GK XAT, IIFT, SNAP,

CMAT, MAT etc.

 GK for XAT, IIFT, SNAP, CMAT, MAT etc.

A number of MBA entrance exams like IIFT, CMAT, MAT, SNAP etc. feature a separate section based on
general awareness or general knowledge. Students tend to ignore and undermine this section over
other sections of exam. But GK section can prove to be the most scoring section, since it involves no
calculation work. If you prepare it consistently, you can save time and improve accuracy to a great
extent. Generally, GK component of exam comprises of Static GK and Current GK.

How to prepare Static GK:

You may expect questions from the following sub-topics in Static GK:
History - It can be further divided into Indian and World History, Indian History, especially after
the 1857 revolt is more important.
Geography - You can expect general questions from geographical features from India and across
the world. Questions on theoretical aspects of geography, like mechanism of earthquakes,
volcanoes etc. are rarely asked.
Economy - This is an important section for all MBA entrance tests. You can expect questions
from theoretical as well as practical aspects of Indian and World Economy, with special focus in
India's macroeconomic indicators, like inflationary trends, GDP etc.
Companies and Brands - Expect questions regarding location of headquarters of major
companies and parent companies of famous brands, e.g. Lifebuoy etc.
Indian Political System & Constitution - In this, you may be asked questions on the working of
the Indian Political System e.g. political parties, pressure groups etc. Also, as far as the
constitution is concerned, expect questions on major Articles, Schedules and Constitutional
Amendments. Further, features of major social schemes launched by the central government in
the past are very important.
Organizations - Major world organizations including economic organizations like WTO, IMF, and
WB are important. Various political global groupings like UN and regional groups like ASEAN,
SAARC, etc. are also important. You can expect questions from Indian organizations, especially
Constitutional bodies like EC, CAG, UPSC, as well as major statutory organizations like RBI, SEBI
etc.
Science &Technology - Focus is more on questions from application of science rather than
theoretical aspects of Physics and Chemistry. Further, you can expect questions on technologies
involved in communication, IT, space, biotechnology etc.
Sports - In this, you may be asked questions like, the sport with which a sportsperson or trophy
is associated.
Miscellaneous - This section includes questions on various awards and honors, important
international dates, books and authors etc.

While the syllabus for the Static GK section seems to be very vast, it can be done effectively if we choose
authentic and reliable resources to study from. "India 2017", popularly known as the "India Year Book"
(by Publication Division, Government of India) is one such source. This book can be downloaded for free
as well. Also, you may refer to Year Books (2017) from various publishers like Manorama, TMH etc.
Further, you may also refer to the following government
websites: www.india.gov.in,www.ibef.org, www.pib.nic.in. You can also refer to GK Junction.

How to prepare Current GK:

Questions from Current GK will focus on the important national and international events in the past 12
months in the areas mentioned below:
Economy - Economy is the most important topic in GK, and each year you can expect 5-10
question from it in all MBA entrance tests. Economy can be divided into two parts, namely,
World Economy and Indian Economy. In World Economy, you can expect questions related to
the decisions and important meetings of global economic organizations like IMF, WB, WTO etc.
Keep a tab on reports and major highlights of such organizations. New organizations that have
been recently formed, e.g. NDB, AIIB etc. are also important.
Indian Economy is more important for MBA competitive examinations. So you must keep a note
of major economic and financial decisions of the union government, with special focus on the
most recently released budget. Also, recent trends in various macro-economic indicators like,
inflation, GDP etc are important.
Business & Corporate News - This section is also very important, especially for the IIFT and
SNAP examinations. In this, you can expect question related to recent mergers and acquisitions,
with a special focus on acquisitions by Indian companies abroad. Also, new appointments at top
positions of major Indian and Foreign companies are also relevant for exams. Questions may be
asked on a new motto or tag line of a major company.
Indian Polity - In this, you can expect questions on important laws, bills and constitutional
amendments, recently passed or being considered by the government. New appointments at
high levels of government, especially constitutional posts are important. Questions may be
asked on the terms of reference of a committee established by the government of India in
recent time. Further, you must also note down any new social sector scheme and its features
recently announced by the government.
Organizations - Any major decisions made by or events related to major world and Indian
organizations are important as questions may be asked on them. Further, any new organization
that has been established recently like the TPP is important. Further, you can expect questions
on heads of such organizations, if they have been changed recently.
New Developments in Science & Technology - In this, expect questions on recent
breakthroughs and achievements in science related to communication, space, defense,
biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, IT etc. If you look at the past year questions papers, you will
invariably find 2-5 questions from this section in various MBA entrance examinations.
People in News - You can expect questions to be asked on people who have been in news for
various reasons. Thus, keep a note of winners of international awards, authors of recently
released books, etc. If an Indian or a Person of Indian Origin (PIO) is honored internationally,
then a question on him/ her can be expected.
Sport - In the Sport section, questions may be asked related to recently held international level
tournaments across various sports and the cities in which they were organized. Also, keep a tab
of the winners of major international trophies, especially if there has been a winner from India.
 Miscellaneous - It would include questions that cannot be categorized under any of the above
topics like those related to India's foreign policy, international political news, major
international day celebrations, cultural festivals of India, etc.

The best source to prepare current GK is the newspaper. Besides newspapers, you may prepare current
affairs of the last 12 months from any reputed competition specific magazine like Competition Success
Review, Pratiyogita Darpan etc.

The percentage breakup of weightage given to various areas of GK in the latest MBA entrance exams is
shown as follows:

MAT Feb 2016: GK

The MAT GK section consists of 40 questions, with 1 mark being awarded for every correct answer and
0.25 deducted for an incorrect answer. While the marks of the GK section are not considered while
calculating the MAT percentile but a number of MAT institutions consider candidates GK score in the
second round. Also, some B-Schools accepting MAT scores have sectional cutoffs for GK. Current GK
questions usually dominate MAT GK section.
 CMAT 2017: GK

Unlike other exams, CMAT gives equal weightage to all the sections, including GK section. The level of
difficulty of CMAT GK varies from easy to moderate. Questions are generally asked from topics that
feature frequently in newspapers. Also, GK section can prove to be highly time-efficient, given that there
are no sectional time limits in CMAT.
 IIFT 2016: GK

The weightage of GK section in IIFT is not fixed and has varied in the past. Generally, the weightage of
GK has been less in IIFT exam. The level of difficulty of GK in IIFT is relatively more than other MBA
entrance tests. From the previous year papers analysis, we can say that more than 50% of the questions
asked in GK section were from Static GK. You need to be careful in choosing the questions and focus on
clearing the sectional cutoff.
XAT 2017: GK
Areas No. Questions Percentage
Geography 8 32
History 2 8
Economy & Business Environment 1 4
International Organisations 3 12
Science & Technology 2 8
Current Affair 4 16
Misc GK 4 16
Total 25 100

The number of questions in the GK section of XAT is not fixed. The level of difficulty of XAT GK is
more compared to SNAP, MAT and CMAT. GK section of XAT 2017 comprised of 25 questions.
Difficulty level of the GK section was moderate. Major areas of questions were Geography,
History, Science & Tech., International organizations, Economy, Miscellaneous GK & Current
affairs. An attempt of 14-15 Questions will be a good attempt and 9-10 Marks is an achievable
score.
SNAP 2016: GK
Areas Questions Percentage
National 3 10
International 13 43
Awards 4 13
Business 3 10
Sports 5 17
Miscellaneous GK 2 7
Total 30 100

The GK Section in SNAP is comprises of 30 questions out of the total 150 questions. Generally, current
GK dominates the GK section of SNAP. The level of difficulty of SNAP GK varies from easy to moderate.
Since, there is so sectional time limit in SNAP, you can utilize the extra time for other sections. You
should not spend more than 10-15 minutes on GK section.