dMAT Figure Sequences: pacing

The rule that follows

• Do not aim to finish. Neither this subtest nor Latin Squares rewards completion over accuracy.
• Set a limit per item and respect it — somewhere around a minute for most candidates.
• Guess and move rather than leaving blanks; single-choice items have no penalty for being wrong.
• Come back only if there is time, and only to items where you had a partial rule.

Stamina is the real constraint

The dMAT runs three and a half hours with a break. The hardest thing about it is being sharp in hour three, and figure sequences are where tiredness shows first because they need sustained visual attention.

1. Do two full-length timed sittings before the test date.
2. Practise the checklist until it runs without effort, so fatigue does not take it away.
3. Use the break properly — away from a screen.

Two full-length practice sittings are worth more than another fifty loose questions, because the thing that fails on the day is concentration rather than technique.