Smart examples of time management strategies during mock exams

Real examples of time management strategies during mock exams

Let’s start where most students actually need help: what does good timing look like in real life? Not in theory, not in a study skills textbook, but during a real mock exam when the clock is ticking and your brain wants to panic.

Here are several real examples of time management strategies during mock exams that high-scoring students use and refine over time. As you read, imagine yourself in the exam room and picture how you’d apply each one.

Example of a timing blueprint: The 10–20–70 rule

One powerful example of time management strategy during mock exams is what I call the 10–20–70 rule. You adjust the exact numbers to fit your test, but the structure stays the same:

• First 10% of the time: Scan the entire test. Mark easy, medium, and hard questions. Circle or flag the ones you’re sure you can answer quickly.
• Next 20% of the time: Knock out all the easy questions. You’re building points and confidence early.
• Final 70% of the time: Work through the medium questions, then attempt the hard ones if time allows. Leave a small buffer at the end.

For a 60-minute section, that might look like 6 minutes scanning, 12 minutes on easy wins, and 42 minutes for the rest. This structure prevents you from getting stuck on a tough question in the first 5 minutes and then realizing, too late, that you left half the test untouched.

Students prepping for exams like the SAT, ACT, or GRE often use a version of this rule. The College Board and ETS both recommend practicing under timed conditions, and a clear pattern like 10–20–70 gives that practice a repeatable rhythm.

Examples of time management strategies during mock exams by question type

Different tests demand different timing habits. A strategy that works for a multiple-choice math section might fall apart on an essay-based history exam. Here are some examples of time management strategies during mock exams broken down by question type.

Multiple-choice heavy exams

On tests where every question is worth the same number of points, speed plus accuracy is the name of the game.

Practical example:

You have a 75-question multiple-choice exam in 90 minutes. That’s 1.2 minutes per question. Instead of trying to hold that number in your head, you create checkpoints:

• At 30 minutes, you aim to be at question 25.
• At 60 minutes, you aim to be at question 50.
• You leave 5–7 minutes at the end to bubble answers, review flagged questions, and double-check any you guessed too fast.

During your mock exams, you literally write these checkpoints at the top of your scratch paper. When you hit a checkpoint, you pause for two seconds and ask: “Am I close? Do I need to speed up or slow down?”

This simple habit turns timing from a vague worry into something you’re actively managing.

Essay-based exams

Essay exams are where many students lose track of time. They spend too long on the first question and then rush the rest.

Real example:

You’re taking a 2-hour mock exam with 3 essay questions. You decide on this split:

• 10 minutes total planning time (about 3 minutes per essay to outline).
• 30 minutes writing per essay.
• 10 minutes at the end for proofreading or shoring up the weakest answer.

Before you start writing any essay, you jot a mini-outline: thesis, 2–3 supporting points, and 1 example or quote. You set a timer (in mocks, not in the real exam if it’s not allowed) that vibrates at 30-minute intervals. When it buzzes, you move on—even if the essay doesn’t feel perfect.

Over several mock exams, you’ll notice your planning gets faster and your sense of “this is enough detail” gets sharper. That’s exactly what you want before the real test.

Problem-solving and math-heavy exams

For math, science, or quantitative reasoning exams, timing is tied to how long you’re willing to wrestle with a problem before flagging it.

Example timing rule:

You decide that during mock exams, you will:

• Spend no more than 90 seconds on a single problem before deciding: solve now, guess and flag, or skip and return.
• Mark any question that still feels confusing at 90 seconds with a big star.
• After finishing the whole section, use any remaining time to come back to starred problems.

This is one of the best examples of time management strategies during mock exams because it directly attacks the biggest time trap: stubbornly clinging to a single problem while the minutes disappear.

Using mock exams to build a personal timing profile

The smartest students don’t just copy someone else’s timing rules—they measure their own habits and adjust.

During your next three mock exams, try this experiment:

• Note the time on the clock every 10 questions (or every page).
• After the exam, compare where you planned to be versus where you actually were.
• Look for patterns: Do you always slow down in the middle? Do you start too fast and fade? Do certain question types eat your time?

Education researchers often emphasize the value of metacognition—being aware of how you think and work. Harvard’s Derek Bok Center for Teaching and Learning discusses how reflective practice improves performance. Mock exams are your lab for this: you’re not just answering questions, you’re studying how you use time.

Over a few weeks, you can build a timing profile:

• Maybe you realize you read too slowly on dense reading passages.
• Or you discover you rush the last 10 questions on every math section.
• Or you see that you over-outline essays and under-write them.

Once you know your patterns, you can design targeted examples of time management strategies during mock exams to fix them—like forcing yourself to move on from reading passages after a set number of minutes, or deliberately starting slower to avoid burnout.

Examples include pacing plans for mixed-format exams

Modern tests often mix reading, writing, problem-solving, and data analysis in one sitting. Think SAT, ACT, LSAT, MCAT, or many state and professional licensing exams.

Here are examples of time management strategies during mock exams for mixed-format tests:

Section-based pacing:

You break a 3-hour mock exam into sections with mini-goals:

• Section 1 (Reading, 65 minutes): Aim to finish each passage in about 13 minutes, including questions.
• Section 2 (Writing/Language, 35 minutes): Aim for about 40–45 seconds per question.
• Section 3 (Math no calculator, 25 minutes): Aim for 1 minute per question, with a small buffer.
• Section 4 (Math with calculator, 55 minutes): Aim for 1–1.5 minutes per question, knowing some will be faster.

