How to Prepare for the PGAT: A Study Plan by Days Remaining

Last verified: 30 October 2026. Our source is the Post-Graduate General Aptitude Test page on the Education and Training Evaluation Commission (ETEC) website; check it before you register. This guide is independent: it is not affiliated with ETEC, Qiyas (the National Center for Assessment) or any government body.

In short: the test is 120 questions in 2 hours 5 minutes, computer-based only, with no calculator, and available all year, so you choose your own date. Start by measuring your level, then book a date that leaves enough time before your university's deadline.

Know what you face

• Time: 125 minutes for 120 questions, about a minute per question. If a question takes you more than two minutes, leave it and come back if time allows.
• Five components: verbal, quantitative, critical thinking, figures and logic. Each component has 24 of the 120 questions. Details in PGAT content and question types.
• No calculator: ETEC bans it, so do quantitative questions by mental and written arithmetic from day one.
• No single pass mark: each university sets its own minimum; for example, King Saud University's graduate studies deanship asks for at least 70. Find your university's number, aim for it and add a margin. See how universities use the score.

Work back from your deadline

Because the test runs all year, the question is not "when is the test?" but "when should I book?". Start from your university's last date for submitting the score and count back:

1. Results appear 3 to 5 working days after the test, so allow a full week before the university deadline.
2. Leave room for a retake if you miss the score you need: you may sit the test 5 times (a sixth time three years after your first), so book your first attempt at least three weeks before the deadline.
3. You can delete or change the booking up to 48 hours before the test, so if you feel unready by then, move it rather than lose an attempt.

Registration steps, the fee (SAR 200) and ID rules are in the registration guide.

The plan by days remaining

Day one: measure your level

Take the free diagnostic test: 10 questions, 2 from each component, with every option explained. At the end you see your score in each component, so you know where to start. No sign-up needed.

More than 4 weeks left

1. Start with the two weakest components from the diagnostic, one component every 3 or 4 days: read the unit summary in the practice area, then work through its questions until you understand why each answer is right.
2. 30 to 40 questions a day, and redo every question you got wrong from the mistakes list two or three days later.
3. At the end of each week, a full mock exam of 120 questions in 125 minutes; compare each component's score with the week before.

Two to three weeks left

1. The day after the diagnostic: a full timed mock exam, with no phone and no calculator. That is your baseline.
2. Days 2 to 10: your three weakest components, 40 to 50 questions a day, reviewing mistakes the same day.
3. Days 11 to 14: the other two components at a faster pace, then a second full mock exam.

The last week

• Two full timed mock exams, with a day between them spent only on your mistakes.
• Do not start a new question type; review your flashcards and the types you keep getting wrong.
• Check your date and centre in your profile on the e-services portal, and that your ID is an original, valid card (national ID, iqama, passport or Saudi driving licence; work ID and university cards are not accepted).

Where time usually goes

• Quantitative: ratio, speed and age problems are often faster by plugging in the options; try the middle option first.
• Reading comprehension: read the question before the passage, then look for the sentence it asks about instead of reading the passage twice.
• Figures: follow one element at a time (rotation, then count, then shading) rather than looking at the whole figure.
• Critical thinking: an assumption question asks what must be true for the conclusion to hold, not just what supports it.

This plan is our suggestion for organising your time and does not guarantee a score; your mock exam results are an estimate of readiness, not an official result.