — generic textbook commentary rather than action steps grounded in PU Co’s actual cost structure.
Across both questions the pattern is the same: discussion and interpretation marks make up roughly 9 of every 20 in a typical Section C question. If your default is to calculate first and discuss as an afterthought, the maths shows you cannot pass.
Wrong answer vs right answer
The requirement: Discuss the effect of the proposed change on the breakeven point and the margin of safety.
Wrong: “The change will affect Kaylene’s profitability and could be risky given competitor activity in the household segment.” Generic. Near zero marks — the requirement asked about two specific measures, not profitability or competitors.
Right: “Breakeven units fall because the new mix lifts the weighted-average contribution per unit. Margin of safety widens — Kaylene can absorb a larger fall in demand before reaching breakeven, so the change reduces operating risk on the current forecast volumes.” Two named measures. Direction. Business meaning. Marks in the bag.
Three things to do before June
1. Highlight the verbs in the requirement before you touch the spreadsheet. If it says discuss, plan two written points per mark. If it says calculate and explain, build the calc and the why side by side — not in two separate sections at the end.
2. Drill marginal costing variances until the labels are automatic. Sales volume variance uses standard contribution per unit, never standard profit. Every variance gets an F or A label — leaving it as a positive or negative number with no marker is a free mark surrendered.
3. Sit one Section C question per week on the ACCA practice platform — not on paper. The CBE workspace, on-screen calculator and answer template behave differently. Templates often demand a specific label such as “Operating profit ($m)” and candidates lose marks by submitting a different metric in the right cell.
The bottom line
December 2025 PM was a 40% paper, the toughest Applied Skills sitting since September 2021. The examiner did not blame the syllabus. The pattern is calculation strong, application weak, templates ignored. Fix those three and you fix your pass rate. The June 2026 paper sits 1–5 June. You have time — spend it on application, not more formulas.