CLT Study Plan

Plan CLT preparation: lessons first, then targeted practice, then mixed review.

Updated October 2, 2026

Pick the schedule that fits the time before your test. Each one moves from lessons to practice to review.

Which plan to pick

Plan	Best if	Time a day
14 days	Your test is soon, or you are retaking and need to fix one section	60 to 90 minutes
30 days	You are taking the CLT for the first time and have a month	45 to 60 minutes
60 days	You want to build up slowly alongside schoolwork	20 to 30 minutes, longer on timed days

The daily times are our suggestion, not a requirement. All three plans cover the same four stages; the longer plans spend more days on each.

What you are preparing for

The CLT has three sections of 40 questions each: Verbal Reasoning in 40 minutes, Grammar/Writing in 35 minutes and Quantitative Reasoning in 45 minutes. Each section is worth the same 40 points, and there is no calculator. A plan that neglects one section costs as many points as any other weakness.

Full CLT exam guide Test dates

Phase 1: Reading and evidence

Work through the 12 Verbal Reasoning lessons, one or two passages at a time.For each passage, state the central claim in one sentence before you look at the questions.Practice the analogy questions separately; every passage has them and they reward a set method.For every evidence question you miss, find the exact sentence that supports the right answer.

Open the lessons

Phase 2: Grammar and editing

Work through the 12 Grammar/Writing lessons.Review sentence boundaries, agreement and punctuation first; half the section tests them.On every edit, check that the change keeps the writer’s meaning.Practice the questions about adding, deleting or moving a sentence against the passage’s purpose.

Open the lessons

Phase 3: Math without a calculator

Work through the Quantitative Reasoning lessons, starting with the topics you find hardest.Do all arithmetic by hand. The CLT does not allow a calculator.Review geometry and trigonometry formulas, including the ones the test does not supply.Practice logic and word problems by writing the conditions down before you calculate.

Open practice sets

Phase 4: Timed practice and review

Take timed sets at the real pace: 40 questions in 40, 35 and 45 minutes.After each set, sort your misses into careless errors, slow questions and gaps in knowledge.Go back to the lesson for each gap, then redo the questions you missed.If you will take the optional school essay, write two 30-minute practice essays.

Open practice sets

How to review a practice set

Mark each miss as careless, too slow, or a gap in what you know.
For a gap, go back to the lesson for that question type before doing more questions.
For a slow question, redo it untimed and write down the step that took longest.
Redo every missed question a few days later without looking at the explanation.

The last two days

Stop learning new material. Review your list of missed questions and your formula notes.
If you are testing remotely, run the official simulation on your test-day computer and check your ID and room.
Sleep. The CLT is two hours of close reading and hand calculation.

Test day checklist Timed practice sets All lessons

Adjust as you go

Spend more time on the topics you keep missing.

Review your saved practice

Frequently Asked Questions

We suggest one to two months of steady work. Two weeks is enough if you are retaking and need to fix one section.

Start with your weakest section. Each section is worth the same 40 points, so the lowest one has the most room to improve.

No, and you should not use one. The CLT does not allow a calculator, so do all practice arithmetic by hand.

It helps with general skills, but practice the parts that are specific to the CLT: reading passages that include literary, historical and philosophical texts from earlier periods, analogy questions tied to each passage, and math with no calculator.