We've mentioned pieces of this breakdown in other articles, but it's worth laying out the full picture in one place, because it's the single biggest lever most candidates aren't pulling.

The short answer: out of 60 total IMAT questions, Biology is 23, Chemistry is 15, Physics & Maths is 13, Logical Reasoning is 5, and General Knowledge is 4. Biology and Chemistry combined are almost two-thirds of the exam, and your study hours should roughly reflect that.

The actual breakdown

Out of 60 total questions: Biology is 23, Chemistry is 15, Physics & Maths is 13, Logical Reasoning is 5, and General Knowledge is 4. Biology alone is close to two-fifths of the entire exam. Biology and Chemistry combined are almost two-thirds of it.

What most candidates actually do

Split their study time roughly evenly across subjects they find equally unfamiliar or equally intimidating, rather than matching hours to this weighting. It's an understandable instinct, since every subject feels equally urgent when you're behind on all of them, but it's not how the exam is actually structured to reward your time.

What matching your hours to the weighting actually looks like

Not literally splitting your calendar into exact percentages, that's overkill. But if you're spending as many hours on Logical Reasoning, 5 questions, as you are on Biology, 23 questions, that's a mismatch worth correcting. A rough rule: let Biology and Chemistry take up the majority of your study calendar, with Physics & Maths getting solid but proportionally smaller attention, and Logic and General Knowledge getting focused, efficient practice rather than open-ended hours. For how that split should actually shift over the course of your prep, see which IMAT sections you can front-load.

The caveat worth remembering

Weighting isn't the only variable. If you're already strong in Biology and consistently weak in Physics & Maths, some rebalancing toward your actual weak point still makes sense, even though it's the smaller section. Weighting should inform your baseline plan, not override what your own practice results are telling you.

Not sure how to actually rebalance your study calendar around this? Turning a weighting breakdown into an actual weekly plan is exactly the kind of thing 1:1 mentorship helps you build.

Apply for the mentorship

The exam tells you exactly how much each section is worth. Most candidates just never actually look.