Why Do I Run Out of Time in ACCA Exams?
Running out of time in ACCA exams is rarely about writing speed — it's about where you spend the minutes. Here's why it happens and the simple rule that fixes it.
Running out of time is one of the most common reasons capable ACCA students fail, and it's rarely because they write too slowly. It's because they spend their minutes in the wrong places — over-polishing early answers and leaving later ones blank. The fix is a discipline, not a faster pen.
Reason 1: You ignore the marks-per-minute rule
ACCA exams give you roughly 1.8 minutes per mark. A ten-mark requirement deserves about eighteen minutes — no more. Without a per-part time budget, it's almost impossible to know when you're overspending until it's too late.
Reason 2: You chase diminishing returns
The last mark on any question is the hardest to earn; the first mark on the next question is the easiest. Perfecting a part you've already largely answered while a later part sits blank is the worst possible trade. When a part's time is up, move on — even mid-sentence.
Reason 3: You don't plan before writing
Diving straight into a written answer leads to rambling, repetition and backtracking — all of which eat time. A two-minute plan of the points you'll make keeps you concise and stops you writing the same idea three times.
Reason 4: You over-invest in computations
Chasing a balancing figure or a cash flow that won't reconcile can swallow ten minutes for a single mark. Take the own-figure marks you've earned, note your assumption and move on. A perfect calculation that costs you a whole question is a bad deal.
The takeaway
Running out of time is a spending problem, not a speed problem: budget 1.8 minutes per mark, abandon diminishing returns, plan before you write, and never let one computation eat a whole question. Discipline buys you the marks, not a faster pen.
The hard part is knowing whether an answer was actually worth the time you gave it — a long answer can be worth far fewer marks than it felt. The 50% Club marks your practice answers against the official ACCA scheme, showing you which parts earned their minutes and which you over-invested in — so you learn where your time is really best spent.