The RRB NTPC (Non-Technical Popular Categories) exams are conducted for recruitment to posts such as accounts clerk cum typist, junior clerk cum typist, junior timekeeper, commercial cum ticket clerk, trains clerk, goods guard, senior clerk cum typist, senior commercial cum ticket clerk, senior timekeeper, traffic assistant, junior account assistant cum typist, station masters, and commercial apprentice across zonal railways as well as different production units of the Indian Railways. The exam conducted by the Railway Recruitment Board (RRB) provides an excellent opportunity for graduates to secure a government job in the prestigious railway's sector.
The RRB NTPC syllabus, though not high on difficulty level, is certainly vast. It is, therefore, crucial for aspirants to start their preparation at the earliest possible and come up with a strategic study plan based on the exam pattern and syllabus. This is where the RRB NTPC previous year papers play an important role. Working with these question papers right from the beginning, helps candidates understand how different topics feature in the exam.
Exam Pattern
The first step toward your preparation for the RRB NTPC exam is to understand the exam pattern. This makes you better poised to work through the syllabus as well as attempt the RRB NTPC exam question papers.
The RRB NTPC recruitment process is divided into five stages – Stage 1 Computer Based Test (CBT), Stage 2 CBT, Typing Skill Test or Computer-based Aptitude Test (depending on the post), document verification and medical examination.
The Stage 1 CBT or CBT prelims is a 100-mark paper comprising three sections – general awareness, mathematics, and general intelligence & reasoning, carrying 40, 30 and 30 marks, respectively. Each question in the exam carries one mark and there is a provision of negative marking of 1/3rd marks for every wrong answer. The duration of the exam is 90 minutes. Candidates are shortlisted for the Stage 2 CBT based on an aggregation of scores in the preliminary exams.
The Stage 2 CBT or CBT main exam also comprises three sections – general awareness, mathematics, and general intelligence & reasoning carrying 50, 35, 35 questions, respectively, of one mark each. The total weightage of the CBT mains is 120 marks and there is a provision of negative marking of 1/3rd marks for each wrong answer in this test as well.
The computer-based aptitude test (CBAT) is applicable for the posts of traffic assistant and station master whereas typing skill test (TST) is conducted for the posts of junior timekeeper, junior clerk cum typist, accounts clerk cum typist, junior account assistant cum typist, senior clerk cum typist, and senior timekeeper.
Candidates qualifying the Stag 2 CBT exam are called for the CBAT or TST, as applicable, and those who clear this third stage of the selection the process then have to go through document verification and medical examination before they can get their appointment letters for their chosen posts under the RRB NTPC.
The Right Approach to Solving RRB NTPC Previous Year Papers
The goal of practicing with RRB NTPC past year papers is to build upon your speed and accuracy, so that you can attempt the actual exams without the constraints of time, negative marking and intense competition holding you back. Here’s how you can make most of the RRB NTPC previous year papers:
- Always start your RRB NTPC past year papers attempt with your strongest suit, saving the sections you find trickier for later.
- Before you start answering, go through the questions in any given section in a sequential manner, and assess which ones you can solve with certainty.
- Start by answering questions you are absolutely sure about and then revisit the section to answer the questions may know the answers to.
- Since there is a provision of negative marking in both the RRB NTPC exams, skip the ones you have no idea about. Making wild guesses is not worth the risk and may prove detrimental to your performance.
- Time all your RRB NTPC Solved Previous year question papers attempts and endeavor to finish the entire paper within the allotted time limit.
- Make it a habit to read every question at least twice before answering. This ensures that you fully understand a question and do not end up inadvertently selecting the wrong answer.
- However, do not spend too much time on a single question. If you can’t seem to solve it, move on.
Benefits of Solving RRB NTPC Previous Year Papers
Solving the RRB NTPC previous year papers can mean the difference between success and failure. Here’s how the RRB NTPC past year papers help bolster your performance:
- Solving RRB NTPC past year papers right from the beginning gives you the advantage of knowing the nature of questions asked in the exam like the back of your hand.
- It gives you an in-depth idea of the difficulty levels of both the Stage 1 and Stage 2 CBT.
- Comparing the questions from the past 10 years of Railway NTPC previous year papers with the topics covered in your RRB NTPC books helps you identify the important portions of the syllabus. This way you can focus your time and effort on studying topics that really matter.
- You get a reality check on your preparation for the exam.
- It helps in improving your accuracy, speed, and test-taking strategy.
At KopyKitab, we have put together an exhaustive collection of RRB NTPC previous year question papers PDF download options for both Stage 1 and Stage 2 CBTs. These railways NTPC Previous Year question papers PDF download choices combined with some of the best-selling RRB NTPC books are all you need to make it through the RRB NTPC recruitment process, besides lots of diligent hard work, of course.
