How to write an exam essay under time pressure comes down to four decisions made in the first few minutes: how long each answer gets, what the command word asks for, what your one-sentence answer is, and what goes in each paragraph. The examiners' reports we read name the same faults: prepared answers to another question, description where discussion was asked for, and a weak or missing judgement.
EdCitation publishes this guide. We read every figure on 27 September 2026, at ten universities' study-skills pages and the exam boards' own documents (AQA, OCR, Cambridge International, the SQA). The worked split, template and sample plan are ours, and marked so. No method guarantees a mark.
EdCitation never writes any part of an essay or exam answer, and proudly so: the thinking is what the exam tests. For a take-home exam, its Check your paper reads the instructions into a checklist, free and with no account. Revision is in how to revise for exams; building an argument at leisure is in how to write an argumentative essay.
How do you write an exam essay, step by step?
Read, share out the time, decode, plan, write and check, in that order.
- Read the whole paper and the instructions: how many questions, and what each is worth. For a take-home exam, paste the instructions into EdCitation's Check your paper and keep the checklist beside you.
- Share out the time by the marks, and write down the clock time each answer ends.
- Choose your questions; underline the command word and the content words.
- Plan for about five minutes: your answer in one sentence, one line per paragraph, a verdict.
- Write from the plan: your answer first, one point and its evidence per paragraph, the judgement last.
- Move on when the clock says so. A question never started scores nothing.
- Check that every part of the question was answered, then fix slips.
How should you split the time in an exam essay?
Split the time in proportion to the marks, keep a few minutes at the start to read and plan, and a few at the end to check. The universities agree on that, and disagree on how long planning deserves.
| University | Reading and planning | Writing | Checking | Where and when read |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kent | 5 to 10 minutes planning | 40 to 45 minutes | 5 to 10 minutes | One-hour essay; updated 29 Sept 2025 |
| Coventry | 5 to 10 minutes reading all the questions | By marks | 10 minutes at the end of the exam | 2023 |
| Sydney | 15 minutes for the outline | Not given | 2 to 5 minutes, more if English is not your first language | Updated 2 June 2026 |
| Birmingham | 5 to 10 minutes for the essay plan | By marks | Not given | Updated 9 July 2024 |
| Monash | 5 minutes of planning | 30 to 35 minutes | Not given | 500 to 600 word essay; undated |
| UNC Chapel Hill | Up to a quarter of the question's time | By points | "A few minutes" | Not dated |
The University of Kent (2025), in its exam tips, gives the only full split for a one-hour essay. Coventry University (2023) keeps its ten checking minutes for the end of the paper, to finish answers cut short. The University of Sydney (2026) is the most generous to planning and Monash University (n.d.) the least. The UNC Writing Center (n.d.) sets a ceiling of a quarter, because there is time for one draft only.
A worked split for a two-hour paper (ours)
For two essays of equal marks in two hours: five minutes to read the paper and choose; then, for each essay, eight minutes to plan, forty to write and five to check (106 minutes); nine minutes spare for the slower essay. Eight minutes of planning sits between Monash's five and Sydney's fifteen, and well under UNC's quarter.
What do command words like discuss, evaluate and analyse mean?
A command word tells you what to do with the topic: take it apart, compare it, weigh it or judge it. Each exam board defines its own, and they differ.
