The last ten minutes of the exam. In front of you are fifteen questions you have not even looked at, and at least a few of them are the kind you could answer comfortably. Half an hour earlier you spent six minutes on a single question. You got that one wrong anyway.
When time runs out, the first explanation that comes to mind is "I'm slow". Yet the problem is often not your average speed but your decisions: how much time a question gets, when to give up on it, where to start. Exam time management means making those decisions with a few rules set in advance, rather than on instinct in the middle of the exam.
Time disappears into a few stubborn questions
If you could measure how long you spend on each question in a mock exam, you would most likely see this: most questions are done in less than the average time, while a small group swallows a large share of the total. Four minutes each on five questions adds up to twenty minutes. That is close to the time needed for fifteen easy questions at an average pace.
So instead of trying to think faster, shortening this "long tail" pays off much more easily. Answering every question a little faster is a hard skill to build. Recognising a time-eater and leaving it for later is a habit you can learn.
Know your time per question first
The first step is a simple division: total time ÷ number of questions. That number is your yardstick for noticing that you have stayed too long on a question. An exam with 120 questions in 165 minutes gives you about 82 seconds per question; 40 questions in 80 minutes gives you 2 minutes. Check the official guide for your exam, since formats can change from year to year.
You do not have to give every question the same share. A long reading question and a short grammar question do not need the same time. The average is there to set an alarm threshold: if you have reached twice the average on a question and still cannot see a way to solve it, that question is costing you points right now.
The multi-pass method: work through the exam in three rounds
Instead of working through the exam once from start to finish, the multi-pass method splits it into several rounds. The details vary from person to person, but the skeleton looks like this:
- First pass: Read the questions in order. Answer the ones where you can see the solution right away. Mark the ones you think will take time with one symbol (for example "/") and skip them; mark the ones you have no idea about with another (for example "x").
- Second pass: Go back to the "/" questions. With the easy points already secured, you can look at them with a calmer head.
- Third pass: Use the remaining time on the "x" questions. Where you can rule out an option or two, decide whether to answer.
This order has three benefits. First, the questions you run out of time for at the end are hard ones, not easy ones. Second, the correct answers that pile up in the first pass build confidence and ease tension. The third is less well known: when you leave a question and move on, your mind does not completely stop working on it. It is common to come back and notice a route you missed at first glance.
One thing to keep in mind: the multi-pass method needs to be practised in mock exams. A method you try for the first time in the real exam can create new mistakes, such as mixing up your marks or forgetting to come back to skipped questions.
Decide in the first half minute
Skipping a question feels hard, because in that moment letting go feels like losing. The way to handle that feeling is to turn the decision into a rule rather than a personal matter. In roughly the first thirty seconds after reading a question, ask yourself two things: which topic is this, and which method solves it? If you cannot answer both, mark it and move on.
Some questions announce from the start that they will take long:
- questions that combine a long text, several conditions and a table,
- questions from a topic you know you struggled with while studying,
- questions where the method is clear but the calculation is long.
These are not necessarily questions to skip for good. They are simply better solved in the second pass than in the first.
The "I've already put so much into this" trap
After three minutes on a question, letting go feels like throwing those three minutes away. But those minutes are gone whether you continue or not. The right question is: should the next two minutes go to this question or to the ones I have not seen yet? Letting past investment steer a future decision is called the sunk cost fallacy. We cover other everyday examples of it in our article on cognitive biases.
Which section should you start with?
Follow the order in the booklet, or start with your strongest section? There is no answer that suits everyone. Starting with your strongest section can help you settle into the exam feeling good. Following the order reduces the risk of misplacing answers on the answer sheet and means fewer decisions during the exam. Some students prefer to tackle the most demanding section while their mind is freshest.
What matters most is making this decision in mock exams, not on the morning of the real one. Try different orders across two or three mock exams, see which one leaves fewer questions unanswered, then stick with it. A rough time budget for each section also helps. If you write the target finishing times in the margin of the booklet at the start, you will not have to do sums every time you check the clock.
When should you check the time?
Never looking at the clock and looking every two questions both cause damage. In the first case time runs out silently; in the second your attention keeps breaking. A better balance is to check at set checkpoints: at the end of each section or at certain question numbers. If you are behind plan at a checkpoint, do not panic. Push the remaining hard questions in that section to the second pass and keep going.
Check the official rules for what you are allowed to bring. In exams where watches are not allowed, you will follow the time from the clock in the room or the invigilator's announcements, so it is worth getting used to that in mock exams as well.
When should you fill in the answer sheet?
In paper-based exams the answer sheet takes time of its own, and there are three common approaches:
- After every question: The safest and the slowest. Your attention jumps from the booklet to the sheet every time.
- In batches at the end of a section or page: Keeps the flow while staying safe. Comparing question numbers with the booklet as you fill in prevents shifted answers.
- All at the end: Some people set aside the last ten minutes for the sheet. It works if time goes to plan, but it is the riskiest approach when the exam runs over, because in the last minutes you have to solve questions and fill in the sheet at the same time.
Whichever you choose, do the same in your mock exams. Filling in an answer sheet can take longer than expected when you only account for it on exam day.
The last ten minutes
The last ten minutes are not the time to start a new, long question. A short checklist works better:
- Check whether any question you have solved is still blank on the answer sheet.
- Finish questions from the second pass that were close to done.
- Decide whether to answer the questions where you could rule out options.
For the third point there is a quick calculation: in exams that penalise wrong answers, answering pays off in the long run if you can rule out at least one option with certainty. We explain how the maths works, and how to know when you can trust your eliminations, in our article on the benefits of practice tests.
Time management is learned in mock exams
None of the methods here turns into a habit just by reading about it. Try one thing in each mock exam: the multi-pass method in one, a different section order in the next, batch marking of the answer sheet in another. When the mock exam is over, note not only your score but also how many questions you never got to and on which questions you spent more than twice the average time. We explain how to read these numbers in our practice test analysis guide.
After a few mock exams you walk into the real one already knowing the order you will follow, when you will check the clock and when you will let a question go. Not having to make those decisions mid-exam also lowers the tension.
Frequently asked questions
Should I start with the easy questions or go in order?
Going in order while skipping time-consuming questions in the first pass combines the best of both. Scanning the whole exam to pick out easy questions takes time in itself; moving in order and marking a hard question the moment you see it is more efficient.
I never have enough time in mock exams. What should I do?
First, separate the causes. Are the questions you never reach always in the same section? Then the section order or your time budget may be the problem. Do you get stuck on certain question types? Then it may be a knowledge gap, and the fix is practising that topic, not exam tactics. If you are a little slow on every question, timed topic quizzes can help you pick up the pace.
Should I keep time for checking my answers?
If you have time, yes, but not for everything. Instead of re-solving every question, look at the question types where you tend to make calculation errors and at questions with negative stems such as "which is not". That catches more mistakes in less time.