How DAA Numerical Reasoning works
The section is sat in two parts, each with its own instructions and its own clock.
Part 1 is 12 questions in 4 minutes on fractions, decimals and formulae: adding decimals, subtracting fractions with different denominators, turning a fraction into a decimal, solving a simple equation. At 20 seconds a question, it rewards fast, secure number facts.
Part 2 is 15 questions in 11 minutes, set across four scenarios, each built on a line graph, a bar chart or a table with figures missing. Questions ask you to read and compare values, work out a cost or a percentage, handle speed, distance and time, or find the mistake in a column of totals.
Calculators and multi-function watches are not allowed. Paper and pencil are.
How to work both parts
Each part needs a different speed:
- Part 1: estimate before you work it out. Wrong options often have the right digits with the decimal point moved, and an estimate rules them out.
- For fractions, find the lowest common denominator first and simplify only at the end.
- Part 2: read the title, the axis labels and the units before the question. Mixing up the axes is a common slip.
- Write down any figure you take from a chart or table. The same scenario serves several questions.
- For speed, distance and time, turn minutes into fractions of an hour: 40 minutes is two-thirds of an hour.
Worked examples
Part 1 style: “Calculate 2/3 + 3/8.” The lowest common denominator is 24, so this is 16/24 + 9/24 = 25/24, or 1 1/24. An option of 5/11 adds the tops and the bottoms, the classic wrong move.
Part 2 style: a delivery table shows a lorry leaving at 09:40 to drive 150 km at an average of 60 km/h. “When does it arrive?” 150 ÷ 60 = 2.5 hours, which is 2 hours 30 minutes, so it arrives at 12:10.
Tips for the real Numerical Reasoning section
- Part 1 gives you 20 seconds a question. If one stalls you, pick your best estimate and come back from the summary.
- Revise adding, subtracting, multiplying and dividing fractions. A candidate who sat the DAA warns not to neglect them.
- Label your working with question numbers, so you can find it again when you revisit a question.
- Charts are easier to read on a big screen. The real test must be taken on a screen of at least 10.2 inches.
Practise DAA Numerical Reasoning on CogniPrep
Our Numerical Reasoning practice runs both parts at the official counts and clocks: 12 questions in 4 minutes, then 15 in 11 minutes across four scenarios, with a visible clock, Back and Next, and a summary before each part is submitted. There is no calculator. The questions, graphs and tables are our own and generated fresh each time. Nothing is deducted for wrong answers, and you get your mark out of 27.