Time management
Time management for CGMA exams can be divided into two main topics — managing your study time and planning your time in the exam.
Managing your study time effectively
Please view our webcast on time management here.
This video is necessary for anyone whose motivation or concentration levels have fallen recently. It also provides some reassuring advice for those who’ve simply not felt ready or confident enough to book an exam.
Time management during Case Study exams
Case Study exams are designed to be business simulations of real-life job tasks that someone at that level is expected to perform. Therefore, the three-hour exam (Operational and Management) has four sections (tasks), each 45 minutes long. The Strategic Case Study exam has three sections, with 60 minutes allocated for each section.
Candidates may finish a section early and move on to the next one but cannot return to previous sections in their remaining time. Therefore, you will have to manage time within each section. You can effectively manage your time through answer planning, which lets you:
Deconstruct questions.
Decide upon the right number of points and prioritise them for each sub-task.
Answer each sub-task in the required amount of depth.
Systematically sense-check the strength and validity of each point.
See the structure of your answer, giving you the words to use for your subheadings.
This article details a five-step approach to answer planning in Case Study examinations.
Time management during Objective Test exams
Each Objective Test exam lasts 90 minutes and comprises 60 questions drawn from across the syllabus, in line with the weightings for each content area as set out in the examination blueprint. You may answer questions in any order and can navigate back and forth to any question to change your answer. Watch this video for the best tactics to manage your time in CIMA OT Exams.
There may be a few questions based on the same data. In that case, all such questions will be one after the other. Do all such questions at one time so that you may maintain the flow of thoughts and save time from repeatedly reading the question. The best way to master time management tactics is to practice questions and mock exams to time.
