The whole paper · 200 marks
Practise every part of it
NATA is two halves that ask for opposite things — a drawn Part A and an adaptive Part B — so it needs two kinds of practice. Self-paced drills to learn a Part B area, a one-way mock to test it under the clock, and, for the 80 drawing marks that no machine can grade, an honest self-assessment rubric instead of a fake score.
Part B · the six areas
Self-paced · with explanationsOne drill per area, easiest question first, the reasoning revealed the moment you answer. No clock — this is for learning the area, not testing your nerve. The areas are the ones the current bulletin names, and no weighting is published for any of them.
Visual Reasoning
Rotation, mirrors, folding, sections. The most trainable area in Part B.
Logical Derivation
Sequences, rules, deduction — and not overreaching past the evidence.
General Knowledge, Architecture & Design
Unbounded by syllabus. The least tractable area to prepare, and the one to accept losses on.
Language Interpretation
The area most often skipped and most cheaply improved.
Design Sensitivity and Thinking
Observation as a trainable skill, not a personality trait.
Numerical Ability
Examined without a calculator. Estimation and proportion, not heavy computation.
Part A · self-assessment
80 marks · judged by a humanThe drawing questions cannot be auto-graded — there is no multiple-choice form of “compose a page in colour”. So instead of a fake score, these are rubrics: rate your own drawing the way an examiner would, and find the weakest thing before the exam does. The criteria are ours, synthesised from the question titles and the teaching — COA publishes no marking scheme.
Composition & Colour
Sketching & Composition, Black and White
The 3D Composition