Are you looking for How to prepare for SSC CGL in the first attempt and get the highest score? So, nothing to worry read this full informative article here.
What is SSC CGL?
SSC-CGL stands for Staff Selection Committee, Combined Graduate Level examination. It is an examination conducted by the government of India to select employees for the various departments such as all the ministries. But in recent years the SSC has made some changes to the exam pattern. The exam conduct in 4 tiers. So, if you are planning to appear for this exam, then you need to keep yourself updated with all the recent changes in the syllabus and the exam pattern.
If you qualify for this exam then you will become eligible to get a job in various departments and ministries under the government of India for a number of Grade ‘B’ and ‘C’ jobs. The exam which is divided into 4 tiers can be taken in both English and Hindi language. The first two tiers are computer-based objective examinations while the third tier is a written exam where your knowledge is tested in detail with descriptive questions. The fourth and final tier test your computer skills. You have to sit for a Data Entry Skill Test (DEST) and Computer Proficiency Test (CPT).
How to prepare for SSC CGL Tier 1
The first tier of the exam is a computer-based objective exam. You will get 60 minutes to complete the exam. 20 minutes allowances are given to visually handicapped candidates and candidates suffering from Cerebral Palsy. The question paper pattern is divided among the following heads:
A) General Intelligence and reasoning
B) General awareness
C) Quantitative aptitude
D) English proficiency
It’s important that you thoroughly study for all the divisions. Here’s how you can prepare for them:
A) General Intelligence and Reasoning
Solve previous year and mock question papers to familiarise yourself with the difficulty level. Solve reasoning questions on a daily basis. This section has a lot of questions that are based on puzzles, diagrams, analogy, coding, and many more. You need to keep on practicing to make yourself acquainted with all the patterns so that while solving the exam on the final day you will not take a lot of time. You need a lot of visual imagination for this section. Practice at least 50 questions on a daily basis so that you can ace these time-consuming questions easily. Another important facet of preparing yourself is calculating the time you take to solve the questions. Whenever you sit down to solve a paper, time yourself, and try to solve this section within 20 minutes.
B) General Awareness
This section is considered to be the section where you can get the maximum marks. But this section will require you to start preparing for it way ahead in comparison to other sections. This section tests your general awareness and how much you are aware of the happenings of the world. The section asks you questions on static GK and current affairs. For current affairs, you need to keep yourself briefed with all the happenings of the country of the current year or at least 10 months before the date of the exam.
If you are properly prepared for the exam then you will not have to spend more than 10 minutes on this section and you can utilize the time you have saved for Quantitative aptitude questions. The importance of questions according to subjects is as follows – Science> Polity> History> Geography> Economy> Miscellaneous. Solve at least 75-100 questions daily and try to complete the test within 30 minutes. Daily solving of questions not only helps you revise what you have studied but it also helps you in increasing your efficiency. There is a lot of online exam series available dedicated only to this section. Revision is really important when it comes to static GK, so make sure that you revise all your notes. You will find many mobile applications that can help you in preparing for this section. You will also find many daily, weekly, and monthly quizzes.
C) Quantitative Aptitude
After reasoning, this section will take the most amount of time for you to solve. Many books are available in the market that you can buy to help yourself. The level of difficulty is set to class 10th maths questions which everyone studies. Learn all the formulas, shortcuts, concepts, and tips. This section is time-consuming but with practice, you can solve this section within 25 minutes. Solve questions daily. Avoid using a calculator in order to increase your mental maths ability. Questions on profit and loss, percentage, speed, distance and time, unitary method, and data interpretation are always asked.
Make sure that you know all the formulas and you practice them in abundance before the exam. Give this section at least 2 hours of your study time daily so that you do not have any problems during the examination. Questions on simplification and age problems are also asked. Do not give this section more than 20-25 minutes in the exam so that you have enough time for other sections.
D) How to prepare English for SSC CGL? – English Proficiency
This section basically tests your grammar, vocabulary, and comprehension skills in the English language. This is also a section that can help you score more but a lot of students struggle with it also. Remember practice and perseverance cannot stop you from achieving anything. The pattern of this section has not changed for years so you can easily grasp this section in no time by solving the previous year and mock question papers. If you work on your vocabulary and grammar then you will not need to take a lot of pain for the comprehension skills questions. With practice, you can easily solve this section within 15-20 minutes. Try to solve two comprehension passages and learn 10 new words with their antonyms and synonyms daily. Many people search for how to crack SSC CGL in 3 months then it is difficult but if you prepare it’s not difficult.
How to prepare for SSC CGL TIER 2?