| Command word | What it asks | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Analyse | Break a topic into its parts to give an in-depth account | AQA A-level Geography (n.d.) |
| Analyse | Examine in detail to show meaning and how the parts relate | Cambridge International English Language 9093 (2024) |
| Compare | Similarities and/or differences | Cambridge International History 9489 (2024) |
| Compare | Similarities and differences | OCR GCSE Geography (2019) |
| Discuss | Both sides, for and against, then a conclusion; balance, not equal weight | AQA A-level Geography (n.d.) |
| Discuss | Write about the issue in depth, in a structured way | Cambridge International English Language 9093 (2024) |
| Evaluate | Weigh options or arguments and conclude on their importance or worth | AQA A-level Geography (n.d.) |
| Evaluate | Your verdict, after evidence that agrees and disagrees | OCR GCSE Geography (2019) |
| Assess | Make an informed judgement | Cambridge International History 9489 (2024) |
| To what extent | A view on how far a statement holds, after the evidence on each side | AQA (n.d.); OCR (2019) |
Where the definitions differ
On "discuss", AQA (n.d.) asks for a conclusion; Cambridge University Press & Assessment (2024a) only for depth and structure; OCR (2019) for both sides but no verdict. On "compare", Cambridge's "and/or" allows differences alone, yet its History syllabus demands both in Paper 1 (Cambridge University Press & Assessment, 2024b). UNC reads "evaluate" as your opinion with reasons; the boards want a judgement weighed from evidence.
The instruction-words sheet linked from York's exam-writing guide calls itself general guidance, second to your department's own (University of York Library, 2026). Read your board's or module's list; for "discuss" and "to what extent", ending with a judgement is the safe default. How to write a thesis statement shows how to put that judgement into one sentence.
How do you plan an exam essay in five minutes?
Plan in five minutes by answering the question in one sentence first, then giving each paragraph one line: its point and its evidence. Monash University (n.d.) calls five minutes reasonable for a 500 to 600 word answer; Birmingham allows five to ten and suggests brainstorming, selecting, then a bullet outline (University of Birmingham, 2024). Kent adds a detail worth copying: note theories and evidence with names and dates.
The five-minute plan template (ours)
| Minute | What you write |
|---|---|
| 0 to 1 | The command word, the content words, and each part of the question numbered, so none is missed |
| 1 to 2 | Your answer in one sentence: it becomes the opening and the conclusion |
| 2 to 4 | One line per paragraph, point then evidence (names, dates); four or five paragraphs in an hour |
| 4 to 5 | The verdict, and the clock time each paragraph ends, so the conclusion is never what gets cut |
A sample plan, ours
This question and plan are ours, written for this guide; the dates in it come from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (2025).
Question (ours): To what extent was the economic depression the main cause of the collapse of the Weimar Republic?
Command: to what extent = a verdict on how far, after weighing other causes.
Answer in one sentence: The Depression was the trigger but not the main cause: it made the Nazis a mass party, but the Republic fell because Hindenburg's circle chose to govern by decree and then to hand Hitler power.
- Depression, from late 1929: unemployment rises; Nazis second-largest party, September 1930.
- Constitution: Article 48 emergency decrees from July 1930; Brüning governs without a majority.
- Elites: Brüning dismissed May 1932; Papen; Nazis largest party, July 1932.
- The decision: Papen persuades Hindenburg; Hitler appointed 30 January 1933.
Verdict: to a large extent the trigger; the decisive steps were choices. Clock: plan 8, write 40, check 5.
What do examiners reward in an exam essay?
Examiners reward an answer to the question on the paper, a line of argument and a judgement at the end, not volume or a prepared answer.
What the exam boards' reports say
- Answer the question set. The Scottish Qualifications Authority (2025) says Higher History candidates must answer the question "and not give a prepared answer", and conclude with "a relative judgement" between factors.
- Quality, not quantity. AQA's June 2023 A-level Psychology report says it is "not the volume of material presented but how effective it is" that counts, and asks for each evaluative point to be linked to the title (AQA, 2023b).
- No recycled questions. AQA's June 2023 A-level English Literature report counts answers written "with a previously answered question in mind" among the less successful (AQA, 2023a).
- Use the command word. OCR (2019) quotes its June 2018 GCSE Geography B report: the best answers identified words such as assess and evaluate and linked their answer to them.
The University of Melbourne (n.d.) agrees: a memorised answer is unlikely to fit the question asked. Where a plan turns descriptive, critical writing versus descriptive writing shows the difference markers mean.
