Give yourself about 12 minutes for all nine. That is roughly the pace of the real test: about 86 seconds a question in Section 1, 71 seconds in Section 2 and 80 seconds in Section 3.
Section 1: Logical Reasoning and Problem Solving
Section 1 asks you to reason from information you are given, in words, numbers or diagrams, to the conclusion it really supports.
Five nurses, Aoife, Brian, Ciara, Declan and Eimear, each work exactly one night shift from Monday to Friday, one nurse per night.
- Declan works on Wednesday.
- Aoife works the night immediately after Eimear.
- Ciara works later in the week than Brian.
- Brian does not work on Monday.
Who works on Friday?
Show answer and explanation
Answer: C. Declan has Wednesday, so Eimear and Aoife need two nights in a row that avoid Wednesday: Monday and Tuesday, or Thursday and Friday. If they took Thursday and Friday, Brian and Ciara would have Monday and Tuesday; Brian cannot work Monday, so he would work Tuesday and Ciara Monday, which breaks the rule that Ciara works later than Brian. So Eimear works Monday and Aoife Tuesday, leaving Thursday and Friday for Brian and Ciara. Ciara must be later, so Ciara works Friday.
A survey of the GP practices in one town found that practices offering evening appointments had fewer of their patients attending the local emergency department than practices that did not. The town council concluded that requiring every practice to offer evening appointments would reduce emergency department attendance.
Which of the following, if true, most weakens the council’s conclusion?
Show answer and explanation
Answer: A. The council assumes that evening appointments cause the lower attendance. Option A offers another explanation: the patients of those practices can use a nearby out-of-hours clinic instead, so the difference might disappear if other practices simply added evening slots. B is about popularity, not emergency attendance. C describes a town-wide trend that does not separate the two groups of practices. D makes the survey more complete, which if anything supports the finding.
A pharmacy sells a medicine in packs of 28 tablets for €6 and packs of 84 tablets for €15. Packs cannot be split. A patient takes 2 tablets a day.
What is the lowest cost of buying exactly enough tablets, or more, for 70 days?
Show answer and explanation
Answer: B. 70 days × 2 tablets = 140 tablets. The large pack is cheaper per tablet (€15 for 84 against €18 for 84 in small packs), so use as many as sensibly possible. Two large packs give 168 tablets for €30. One large pack (84) plus two small packs (56) gives exactly 140 for €15 + €12 = €27. Five small packs cost €30. Nothing cheaper reaches 140: any combination costing €24 or less gives at most 112 tablets.
Section 2: Interpersonal Understanding
Section 2 describes situations between people and asks what someone is thinking, feeling or intending. Look for the answer the whole scenario supports, not just one line of it.
Maeve has spent most evenings this term helping her younger brother, Rory, with maths. Rory comes home with his exam result: the highest mark in his class. He puts the paper down on the table in front of Maeve, says, “Well, at least I won’t have to sit through any more of your lectures,” and heads upstairs, grinning.
Which of the following best describes what Rory is doing?
Show answer and explanation
Answer: D. Rory goes out of his way to put the result in front of Maeve, and he is grinning: he wants her to see it, and the “lectures” remark is teasing, not a complaint. Nothing in the scenario suggests resentment (A), strictness (C) or a request to stop helping in future (B). The best reading is an indirect, light-hearted thank-you.
Dr Byrne explains to Mr Kelly, who is 68, that his blood pressure medication needs to change and how the new tablets should be taken. Mr Kelly nods throughout and says, “Grand, grand.” On his way out, he asks the receptionist whether his wife could phone the surgery later “to go over what the doctor said.”
What does Mr Kelly’s behaviour most suggest?
Show answer and explanation
Answer: B. He signalled understanding in the consultation (“grand, grand”) yet immediately asks for someone to “go over what the doctor said”, which points to an explanation that did not sink in and that he felt unable to admit. There is no sign of disagreement (A). Wanting help to understand is not the same as his wife making all decisions (C). He asks for his wife to talk to the surgery, not for the receptionist to explain (D). For a doctor, the lesson is to check understanding rather than rely on nodding.
Sinéad and Tomás have worked together for months on a project. Their manager tells them that Tomás alone will present it to the board. Sinéad replies, “That makes sense, you’re much better at speeches,” then spends the rest of the afternoon unusually quiet and says no when Tomás asks if she wants to get lunch.
How is Sinéad most likely feeling?
Show answer and explanation
Answer: A. Her words accept the decision, but her behaviour afterwards (withdrawn, turning down lunch) suggests she is upset. Relief (B) and indifference (D) do not fit the change in her mood. Anger at Tomás (C) assumes he arranged it, but the manager made the decision. The answer that fits both what she says and what she does is hurt she is keeping to herself.
Section 3: Non-Verbal Reasoning
Section 3 uses shapes and patterns. Find every rule that changes from one figure to the next, then choose the option that follows all of them. Real Section 3 items often combine more rules than these.
Which figure comes next in the sequence?
Show answer and explanation
Answer: B. Two rules work together. The dot moves one corner clockwise each time (top left, top right, bottom right), so next it is bottom left. The triangle alternates filled, empty, filled, so next it is empty. Only B has both.
Which figure comes next in the sequence?
Show answer and explanation
Answer: A. The shape gains one side each time (3, 4, 5), so next is a six-sided shape. The number of dots falls by one each time (3, 2, 1), so next there are none. A is the only hexagon with no dots.
Which figure comes next in the sequence?
Show answer and explanation
Answer: C. The arrow turns 90° clockwise each time (up, right, down), so next it points left. One small square is added each time (1, 2, 3), so next there are four. Only C has both.
How did you do?
If you got most of these right in about 12 minutes, the real challenge is keeping that accuracy for 114 questions over two and a half hours, with no breaks and each section closing when its time runs out. That is what full-length timed practice is for.
For real past questions, start with ACER’s official practice tests: one is included when you register. Then use our test format guide and section guides for Section 1, Section 2 and Section 3.
Last checked: October 2026. Facts on this page are taken from the official HPAT-Ireland website and the ACER Test Taker Information Booklet for the 2026 test, checked in October 2026. Always confirm dates and rules at hpat-ireland.acer.org before you register.