Hi Aspirants..Hope your preparation is
going in full swing for the upcoming SSC CGL Exam 2016. Very limited time is
remaining. We have thought of sharing an article detailing some last minute
tips so that you can face the exam with No Tension.
What is SSC CGL?
Combined Graduate Level (CGL) exam
conducted by Staff Selection Commission every year is undoubtedly the much
awaited competitive exam in India and the tough competition makes the exam
tough to crack as well. The number of candidates appearing for the exam is on
the increase year by year. Approximately around 20 lakhs candidates appear for
the exam each year for little around 1000 posts in various Central Government
Organizations. After Civil Services Examination, it’s also the second most
glamorous exam in India and hence it’s often called as Mini Civil Services
Exam.
What I can do?
How you utilize the remaining limited time
can make a big difference. This year SSC CGL comes with some massive changes
unlike previous year. This is the first time the SSC is going to conduct an
online exam for CGL. Combined Graduate Level Examination 2016- examination is
scheduled to be held from 27th August, 2016 to 11th September, 2016. First let’s
have a look at the new pattern for SSC CGL 2016:
What’s the new Pattern of CGL?
A. General Intelligence & Reasoning -
25 Questions - 50 Marks
B. General Awareness - 25 Questions - 50
Marks
C. Quantitative Aptitude - 25 Questions -
50 Marks
D.English Comprehension - 25 Questions - 50
Marks
Total time will be 75 Minutes. That means
you have less than one minute to attend a question.
Note: There will be negative marking of
0.50 for each wrong answer in Tier-I. So inorder to improve the score you have
to keep the negatives at the barest minimum.
Lets now analyze each topic separately:
A. General Intelligence & Reasoning
This is certainly the most scoring section
of the exam for everyone. Half of the questions from this section can be solved
with your simple logic. However the following topics are key areas: Analogy and
classification, non-verbal reasoning, syllogisms, coding-decoding, blood
relations, direction test and series. From non-verbal reasoning, the major
types of questions asked in the exam are: (a) mirror image and water image (b)
paper cutting, punching and folding (c) figural series completion (d) embedded
figures. Make sure you cover all of them. Don’t neglect statement-conclusion
& statement-assumption questions from inferential reasoning. Even with
limited practice, you can score 2 to 3 marks as these questions are fairly
simple. Keeping the time in mind, try to solve the question as soon as
possible. The time you save in this section will become handy in the
Quantitative Aptitude section.
B. General Awareness
Often students preparing for CGL feels that
it is the toughest topic as anything under the sun can be asked in this
section. GK has the most comprehensive syllabus and requires a lot of time for
preparation. An analysis of previous year question papers show that Science,
politics, history, geography, economy are the most liked topics for the
question makers. Also some questions are repeatedly seen asked. Even though
Current Affairs too comes under this section, not more than 5 questions are
expected. Current Affairs is expected to be mainly concentrated on sporting
events, latest appointments, summits etc. which you can easily score.
Following topics needs attention: (a) the
firsts in India (b) common chemical compounds (c) folk dances of India &
traditional festivals (d) Indian constitution (e) socio-religious movements of
pre-independent India (f) national income & market structure (g) important
scientific phenomena (h) medieval & modern Indian history.
But don't waste your much valuable time for
studying GK in these last minutes, as you can't expect what can be asked. GK
will be tough for everyone and hence this section will not make a big
difference. At the same time GK can land you in trouble as well when it comes
to negative marking. So be very careful. Just attend the sure questions and let
off the remaining.
C. Quantitative Aptitude
This topic the so called "Super
Man" of CGL. How strong you are in Quantitative Aptitude decides the fate.
Aptitude section consists of four major areas: Arithmetic, Algebra, Geometry
and Trigonometry. Geometry is the most important among all the areas. You must
give it special emphasis. Trigonometry must not be avoided at any cost. Focus
on height and distance as well as trigonometric identities. Data interpretation
and analysis will become much easier if you have a good understanding of
percentages and ratio and proportion. Within arithmetic, profit and loss,
simple interest and compound interest, time and distance and time and work
happen to be the key topics and you can solve them with ease if you study the
simple logic behind each topic. Algebra, including simplification, is generally
considered a tough nut to crack. It deserves more practice as compared to other
areas.
D. English Comprehension
After GK this is the topic which can make
you cry after Answer Keys are released. Chances of getting negative marks are
much high for the topic. Preparation for this section would include focusing on
the following topics: one-word substitution, idioms and phrases, synonyms and
antonyms, fill in the blanks (sentence completion), sentence errors, reading
comprehension, sentence rearrangement and jumbled-up sentences. Narration and
active voice / passive voice may or may not be there in tier-I exam. You may
overlook them if there is a scarcity of time. Quite often vocabulary-based
questions (one-word substitution, synonyms and antonyms) as well as idioms and
phrases from past SSC papers get repeated. So, it makes a lot of sense to go
through previous year exam papers and focus specifically on these questions.
The difficulty level of reading
comprehension passages is not high. However, some practice is needed to locate
the answers to comprehension questions asked from these passages. Moreover be
careful with reading comprehension, as it can take away your valuable time.
Don't invest much time for this topic.
For cracking sentence error spotting
questions, knowledge of grammatical rules is essential. If you find yourself
lacking in grammar, you should focus on practicing English usage questions such
as fill in the blanks, sentence rearrangement and jumbled-up sentences.
Apart from the above two 'MOST IMPORTANT'
aspects that have to be taken care of in the last minute preparation are:
1. Previous Year Question Papers: Try to
solve as many previous questions as you can. We at Currentaffairs4examz have
uploaded the solved question papers of previous year exams. You can check some
previous question paper from the below links:
2. Attempt as many mock test as you can:
Click Here to check mock test uploaded by SSC (http://www.thepracticetest.in/SSC/)
For GK you can refer our mock tests (http://quiz.currentaffairs4examz.com/category/general-knowledge-gk)
So be motivated.. Exam stress is tough but
if you want to get somewhere, you have to put the work in. Push yourself
because, no one else is going to do it for you.
Wish you all the Best for the exams.
Currentaffairs4examz Team.
