How to Allocate Time Per Questions/Subjects in JAMB?

Have you considered that JAMB allocates minutes per question or subjects? This is why some students have asked if the board spreads the time of the exam among questions. Or how do you explain the following questions:

1. How many minutes per subject in JAMB?
2. What is the time duration for each subject in JAMB?

Let me answer these questions from the very start.

Do You Know The Time for All the Questions is 120 Minutes?

I think the first point to address here is the number of hours/minutes being given for all questions. Secondly, the total number of questions. JAMB gives you 2 hours/120 minutes, like all other students, to answer 180 questions.

With the above, you should understand what is expected of you if you've prepared well for the forthcoming exam.

Recommended: How to Efficiently Use JAMB Calculator (Be Smart)

JAMB Doesn't Attach Specific Minutes to Time for Each Question or Subject

The questions above confirm that some students assume that the board usually states the time to be used on each question. No. I'm not even aware of any exam that will tell students to strictly use a particular amount of time per question or subject.

So, if you like, you can spend half of your 2 hours on one subject and the other half on the other three subjects. It won't matter if you spend 5 minutes on a question and 5 seconds on others. What matters is making sure you answer all the questions within the time given (which is 120 minutes in total).

If You Need My Professional Advice on Time To Use Per Subject/Question

Having cleared the air about any assumption that JAMB may require you to spend specific minutes per question or subject, I can give you some exam strategies to effectively utilize the 2 hours given to you among the four subjects.

You see, you have 60 questions in English and 40 questions each in the other three subjects. As such, it's reasonable to conclude that the time you'll need for English should be more than other subjects. Similarly, even among the three other subjects, the time to be used for calculation-based subjects (e.g. Mathematics, Accounting, Physics, Economics, etc.) should ideally be more than those that have few or no calculations (e.g. Commerce, Agricultural Science, Biology, Government, CRS/IRS, etc.).

It's based on the above that I share 3 well-known strategies to efficiently use your time in UTME - one, I was taught by my own teachers, and the other, I developed for my students as an education consultant.

1. Traditional Teachers' Strategy

Of my own time as a JAMB candidate, my teachers did a great job guiding us with the approach below. At that time, it worked and still works today.

English (60 Questions)

1. Allocate a substantial portion of time for English due to its higher question count and the need for comprehension and interpretation.
2. Plan to spend approximately 50% of the total time on English, roughly 60 minutes.

Calculation-Based Subjects (40 questions Each)

1. These subjects often require more time per question due to the calculations involved.
2. Dedicate around 30% of the total time for each of these subjects, approximately 36 minutes per subject.

Subjects With Fewer or No Calculations (40 Questions Each)

1. Allocate slightly less time per question for these subjects, as they typically involve fewer calculations.
2. Aim for around 20% of the total time per subject, roughly 24 minutes.

2. From Higher Mark/Lower Mark Questions Strategy

Based on the above assumption, I think you will find it ideal to allocate your 120 minutes per question as follows:

1. Spend more time answering comprehensive passage questions, I suggest 3 minutes or more. This is because getting a passage question right earns you 3 marks. See more in, "How JAMB Will Mark UTME: Official Explanation"
2. Spend more time on sentence interpretation. This is because 2 marks are awarded for each correct answer in this category of questions.
3. Spend more time on antonyms, like 2 minutes or more if needed. Getting each question right under this category earns you 2 marks.
4. Unfortunately, spend less time with synonyms, test of oral, and the reading text. In most cases, these earn you 1 mark for each question if answered correctly.
5. For other subjects, divide your time evenly, like 1 minute or 1.5 minutes per question, as they earn you 2.5 marks for each question answered correctly.

To this end, you should understand why you may want to spend more time on the higher-mark questions. This doesn't mean you should look down on lower-mark questions, as 1 mark can be as important in the end.

3. From Simple to Hard Questions Strategy

Another strategy is to divide all your questions into three categories. I've coined the following:

Bonus Questions

These are questions that you can answer within one minute. You will find them in all your subjects. They are a set of questions that will be too easy for you if you've truly prepared for your exam. Look for all these questions in English and the other three subjects while skipping any questions that confuse you or you don't have an immediate answer to.

When done with the bonus questions in your four subjects, move to what I call the "50/50" questions".

50/50 Questions

These are questions that confuse you along the way. For instance, you know very well that options A and B are not the correct answers. You know one of the options C and D is correct but you're still confused about choosing one. You must have skipped all these when looking for the bonus questions.

Now, you're back to those questions you've not done, and look for the 50/50 questions. With this, you can spend more time to make the correct option. Here you can spend about 3 minutes for each of these confusing questions so that you can eventually choose rightly.

After this, are questions you don't have any answer to. I call these the "God's Questions."

God's Questions

Funny, right? These are questions that, no matter how well you've prepared for JAMB, you can't know the answer to them. Of course, this won't be your fault entirely—nobody is an island of knowledge. Who dares to cover all the syllabus?

So, with this kind of question, you spend the least minutes or a few seconds. Why? You don't have to leave them undone just because you don't know them - after all no negative marking in JAMB. You can just select an option for these few challenging questions. For instance, you can have your lucky option for them. Let's say there are 10 in all your four subjects; you can choose A for the 10 questions. If your lucky option is B, C, or D, you can choose that for all the questions.

Experience has shown that instead of leaving these God's questions unanswered, attempting them with this permutation strategy can earn you about 2 marks. And in the end, those 2 marks can help you meet or beat your school or department cut-off mark. You won't understand the value of 1 mark until you score 199 when the school asks for 200.

Conclusion

JAMB does not allocate specific time per question or subject. Utilize your 120 minutes wisely, prioritizing higher-mark questions while managing time across subjects. Employ strategies like addressing bonuses, 50/50, and challenging "God's" questions strategically.

Remember, every mark counts towards your success. Stay focused, manage time efficiently, and approach each question with confidence to maximize your performance in the exam.

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