SNAP Preparation 2025: Section-Wise Tips & Strategy from Experts

For an effective SNAP preparation, candidates must make a plan which includes the following:

·       Timeline of syllabus coverage, practice and revision session

·       Time bound syllabus coverage (at least a month before the exam day)

·       Daily practice sessions of SNAP mock tests or sample papers

·       Daily revision of important chapters, concepts and formula

·       Regular problem solving sessions with peers and mentors

As per the latest SNAP exam pattern, the question paper comprises three sections – General English, Analytical & Logical Reasoning and Quantitative-Data Interpretation & Data Sufficiency. The total number of questions in SNAP is 60 which is to be solved in 60 minutes. The General Awareness section was scrapped in 2020. Sectional break up is as follows:

• General English: 15 questions
• Analytical & Logical Reasoning: 25 questions
• Quantitative-Data Interpretation & Data Sufficiency: 20 questions

The marking scheme of all three sections is same. One mark is awarded for correct attempt and 0.25 marks is deducted for incorrect attempt. It is not mandatory to solve all the questions in SNAP. Candidates can solve 75 percent of the questions accurately to expect a 98-99 percentile.

The SNAP General English syllabus is similar to that of other MBA entrance exams. It includes passages, Syllogisms, Analogies, Grammar, Antonym-Synonym, One Word Substitution, Similar Sounding Words, Parajumbles and Fill in the Blanks. This is the shortest section of SNAP having only 15 questions. Most of the questions are usually based on English grammar. For the past 2 years, no Reading Comprehension passage is seen in the exam. However, candidates still need to practice Reading Comprehension passages as it has not been completely scrapped. Preparation for the exam as per the SNAP syllabus requires not much time to prepare if your English is strong. But if it is not, then you must start studying English much earlier as developing hold on a language requires time.

Freshers should start Quantitative Aptitude preparation with NCERT Mathematics books of Class 9 and 10 for getting fundamental understanding of the topics and concepts. Once they have grasped the concepts of Algebra, Trigonometry, Mensuration, Geometry and other topics of Arithmetic, then move on to books with advanced level of Quantitative Aptitude topics. Arun Sharma’s books on preparation for Quantitative Aptitude (also VARC and DILR books) are highly recommended as they are exhaustive and contain test papers of various difficulty levels. With the help of Arun Sharma books, you can understand the concepts and learn application to different type of Mathematical problems. In addition to that, you should refer to other Quant books and sample papers.

For preparation of General English section of SNAP exam, candidates must study the following books:

• Word Power Made Easy by Norman Lewis
• High School English Grammar & Composition by Wren & Martin
• Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension for the CAT by Nishit K Sinha
• How to Prepare for Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension for CAT by Arun Sharma & Meenakshi Upadhyay

Apart from these books, candidates need to develop reading habit to improve comprehension, writing and vocabulary, which will be immensely helpful at the time of selection for Group Exercise, Writing Ability Test and Personal Interview. To improve English language, you should read books, novels, magazines, business research papers, newspapers. You should also watch English series, movies and TV programmes to learn new words and expressions.

SNAP syllabus for Quantitative Aptitude includes topics of Data Interpretation as well. Candidates have to study Algebra, Geometry, Trigonometry, Mensuration, Number System, Logarithm, Linear Equations & Quadratic Equations, Set Theory, Arithmetic, Progressions, Binomial Theorem, Surds and Indices, Inequalities, Permutation & Combination, Probability Functions, Mixtures & Alligations, Co-ordinate Geometry, Series, Graphs-Pie Chart, Bar Graphs and Tables as part of SNAP Quantitative Aptitude syllabus.

The SNAP Quantitative Aptitude section includes Data Interpretation and Data Sufficiency. The total number of questions in this section is 20 and the section is dominated by Arithmetic. Since the past two years, no Data Sufficiency questions have been asked. So, candidates must focus more on Quantitative Aptitude while preparing for the SNAP exam. This section is all about accuracy so have complete clarity of concepts and theorems.

SNAP English section has 15 questions and all are based on grammar and vocabulary, so it is very critical to have a good control on English Grammar. To strengthen English grammar, one should start with basics. Study from Wren & Martin for best results. You can also seek help from a mentor or study from English grammar apps.

Every candidate can make three attempts in SNAP exam. The SNAP exam is conducted in three sessions in a gap of one or two weeks. Candidates can mention their number of attempts in the SNAP application form. However, they will have to pay application fee per session. Thus, candidates who are sure of making multiple attempts only then they should apply for multiple sessions as the fee amount is non-refundable.  The scores of best attempt will be taken into consideration for shortlisting of candidates for Group Exercise, Personal Interview and Writing Ability Test.

Ideally candidates must take all three attempts as the difficulty level of the sessions could be different and it may so happen that one session is easy and candidates can score high in that.

