SSC CGL 2025 drew 28 lakh applications for about 14,500 posts. Most of those candidates never finish the syllabus. Three months is enough for Tier-1 if you stop collecting resources and start solving questions on day one.
Know the paper before you study
- Tier-1: 100 questions, 200 marks, 60 minutes. Four sections of 25 questions each: Reasoning, General Awareness, Quantitative Aptitude, English. Negative marking is 0.50 per wrong answer.
- Tier-2 Paper-1 is the one that decides selection: Maths (30 q), Reasoning (30 q), English (45 q), General Awareness (25 q), Computer (20 q). Each question carries 3 marks, minus 1 for a wrong answer.
- Only Tier-1 is qualifying for most posts; your Tier-2 score is what gets ranked. Prepare for Tier-2 from the start.
Month 1 — build the base
- Maths: finish Arithmetic first (percentage, profit and loss, ratio, time and work, speed-distance, SI/CI). These are 60% of the paper and the fastest to score.
- English: 30 minutes a day on grammar rules (subject-verb agreement, tenses, prepositions). One passage of reading daily.
- Reasoning: practise 50 questions a day from previous-year papers; most patterns repeat.
- GA: start a current-affairs notebook from today and revise it weekly. Static GK comes from previous-year questions, not textbooks.
Month 2 — speed and coverage
- Maths: Advanced topics now (Geometry, Trigonometry, Mensuration, Algebra). Learn the 20 standard results, then solve 40 questions a day under time.
- English: vocabulary from previous-year papers (one-word substitution, idioms, synonyms). Start one full English sectional every other day.
- Take one Tier-1 full mock every Sunday. Analyse every wrong answer the same day.
Month 3 — mock and revise
- One full mock a day, alternating Tier-1 and Tier-2 pattern. Target 150+ in Tier-1 and 80% accuracy.
- Stop learning new topics after day 75. Revise formula sheets, error log, and current affairs.
- In the last week, sleep on time and solve only easy and medium questions to protect accuracy.
Daily schedule that works
Six hours is enough if they are focused: 2 hours Maths, 1.5 hours English, 1 hour Reasoning, 1 hour GA, 30 minutes revising yesterday’s mistakes. Working candidates can split this across morning and night; the Maths block must stay daily.