Which format does this time budget apply to?
This advice applies to the two-hour standard Listening and Reading test: Reading has 100 questions in 75 minutes across Parts 5, 6, and 7. The adaptive MSA version takes about one hour for both Listening and Reading and has two stages per section; these 75-minute allocations do not apply to it.
An overall average per question does not mean every question should receive the same amount of time. One document may support several answers after a single reading; a sentence can be solved quickly if you recognize the structure. Your allocation should leave enough time for comprehension without letting one hesitation continue indefinitely.
Which checkpoints can you try?
The numbers in the table are Upsilar editorial hypotheses to test. They do not come from an ETS rule and guarantee no result. The Part 7 budget includes reading, answering, and possible review; do not add an imagined rereading period.
Count checkpoints from the start of Reading: in scenario A, finish Part 5 at 12 minutes and Part 6 at 22 minutes; in scenario B, the checkpoints are 15 and 27 minutes. Each scenario totals 75 minutes.
| Scenario | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 and review |
|---|---|---|---|
| A — a fairly quick pace on sentence questions | 12 minutes | 10 minutes | 53 minutes |
| B — slower text-completion pace | 15 minutes | 12 minutes | 48 minutes |
What should you track during practice?
During personal practice, note when you finish each part and how many answers you are unsure about. This written record is a review tool for practice outside an official test session: the paper test does not allow notes or annotations in the booklet. After reviewing, distinguish a language error, overly quick reading, and an unfinished question. Without that distinction, you might speed up a section that first needs more precise work.
In this fictional example, a candidate spends 20 minutes on sentences and then misses an entire set of documents. Gradually reducing time spent hesitating may help. But if the first sentences already contain many structural errors, simply imposing a 12-minute limit will not fix the problem: targeted practice should accompany the change.
For passages, identify where time is lost: rereading the same text three times, confusing the roles of different documents, or going back to check an answer you have already confirmed. The solution depends on the pattern you observe.
The pitfall
Sacrificing every difficult question to a rigid schedule
A checkpoint is there to inform you; it does not make every following question the same. A small delay may be recovered in an easier set. Conversely, spending several minutes on one sentence because you “absolutely have to understand it” may cost you an entire document set.
As an Upsilar practice guideline, if two readings reveal no new clues, choose the best answer you can and move on. There is no penalty for a wrong answer, so answer every question rather than leaving one blank. On paper, you can return to questions during the Reading section; before planning to go back on screen, check the navigation options and instructions for your interface.
How should you choose your next time allocation?
Use one row per part and answer the table’s four questions. Then change only one major factor so you can understand its effect. Comparing two practice sessions with a new resource, a new time budget, and a different level of difficulty makes your conclusion less reliable.
| Observation | Question to ask |
|---|---|
| Tense | When did I finish this part? |
| Accuracy | Which mistakes remain when I am not timed? |
| Hesitation | Where did I reread without finding new information? |
| Adjustment | What specific behavior will I change? |
Key takeaways
- The suggested time budgets are personal experiments.
- Speeding up without improving language skills may hurt your result.
- Track checkpoints and the types of mistakes.