Before the mock, you write these targets on your scratch paper. During the exam, you glance at the wall clock or your allowed watch at natural breaks (after each passage or page) to make sure you’re not drifting too far off pace.

Energy-based pacing:

In 2024–2025, more students and tutors are thinking about energy management as much as time management. Research on attention and cognitive fatigue, including work summarized by the American Psychological Association, suggests our focus dips and recovers in cycles.

So in mock exams, you might:

• Intentionally start with a slightly slower pace for the first 5–10 minutes to let your brain “warm up.”
• Use tiny mental resets: a 5-second deep breath after a tough question, or a quick shoulder roll when you turn a page.
• Plan to re-focus at the halfway mark—telling yourself, “New section, fresh start,” even if it’s all one long test.

These are softer, more personal examples of time management strategies during mock exams, but they matter. You’re managing not just the clock, but your ability to think clearly under that clock.

Digital tools and 2024–2025 trends in timing practice

Mock exams today don’t have to be old photocopies and a kitchen timer. Students are using digital tools to sharpen their timing with more precision.

Here are some updated trends and examples:

Adaptive practice platforms:

Many online prep platforms now show:

• Average time per question for you and for all users.
• Which question types you consistently overthink.
• How your pace changes as you move through a section.

During your mock exams, you can intentionally aim to match or slightly beat the average time per question—without sacrificing accuracy.

Pomodoro-style training before full mocks:

Some students train timing in shorter bursts before tackling full-length mocks. For example:

• 25 minutes of timed reading passages, 5-minute break.
• 25 minutes of timed math problems, 5-minute break.

This mirrors the popular Pomodoro Technique. While you obviously can’t take breaks in the real exam whenever you want, using this pattern during practice can help build focused sprints of attention, which then translate into better pacing during full mock exams.

Digital countdowns and interval timers (for practice only):

During mock exams at home, students use interval timers that vibrate or beep at pre-set times (for example, every 15 minutes). This helps you:

• Stay aware of time without obsessively staring at the clock.
• Practice hitting pacing checkpoints.

Of course, you must always follow the rules of your actual exam. Some test centers allow analog watches, some don’t. Your mock exams are the place to practice with whatever timing tools will be allowed on test day.

How to test and refine your own strategies using real examples

Reading about strategies is one thing. Making them work for your brain is another.

Here’s a simple way to turn these into personalized, real examples of time management strategies during mock exams:

Step 1: Choose one timing rule per mock.
For example, “I will move on from any single question after 90 seconds,” or “I will leave 5 minutes at the end for review.” Don’t overhaul everything at once.

Step 2: Run a full timed mock exam.
Follow that rule strictly, even if it feels uncomfortable.

Step 3: Analyze the results.
After the mock, ask:

• Did I finish more questions than usual?
• Did my accuracy drop or improve?
• Where did I feel most rushed? Where did I feel bored or too slow?

Step 4: Adjust and repeat.
Tweak the rule slightly for the next mock. Maybe 90 seconds was too short, so you stretch it to 100. Or maybe you realize you need a bigger review buffer at the end.

This cycle—test, review, adjust—is exactly how athletes train with practice scrimmages. Mock exams are your scrimmages.

FAQ: examples of time management strategies during mock exams

Q1: What are some simple examples of time management strategies during mock exams for beginners?
Start with two easy habits. First, calculate minutes per question before the exam (for example, 60 minutes for 40 questions ≈ 1.5 minutes each) and write that number at the top of your paper. Second, plan to leave the last 5 minutes of any section as a review buffer. During mocks, force yourself to stop new questions when that buffer starts and use the time to guess on blanks, check bubbling, and quickly review flagged items.

Q2: Can you give an example of a timing plan for a 60-minute mock exam?
Yes. Suppose you have 40 questions in 60 minutes. One practical example of a timing plan is: 5 minutes to scan the whole test, 40 minutes to work steadily through all questions (about 1 minute per question, with some taking longer and some shorter), 10 minutes to revisit flagged questions, and 5 minutes to finalize answers and check your answer sheet. During the mock, glance at the clock every 15 minutes to see if you’re roughly one-quarter, one-half, and three-quarters of the way through.

Q3: How many mock exams should I use to test different time management strategies?
Aim for at least 4–6 full-length mock exams spread over several weeks. Use the first couple to notice your natural timing habits. Then, for each of the next mocks, test one or two specific strategies—like a 10–20–70 timing split, a strict “move on after 90 seconds” rule, or a fixed review buffer. By the time you’ve done half a dozen, you’ll have real examples of what works for you and what doesn’t.

Q4: Are there examples of time management strategies that help with test anxiety?
Yes. One helpful example is front-loading easy wins: during mock exams, intentionally start with questions you find straightforward to build early momentum. Another is using micro-breaks: after every page or passage, take one deep breath and relax your shoulders before continuing. Research on stress and performance (for instance, work discussed by the National Institutes of Health) suggests that managing anxiety can protect your working memory, which directly affects how efficiently you use time.

Q5: Should I always stick to the same timing strategy, or keep changing it?
Once you find a strategy that consistently helps you finish on time with good accuracy, stick with it for at least a few mock exams in a row. You want your timing routine to feel familiar and automatic. Change your strategy only if your results show a clear problem—like always running out of time, or finishing very early with lots of careless mistakes. Your goal is not to chase the “perfect” strategy every week, but to settle into a reliable pattern built from your own real examples of time management strategies during mock exams.

Time management during mock exams isn’t about being naturally fast. It’s about building habits, testing them under pressure, and adjusting based on evidence. Use these examples as starting points, then shape them into a timing system that fits your exam, your brain, and your goals.