The second tier of the examination is divided into the following sections
A) English proficiency
B) Statistics
C) General Studies
Here’s how you can prepare for them:
A) How to prepare for SSC CGL English? – English Proficiency
The pattern of this section is the same as Tier 1 but only the level of difficulty is increased. This section comprises of 200 questions with 1 mark each. You will be given 2 hours to complete this paper. Unlike tier 1, you will find negative marking applicable. Like every other exam one-fourth or 0.25 marks, in this case, will be deducted for every wrong answer you give. Thus, it is advised that you only answer questions that you are sure about, as guessing answers will end up in the deduction of marks. You will find 40-50% questions based on grammar, so if you have a full grasp of the English language then you will have no problem in attempting this paper. And if you want to increase your grammatical skills then you should read a lot of books and newspapers.
B) Statistics
This section of SSC CGL Tier 2 has 100 questions but will give you 2 marks for every correct answer thus the maximum marks for this section is 200 marks. You will get 2 hours for this paper. Just like the English proficiency test, you will find negative marking applicable here also. Like every other exam one-fourth or 0.5 marks, in this case, will be deducted for every wrong answer you give. Thus, it is advised that you only answer questions that you have solved fully, as guessing answers will end up in the deduction of marks. You will find many practice workbooks in the market. Questions on topics like kurtosis and skewness, regression and correlation, time series analysis, probability theory, sampling theory, statistical inference, etc.
C) General Studies
After the introduction of the post of Assistant Audit Officer (AAO), this paper has been added to the 2nd tier of the exam. You will get 120 minutes to attempt this paper. It has 100 questions and you will get 2 marks for every correct answer thus the maximum mark for this section is 200 marks. Just like the English proficiency test, you will find negative marking applicable here also.
Like every other exam one-fourth or 0.5 marks, in this case, will be deducted for every wrong answer you give. Thus, it is advised that you only answer questions that you have solved fully, as guessing answers will end up in the deduction of marks. This section will ask you questions about Economics and Finance. You will be asked questions about Indian and world economies. You should focus on the following topics to know how to prepare for SSC CGL:
1) Five Year Plans
2) Indian tax structure
3) Economic terms
4) Balance of payments
5) National and international financial institution
6) Economic Reforms in India
7) National income and aggregates
8) Money and Banking
How to prepare for SSC CGL TIER 3?
Communication skills
SSC CGL Tier is a recent update in the exam pattern of the examination. Earlier candidates had to sit for an interview but now a written descriptive paper has taken its place. This tier tests the candidate’s communication skills. In the exam, you have to write an essay or precis or letter or application.
This exam is for a total of 100 marks and you will get a total of 1 hour to write your essay or precis or letter, etc. Visually handicapped candidates get an extra 20 minutes and candidates suffering from cerebral palsy also get the extra 20 minutes. You can write this paper in English and Hindi. It prefers that you write it in the language you are comfortable in so that the chances of qualifying increases.
Tips:
This paper basically sees if you can communicate the requirements of your job well. The only tip for you to ace this paper is to practice. Just keep on writing on all the topics you can think of. You will find multiple essays and applications writing books in the market. You can take letter writing and essay writing online classes that will help you in identifying your mistakes and rectifying them.
Another important thing that you can do is to start reading more books. Read books and newspapers as much as you can. Notice the sentence structures and try to copy them in your answers. Reading the editorial section gives a boost to not only your grammar and vocabulary but also your style of writing. Official communication requires a lot of precision, do not beat around the bush in your letters or applications.
How to prepare for SSC CGL TIER 4?
The SSC CGL Tier 4 exam is only for those candidates who successfully qualify the tier 2 or the exam. You will not be eligible for Tier 2 if you have not cleared Tier 2 of the examination. This tier divided into parts and has 2 types of tests for you. The two tests are:
A) Computer Proficiency Test (CPT)
B) Data Entry Speed Test (DEST)
The objective of these tests is to test your computer skills. You will test your knowledge of software tools like Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and Excel. It also tests your typing skill and sees how fast you can type a certain number of words.
A) Computer Proficiency Test (CPT)?
This test divided into 3 modules. The three modules are as follows:
1. Word Processing:
This will test your typing skill and you will be given an English passage with 2000 characters which have to be typed in 15 minutes with all the correct punctuation marks. You can practice this yourself and you will find many online websites that will provide you with similar passages and help you time yourself.
2. Spread Sheet:
Your basic knowledge of MS Excel will be tested and you will be made to solve simple things like addition, multiplication, subtraction, and division on the Microsoft Excel sheet. You need to familiarise yourself with all the functions of MS Excel for this examination.
3. Generation of slides:
Your knowledge of Microsoft Powerpoint will be tested in this segment. You need to familiarise yourself with the various features of MS Powerpoint like footer, header, inserting time and date, and foundational skills to clear this exam.
B) Data Entry Speed Test (DEST)
DEST tests your typing speed where you will be given a passage with 2000 characters which has to be typed out in 15 minutes. This is also a very easy slide for candidates with regular practice.
We are 100% sure if you follow the above Tips, Strategy, and study material on How to crack SSC CGL then you will crack it easily.
