Time Management — Minutes Per Mark

Time management is the difference between a student who finishes the paper comfortably and one who is scrawling half-answers in the final minutes. It is also one of the simplest exam skills to master — because it comes down to basic arithmetic.

Every year, examiners report that a significant number of students leave questions blank or write rushed, incomplete answers at the end of the paper. These students did not lack knowledge. They lacked a plan.

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The Golden Rule: Minutes Per Mark

Before you write a single word, you need to know one number:

Total exam time (in minutes) ÷ Total marks on the paper = Minutes per mark

This tells you roughly how long you should spend on each question.

Examples