Lakhs of aspirants set their hearts on the coveted SSC CGL Exam every year and carry a lurking desire of joining the Central Government Ministries, Departments and Organizations as Group B & Group C Officers and Assistants. But only the ones who put in their hearts and souls in the preparation, finally clear all the Tiers of the Exam and emerge victorious on the final result day.
Tier 1 of the SSC CGL 2019 Exam is scheduled in March 2020. And this is the most appropriate time that aspirants who have applied for various posts under the SSC CGL 2019 exam, pull up their socks and start preparing wholeheartedly. For starting the studies, be it any examination, one needs to have a clear understanding of the syllabus, books & resources to refer, a daily study plan and a personalised preparation strategy so that the exam is cracked in the very first attempt.
Let us unveil the strategy to score 185+ marks out of 200 in the Tier 1 of SSC CGL 2019 Exam here in this article.
How to Score 185+ in SSC CGL Tier 1 Exam? – Know Here
Tier 1 Score is extremely important as the marks that you score in each of the Tiers of SSC CGL exam are added to arrive at the final scores. If you score considerably high marks in Tier 1 Exam, then it will definitely give you an edge over your competitors. Going forward if you score a little less in any of the papers of Tier-II exam, nothing to worry then, your Tier I marks would take you through.
Let us have a quick look at the exam pattern below:
SSC CGL Exam Pattern 2020: Tier 1
| Sr. No. | Name of Test | No. of Questions | Max Marks | Duration |
| 1. | General Intelligence & Reasoning | 25 | 50 | 60 mins |
| 2. | General Awareness | 25 | 50 | |
| 3. | Quantitative Aptitude | 25 | 50 | |
| 4. | English Comprehension | 25 | 50 | |
| Total | 100 | 200 |
There is a negative marking of 0.50 for every wrong answer. The questions will be set both in English & Hindi Languages except for the test of English Comprehension in Tier 1.
Now let us discuss the detailed strategy for Tier 1 of SSC CGL exam 2019 in this article.
Most Important Pointers to be kept in mind:
- Give special emphasis on the previous years’ SSC papers. Solve the previous years’ SSC papers multiple times.
- Mock Testswill play a key role in your preparation. Do take up regular mock tests, attempt them as if you are attempting real exam. Understand what kind of questions are being asked in the Mock Tests and watch if you are able to attempt those questions in the time given.
- Devise your attempt strategyas to how much time is to be given to each of the sections.
- After taking up the Mock Tests, sit and understand how you performed. The mock test analysiswill give you the correct idea about your performance.
- Devote adequate time to each of the sections in your preparation schedule. Do not make a mistake of ignoring a particular section while making your study plan. Remember each section has its own importance.
We would take up each of the sections asked in Tier I paper and go about understanding how to approach them in this limited time remaining with us.
- English Comprehension
- Grammar Based Questions
| Sr. No. | Topics Asked | No. of Questions (Approx.) | Books/Resources |
| 1. | Error Spotting | 2-3 | a. Follow Oliveboard’s YouTube Channel for daily study. Follow Oliveboard’s SSC & RRB Express YouTube for dedicated SSC Content Videos.
b. Follow any standard Grammar Book for concept building. c. solve previous years question papers. d. Take up regular Mock Tests. e. Analyse each Mock Test thoroughly and understand the areas that need improvement. |
| 2. | Sentence Improvement | 2-3 | |
| 3. | Sentence Completion | 2-3 | |
| 4. | Direct/Indirect Speech | 1-2 | |
| 5. | Active/Passive Voice | 1-2 | |
| 6. | Question Tag | 1 |
- Vocabulary Based Questions
These questions are very easy to attempt as these would take the least time to attempt but only if you know the right answers. You can also make intelligent guesses but more or less you ought to know the right answers to gain marks.
And the only way to do this is to read daily and prepare for it on a regular basis.
| Sr. No. | Topics | No. of Questions (Approx.) | Books & Resources |
| 1. | Synonyms | 1 | a. Go through the Previous Years Vocab questions.
b. Attend daily Vocabulary Classes. c. Read Newspapers Daily (especially Editorial) d. Revise the words that you learnt regularly. |
| 2. | Antonyms | 1 | |
| 3. | One-word Substitution | 2-3 | |
| 4. | Idioms & Phrases | 2-3 | |
| 5. | Spelling Errors | 1 |
- English Comprehension Based
Read a lot. Devote at least 20 minutes to reading newspapers articles, other informative articles that you find online and last but not the least books if time permits. This will improve your reading speed as well as your comprehension abilities.
