DTZ Reading: Texts, Matching and Time Management

In DTZ reading you answer 25 tasks in 45 minutes. The five parts use everyday texts, including notices, advertisements and correspondence. Find evidence for the answer instead of choosing the option that sounds sensible in real life.

Turn a question into search criteria

For an advertisement task, write down the person’s non-negotiable needs: evening opening, a location near work or a service for children. Check all conditions before matching. An advertisement can mention the right service but still fail because it is closed at the required time. Do not reuse a match or force every situation to fit unless the task instructions allow it.

Original notice with a worked answer

Am Mittwoch bleibt die Bibliothek wegen einer Fortbildung geschlossen. Bereits ausgeliehene Bücher können Sie trotzdem rund um die Uhr am Rückgabeautomaten abgeben. Neue Ausweise stellen wir wieder ab Donnerstag aus.

Original teaching task, not an official exam item: Can you return a borrowed book on Wednesday? Yes. “Trotzdem” separates the closed building from the service that remains available. A second claim, “You can obtain a new library card on Wednesday”, is false because that service restarts on Thursday. The same notice supports different answers depending on the precise question.

Use a time budget you can adjust

Try a practice budget of roughly eight minutes per part with five minutes reserved for checking and transfer. This is a study suggestion, not an official allocation. If one part needs more time, record it and change your next practice budget. Circle an uncertain question and continue; rereading one difficult sentence repeatedly can cost easier marks elsewhere.

During correction, copy only the short phrase that proves your answer. Explain why the nearest distractor fails. For a gap in a letter, read the sentence on both sides of the gap and identify the relation, such as a reason, contrast or time. Then reread the completed message to check whether its meaning still fits.