How do you cite sources in a closed-book exam?
In a closed-book exam, cite a source by the author's name and the year, and leave out the reference list, unless the instructions say otherwise. The universities agree on the list and differ on how much citing they expect.
- Leeds University Business School (n.d.): author name and date of publication, as in a timed closed-book exam, and no reference list or bibliography.
- Massey University (n.d.): no reference list and no citations, but theory and research acknowledged by the relevant names.
- The University of York Library (2026): a more limited expectation to cite; each exam's guidance sets the referencing.
So write the surname and year in your course's style; if the year escapes you, the name alone beats a guessed date. APA 7 in-text citations and the Harvard referencing guide give the forms.
How are open-book and take-home exams different?
Open-book and take-home exams test how you use information, not what you remember, so they expect more citing, and Monash University (n.d.) says plainly that they are not easier. It separates short timed assessments of one to two hours from take-home ones of six hours or more.
Open book, open web and take-home
Massey University (n.d.) describes three kinds: open-book (notes or books in the room), open-web (online, with a set start and time limit), and take-home tests over a period such as 48 or 72 hours, which may need a full reference list. Leeds University Business School (n.d.) allows at least 48 hours but expects writing only for the time stated, caps a two-hour exam at 2,000 words and a three-hour one at 3,000, and wants no reference list. Your instructions settle which applies.
For the references in a take-home answer, Find sources searches about 300 million published works, and Cite a source builds each entry from the publisher's record in Harvard, APA 7 and four other styles.
Check your paper: a take-home exam's instructions as a checklist
Check your paper is the best tool we know of for take-home instructions, because beside each rule it quotes the sentence it came from, so you can check its reading yourself. It reads word limits for each part, required headings, how many sources and how recent, the citation style, font, spacing and margins, free and with no account. Checking a finished answer against that checklist, rule by rule and for how well it does what was asked, is Theoretics QA, part of Max ($24 a month); it judges and never rewrites a sentence (pricing).
We ran Check your paper on 27 September 2026 on these instructions, written by us for an invented module:
HIS2045 Twentieth-Century Europe: take-home examination. The paper is released at 09:00 on Monday and must be submitted by 09:00 on Wednesday (48 hours). You should spend no more than three hours writing. Answer ONE of the three questions below. Your answer must not exceed 2,000 words, excluding the reference list. Use the headings Introduction, Argument and Conclusion. Cite at least six scholarly sources, at least two of them published since 2015, in Harvard style, with a full reference list. Use Arial 11 point, 1.5 line spacing and 2.5 cm margins. Upload a single Word document. Question 1: To what extent was the economic depression the main cause of the collapse of the Weimar Republic? Question 2: Evaluate the claim that appeasement was a rational policy for Britain in 1938. Question 3: Compare the aims of Soviet and Nazi economic planning in the 1930s.
What came back
| Rule | What came back, as the checklist shows it |
|---|---|
| Font, font size, line spacing | Arial; 11 pt; 1.5 × |
| Margins | 0.98 in (our 2.5 cm, converted) |
| Word count | No more than 2,000 words |
| Sources (scholarly) | At least 6 sources |
| Source dates | "At least 2 sources: 2015 or later" |
| Citation style, reference list | Harvard; Required |
| Required headings | Introduction, Argument, Conclusion |
Seven sentences came back under "What it asks you to do, which no rule can test": the release and deadline, the three hours of writing, answering one question, the single Word document, and all three questions, each listed in full.
The word limit's exclusion of the reference list is kept in the quoted sentence beside the rule, so read it there. The timing and the choice of question are yours to keep to: the checklist holds the written rules, and the answer is yours.
Quick questions
How long should I spend planning an exam essay?
About five to ten minutes for an hour's essay: Kent and Birmingham give five to ten, Monash five for 500 to 600 words, and Sydney fifteen.
What does "to what extent" mean in an exam question?
