CMAT Strategy for GK
CMAT GK Strategy: How to crack GK in CMAT
CMAT is a national level test which is conducted by AICTE for admission into various B-schools in India. It is positively the last exam of the admission cycle and holds immense importance for MBA aspirants for their last chance to apply in all AICTE approved MBA institutes at all India level. CMAT is one of the exams that have a GK section in it and cracking the GK section can make or break your score. So, let’s look into more details on the CMAT GK section strategy.
What is CMAT all about?
CMAT is a computer-based online entrance test with a duration of 180 minutes and 100 multiple choice questions with a total of 400 marks spread across the following four sections. Incorrect answers will carry a penalty of 1 mark (including GK).
A breakup of the sections is given below:
|
Section Name
|
Number of questions
|
Total Marks
|
| Quantitative Techniques and Data Interpretation | 25 | 100 (+4 for each) |
| Logical Reasoning | 25 | 100 (+4 for each) |
| Language Comprehension |
25
|
100 (+4 for each) |
| General awareness | 25 | 100 (+4 for each) |
Strategy for GK in CMAT:
As you can see from the format mentioned above, GK has an equal weightage with the other sections. This means that you have to give a good focus on the GK section as well. If we look at the difficulty level, the GK section has an easy to moderate level of difficulty and is easier than the rest of the sections. This is a great advantage and hence, if you prepare for the GK section well you may be able to score well.
Out of the 25 questions, usually, the trend was that around majority questions came from Static Gk, while the rest used to come from Current affairs. However, in CMAT 2020 the paper has 24 questions from Static Gk and only 1 question from Current affairs. These static questions were also found to be difficult, from topics that are less known and confusing. This means you have to focus a lot on Static GK in CMAT. You will find the bifurcation of Static and current Gk in the table below for the last few years:
|
2020
|
2019
|
2018
|
|
|
STATIC
|
24
|
20
|
18
|
|
CURRENT
|
1
|
5
|
7
|
|
TOTAL
|
25
|
25
|
25
|
Some of the Important topics covered in the Gk section are:
- Books and Authors and Related Prizes / Awards
- Polity
- Indian History & Geography
- About different Countries, their Currency, Capital and Head of States
- About Brands, their Taglines, CEOs, Head Offices etc.
- Business News relevant to major companies
- International Organizations with special focus on UNO
- International Policies / Agreements / Pacts
- Sports
- Science
- Important Days and Dates
- Economy / Budget
Out of all these topics, CMAT 2020 saw 11 questions from Indian events, around 9 questions from International events, and 15 were a mix of all the above-stated topics.
What is CMAT all about?
How to prepare for it:
1) Reading news:
The most effective way to stay in getting general awareness is through reading news. Reading news has benefits for both static and current GK. While they do cover current affairs news, a lot of times newspapers also go deep into the past and nitty-gritty details of what lead to the event. A lot of times such questions are asked as static gk, so take note of this sort of information. Try to read the daily news from national papers like The Hindu, Times of India, etc. Try to use sticky notes for questions that you feel is very important. Static GK can also be covered by going through of Manorama Year Books.
The GK asked is usually from the last 90 days of the date of the exam. Hence, candidates must be at least aware of the last 90 days of current affairs, which can only happen if you read daily. So make full attempt to dedicate at least 1 hour daily in preparing for GK.
2) Take Notes:
To memorize and revise better, it is recommended that you maintain notes of all major GK topics and events. Writing down the facts actually helps memorize faster and for a longer time. Since you have soo much Static Gk to learn, the most efficient way will be to maintain a small book and revising it every day. This will ensure that you do not forget the previous topics as you learn the new ones.
3) Previous paper analysis:
This might be useful for papers like CMAT, where you can gauge the type of questions that are usually asked in exams. For example, from 2020 paper you now know that international news is also important. Similarly, such patterns can be identified and you can work on these areas diligently.
Also read: List of Brand Taglines (updated 2020)
4) Take care of accuracy:
As mentioned above, negative mark applies for GK section too. This means that you cannot go about marking the answers for questions that you are not sure of. Each mark will count and to get into the 99 percentile range you can’t take that risk. So, try to be as accurate as possible. An accuracy rate of 70-80% should be targeted in this section.
5) Don’t spend too much time on the exam day:
Ensure that you don’t spend more than 15 minutes on the GK section. Identify the ones you know quickly and solve them. It’s either you know the answer or you don’t, so without wasting time get on with the other sections once you are done with GK.
6) Solve mocks:
Solving sample questions can help a lot. So try to solve a few mocks that include the GK section before the exam. You can also try to solve just model questions on GK, they will also give you better confidence on the exam day. You can get access to CMAT specific Gk questions from our Gk course designed by experts.
Conclusion:
Overall, focus more on Static GK and keep making a continuous effort towards learning GK. Try to be aware of things happening around the world. Remember that this is not a one-day activity, if you really want to score good and get into the 99percentile range, you need to focus on Gk and start your preparations now.
I hope you liked this article on CMAT GK strategy. Do check out the static GK on our page also that would be useful for your CMAT GK preparations.
Related links: Top colleges accepting CMAT scores