SNAP mock test is an important part of exam preparation but they should know when to start practicing it. The candidates should start solving mock tests only after completing the SNAP syllabus. October-November is the ideal month to start solving mock tests for SNAP exam preparation as the exam is conducted in December. Those preparing for other entrance exams simultaneously, can practice SNAP mock test without completing the syllabus also as they would be already familiar with the topics, concepts, theorems, etc. Those who have attempted SNAP before, can start their preparation by attempting a SNAP mock test to see how much do they remember. Candidates should start solving the full length SNAP mock tests only when they are confident about every chapter and topic included in the SNAP syllabus.

Candidates should solve only one full-length SNAP mock test in a day. After each mock test, they should assess their performance and identify the gaps to fill during preparation. Also, they should not solve SNAP mock test daily. Give yourself a breather for revision of the chapters that posed challenge in the previous mock test. Work on those problem areas and then pick another mock test. Ideally, candidates must solve about 30 SNAP mock tests to crack the exam with good scores so, start practicing the mock tests from two months before the exam date and continue to solve a mock test in a gap of one day until you reach their desired score. Stop once you reach the desired score. However, do attempt one SNAP mock test in the last week before the exam to keep the confidence level high.

After attempting every SNAP mock test, check how many questions you could solve accurately in the given time. Analyse questions of which topics took more than one minute to solve, how much time it took to read Reading Comprehension passages, how tricky were the Logical Reasoning questions and which were the questions you could not attempt at all. You need to assess three things, time taken on every type of question, accuracy achieved on every question and the number of questions completed in 60 minutes. The next step is to note the trend of your performance viz. the topics and chapters. The topics that are difficult for you, need more attention or revision before the next mock test attempt. You should aim to achieve better score with every consequent SNAP mock test.

SNAP is one of the few MBA entrance exams which is easy in terms of difficulty level. It is much easier The number of questions, as well as the exam duration are less that than other MBA entrance exams. The type of questions asked in SNAP as also pretty straightforward.

Moreover, SNAP exam is held thrice for candidates to repeat attempts, which allows candidates to improve their score if they want to. The SNAP syllabus is same as other MBA entrance exam and there are no questions on Reading Comprehension or Data Sufficiency. This makes the SNAP exam much easier to crack than other exams.

Since 2020, the exam is conducted for only 60 minutes and the total number of questions asked is also 60. The first section of SNAP question paper is General English, the second section is Analytical & Logical Reasoning and the third section is Quantitative, Data Interpretation & Data Sufficiency.

Until 2019, Quantitative, Data Interpretation & Data Sufficiency section of SNAP exam used to have the maximum number of questions (40), but from SNAP 2020, the Analytical and Logical Reasoning section has maximum number of questions (25). Now, Quantitative, Data Interpretation & Data Sufficiency section has only 20 questions. The main topics from which questions are asked in this section are, Family Tree/Blood Relations, Seating Arrangement, Clocks & Calendars, Critical Reasoning, Coding/Decoding, Direction Sense, Syllogisms, Visual Reasoning, Analogy & Series, Mathematical Reasoning, Meaningful Word/Matrix and Verbal & Miscellaneous Reasoning. To prepare for this section of SNAP, candidates must practice a lot of sample questions of all difficulty levels –easy, medium and tough. There are no formulae or concepts on Logical Reasoning so the preparation is majorly dependent on practice.

The Quantitative Aptitude question of SNAP are easy to moderate in nature. Most of the questions are direct and not calculation intensive. The questions are usually asked from Arithmetic Geometry, Mensuration P&C/Probability Algebra and Numbers.

One month is too less a time to prepare for not only SNAP but also any other exam. You need at least three months to prepare for the SNAP exam, but even for that you need to be familiar with the SNAP syllabus. If you’ve studied Quantitative Aptitude, Data Interpretation, Logical Reasoning, Analytical Reasoning and Verbal Ability for MBA entrance exams, then you can prepare decently for SNAP in such a short span of time. All you would need to do is, practice sample questions and mock tests. Practice of sample questions and SNAP mock tests will improve your skills to handle Quantitative Aptitude, Data Interpretation, Logical Reasoning, Analytical Reasoning and Verbal Ability questions with speed and accuracy. You will also need some time to revise all the chapters which you will do a few days before the exam. So, instead of starting to prepare for SNAP just a month before the exam, get on to it at least three months before.

There is no definite number of mock test that the candidate should practice. It totally depends on the candidate’s ability and strength viz a viz the SNAP syllabus. Some candidates need less number of SNAP mock tests to reach the optimum level of preparation whereas some candidates need more number of SNAP mock tests to reach the optimum level.

At the same time, it is recommended that on an average, candidates should practice at least 25-30 SNAP mock tests to perform well in the exam. Candidates should also analyse each and every mock test performance to know their progress. With every consecutive mock test, they should be able to score higher than previous mock test. Every candidate must decide upon the number and quality of mock tests based on their preparation level. They neither should solve less mock tests nor over-do it.