1. The Pre-Game (10 Minutes)
You start with a 2-minute Nondisclosure Agreement and an 8-minute tutorial. Do not rush these. Use this time to calm your heart rate and physically get used to the mouse and the dual-pane screen setup. If you finish the tutorial in 2 minutes, you don't "gain" those 6 minutes for the exam—they just vanish. Use the full 10 minutes to settle in.
2. The First Session (Variable Time)
The exam is split into two distinct parts. The first usually covers general engineering (Math, Ethics, Statics, Economics). You have 110 questions total, but they aren't split exactly 55/55. You might get 52 in the first and 58 in the second.
The Strategy: You must be aggressive here. Since the second session usually contains the harder, discipline-specific problems (like Fluids or Structures), you should aim to finish the first session in under 2.5 hours. Every minute you "save" here is a gift to your future self in the second half.
3. The Mandatory Break (25 Minutes)
Once you submit the first session, you are prompted to take your break. Take it. Get out of the chair, eat a high-protein snack, and use the restroom. As you noted, you cannot go back to the first session once this break begins. If you choose to skip the break or take only 10 minutes, that extra time does not get added to your testing clock. It’s "use it or lose it" time.
4. The Second Session (Remaining Time)
This is where the "heavy lifting" happens. You will have whatever time is left from your 5 hour and 20 minute total. If you spent 3 hours in the first half, you only have 2 hours and 20 minutes for the second.
The Danger Zone: Because the second session is more complex, those "less than 3 minutes per question" will feel like seconds. This is why you must guess on anything that looks like a 10-minute derivation and move on.
5. The Closing (Short Survey)
Once you submit the second session, the exam clock stops. You’ll have a brief survey, and then you’re done.
The Best Strategy...
The biggest mistake you can make is "perfectionism" in the first session. If you spend 4 hours there because you want to be 100% sure of your Math answers, you have effectively failed the exam because you won't have time to even read the questions in the second half.
Prioritize speed in the first half to buy yourself "thinking time" for the second.