| Sr. No. | Topics | No. of Questions (Approx.) | Books & Resources |
| 1. | Reading Comprehension or Cloze Test | 5 | a. Practice & Solve Previous Year Questions.
b. Develop a reading habit. c. Practice a lot of questions on RCs, Cloze tests and Sentence Rearrangement. d. Take up Mock Tests. |
| 2. | Sentence Rearrangement | 2 |
- General Awareness (Static + Dynamic)
| Type | Topics | Resources |
| Static GA | 1. History (Ancient, Medieval & Modern)
2. Geography 3. Polity 4. Economics 5. Science & Technology 6. Miscellaneous Topics |
a. Follow Standard GK Books and NCERTs.
(Lucent or Arihant, Made Easy) b. Go through the Previous Years Questions. c. Read and revise GA daily for at least ½ to 1 hour. d. Make Short Notes so that you can have a quick revision session before exam. |
Point to be kept in mind while preparing for the General Awareness Section:
- Once you go through the books, read it very attentively. When you read it twice, try and make short notes of important points and facts. These will help you when you revise the same topics right before the exam.
| Type | Topics | Resources |
| Dynamic GA | 1. Note down the major Govt. Schemes (Past 6 month prior to the exam)
2. Important Events (Past 6 month prior to the exam) 3. Important Days 4. Books & Authors 5. Sports News (Medals) 6. Miscellaneous |
a. Follow the Daily News Analysis.
b. Read & Revise the Monthly CA Magazines (Bolt). c. Go through the current affairs daily for at least ½ to 1 hour. d. Make short notes of important topics. |
- Quantitative Aptitude
| Type | Topics | Resources |
| Arithmetic | 1. Percentage
2. Ratio & Proportion 3. SI & CI 4. Mixture & Alligations 5. Time & Work 6. Speed, Time & Distance 7. Ages & Averages |
a. Follow Standard Books for concept clarity and Oliveboard’s Youtube Channel.
b. Solve Previous Years Questions. c. Take up regular Mock Tests. d. Memorise Important Formulae, Tips & Tricks. e. Work on your calculations. |
| Type | Topics | Resources |
| Advanced | 1. Geometry
2. Mensuration 3. Algebra 4. Trigonometry 5. Number System |
a. Follow Standard Books for concept clarity and Oliveboard’s Youtube Channel.
b. Solve Previous Years Questions. c. Take up Mock Tests. d. Memorise Important Formulae, Tips & Tricks. |
- General Intelligence & Reasoning
| Type | Topics | Resources |
| Reasoning | 1. Missing Number Series
2. Wrong Number Series 3. Dice Based Questions 4. Counting of Figures 5. Calendar Based Questions 6. Clock Based Questions |
a. Follow Standard Books for concept clarity
b. Solve Previous Years Questions. c. Take up Mock Tests. |
This was all from us in this article. If you follow the topics, resources and strategy given in here, we are sure that you would also be able to score 185+ marks out of 200 in SSC CGL 2019 Tier 1 Exam.
Do read the tips given below to successfully clear the exam in your very first attempt.
- Read, Practise & Revise on a daily basis.
Remember your consistent efforts and persistence throughout this preparation journey will sail you through.
- Make a study plan
Start your day with the daily schedule – be it for Maths, Reasoning, English or GA. And make sure you revise whatever you have learnt when you end your study session.
- Do solve practise papers & previous years papers
Practising previous years papers will definitely help you score better in Mock Tests as well as in the real exam. It would aid you in understanding what needs to be studied and what can be ignored.
- Sign up for Mock Tests
- Mock tests play an instrumental role in your success in competitive exams. This is because these tests are close to the pattern and difficulty level of the real exam.
- There will be a timer just like the entrance exam and you will be under the same pressure. So, this will give you a hint as to what the exam will actually be like.
- Thus, you can figure out how well are you performing under stress and how much time each section is taking up.
- Based on the results and feedback, you can tweak your strategy and work at those sections that are troubling you. g
- Learn to cope with stress
Preparing for SSC CGL is no child’s play. You will be under a lot of stress and anxiety. But these are not conducive to smart study. So, you have to learn to manage your stress.
Here are a few tips that might help:
- Find a hobby and let it take your mind off the worries and anxiety.
- Practising meditation and yoga can be good idea.
- Working out 3-4 times a week can be good for your mind and body.
- Monitor what you eat. Try and eat healthy and avoid junk food.
We hope that the above given Tips and Resources prove useful to you. Be regular, be consistent, be true to yourself and success will be yours.
All the Best for the Exam!