"To what extent" asks for a judgement on how far a statement holds, after weighing the evidence on each side, as AQA and OCR define it.
Do you need references in a closed-book exam?
Usually not a reference list. Leeds University Business School asks for author and date in the text; Massey asks for the relevant names; the exam's own instructions decide.
What should I do if I run out of time in an exam essay?
Write the remaining points as notes or bullets, with a short conclusion. Kent, Coventry, Monash and UNC all advise it, and Coventry says such notes may gain a few marks.
Can EdCitation write my exam answer?
No. EdCitation writes no part of any essay or exam answer; its free Check your paper turns a take-home exam's instructions into a checklist.
References
- AQA. (n.d.). Command words: A-level Geography 7037. Retrieved September 27, 2026, from https://www.aqa.org.uk/resources/geography/as-and-a-level/geography/teach/command-words
- AQA. (2023a). A-level English Literature A 7712/1 Love through the ages: Report on the examination, June 2023. https://filestore.aqa.org.uk/sample-papers-and-mark-schemes/2023/june/AQA-77121-WRE-JUN23.PDF
- AQA. (2023b). A-level Psychology 7182/2 Psychology in context: Report on the examination, June 2023. https://filestore.aqa.org.uk/sample-papers-and-mark-schemes/2023/june/AQA-71822-WRE-JUN23.PDF
- Cambridge University Press & Assessment. (2024a). Cambridge International AS & A Level English Language 9093: Syllabus for 2027 and 2028. https://www.cambridgeinternational.org/Images/721359-2027-2028-syllabus.pdf
- Cambridge University Press & Assessment. (2024b). Cambridge International AS & A Level History 9489: Syllabus for 2027, 2028 and 2029. https://www.cambridgeinternational.org/Images/718292-2027-2029-syllabus.pdf
- Coventry University. (2023). Essay writing in exams [Resource]. Centre for Academic Writing. https://libguides.coventry.ac.uk/CAWhomepage/essaywritinginexams
- Leeds University Business School. (n.d.). Guidance for open book exams in a 48 hour period. LUBS Student Guide. Retrieved September 27, 2026, from https://students.business.leeds.ac.uk/assessment/guidance-on-48-hour-open-book-exams/
- Massey University. (n.d.). Exam question types. OWLL. Retrieved September 27, 2026, from https://owll.massey.ac.nz/tests-and-exams/exam-essay-question.php
- Monash University. (n.d.). Completing timed assessments. Student Academic Success. Retrieved September 27, 2026, from https://www.monash.edu/student-academic-success/study-better/prepare-for-timed-assessments/completing-timed-assessments
- OCR. (2019). GCSE Geography command words. https://www.ocr.org.uk/images/539424-command-words.pdf
- Scottish Qualifications Authority. (2025). Course report 2025: Higher History. https://www.sqa.org.uk/sqa/files_ccc/2025-h-course-report-history.pdf
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. (2025, June 23). The Nazi rise to power. Holocaust Encyclopedia. https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/the-nazi-rise-to-power
- University of Birmingham. (2024, July 9). Writing and answering. Essay-based exams: A short guide. https://libguides.bham.ac.uk/c.php?g=679568&p=4843508
- University of Kent. (2025, September 29). Exam preparation and planning. https://student.kent.ac.uk/studies/exam-preparation-and-planning
- University of Melbourne. (n.d.). Essays in exams. Academic Skills. Retrieved September 27, 2026, from https://students.unimelb.edu.au/academic-skills/study-skills/exam-preparation/essays-in-exams
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Writing Center. (n.d.). Essay exams. Retrieved September 27, 2026, from https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/essay-exams/
- University of Sydney. (2026, June 2). Preparing for exams. https://www.sydney.edu.au/students/study-skills/preparing-for-exams.html
- University of York Library. (2026, September 2). Examination writing. Academic writing: A practical guide. https://subjectguides.york.ac.uk/academic-writing/exam-writing