A previous article covered how to read faster. This one answers a more specific question: how exactly should you split the 60 minutes? Most candidates who run out of time aren't slow — they simply have no schedule, spend too long on Passage 1 while feeling fresh, and hit Passage 3 with 10 minutes left.
The framework: 18 + 18 + 18 + 6
Don't split evenly. Budget 18 minutes per passage and keep 6 minutes for the endgame. Those 6 minutes are not "leftovers" — they are planned working time for: transferring answers (paper-based), going back to skipped questions, and double-checking uncertain ones.
The internal rhythm of each passage: 2-3-13-1
2 minutes on the questions. Skim all 13 question stems and underline locator words in each: names, numbers, proper nouns, less common content words. Skipping this step means re-reading questions repeatedly later — slower overall.
3 minutes on the passage. Read only the first and last sentence of each paragraph and jot down a 3–5 word gist per paragraph. Full close reading of three 900-word passages in 60 minutes is physically impossible — don't try.
13 minutes answering. Work by question group, not by question number. In-order groups (completion, T/F/NG, multiple choice) follow the passage linearly. Out-of-order groups (matching information, matching features) are best attempted after the in-order groups, when you already have an impression of what each paragraph says — they get faster, not slower.
1 minute to close out. Mark uncertain answers, note skipped question numbers, and hand them to the final 6 minutes.
What to skip
- Matching information ("which paragraph contains…"): the most time-hungry type with the lowest return. Attempt what you can on the first pass, skip the rest immediately.
- Any question stuck for more than 90 seconds: guess, mark, move on. A question you're stuck on at 90 seconds won't crack with 5 more minutes.
- Do NOT skip Passage 3 wholesale: the popular myth that the third passage is always hardest is wrong — it's often easier than Passage 2. Follow the 18-minute budget and skip individual questions, not whole passages.
The final 6 minutes: two jobs
- Transfer / check (3 min): paper-based candidates transfer completion and T/F/NG answers; computer-based candidates use this to check word limits and spelling.
- Rescue skipped questions (3 min): only those with partial clues — e.g. a matching-information item where you've eliminated several paragraphs. There's no penalty for wrong answers, so a blank is pure loss.
How to practise
Run full mock tests with a phone timer on this exact schedule: at 18 minutes per passage, stop and move on no matter where you are. After about 3 timed tests you'll develop a feel for "18 minutes" and won't need to watch the clock. The full mock tests on our site (159 computer-based practice tests) are built for exactly this kind of timed practice.
Somewhere around your third or fourth timed test, "running out of time" doesn't disappear because you got faster — it disappears because every minute knows where it went.