How Do I Prepare for The EKT AFCAT?

The Indian Air Force conducts The Air Force Common Admission Test or AFCAT to appoint Class-I Gazetted Officers in Flying and Ground Duties. Candidates opting for ground duties (technical) get to appear for an additional exam is conducted for Engineering Knowledge Test or EKT.  Candidates applying for ground duty posts (technical) have to attempt both technical as well as non-technical papers:

Non-technical paper:

1.     General Awareness
2.     Verbal Ability
3.     Reasoning and Numerical Ability
4. Military Aptitude Test.

AFCAT EKT technical paper:

1.     General Engineering
2. Specialist paper (as per the engineering preference).

The general engineering paper includes three subjects:

1.               Engineering Mathematics
2.               Engineering Physics
3.               Engineering Drawing

 Exam Pattern:

• The non-technical paper has 100 questions for a total of 300 marks.
• The technical paper (EKT exam) has 50 questions for a total of 150 marks.
• Each correct answer carries 3 marks. Negative marking is applicable i.e., 1 mark is deducted for every wrong attempt.

Expert Tips & Strategies to Perform Well in EKT AFCAT:

Now that we are done discussing the syllabus and patterns, let’s get down to objectives: this examination is conducted to check your Engineering knowledge. You may not have to learn a lot of new things, really, but you must revise everything you have learned. In order to master what the test asks of the aspirants, the experts suggest the following tips and strategies:

Study as Per Syllabus:

The first and the most important step that you can’t afford to miss or delay in any exam preparation is “going through the exam syllabus carefully”. So first thing, pull out the EKT AFCAT exam syllabus and do thorough research. Find out your strong and weak areas. Frame your study timetable accordingly.

Study Smart:

You won’t be able to cover the entire syllabus a day before the exam. So, it’s a must to make short notes and formulae lists as those will help you during last-minute revisions before the EKT AFCAT exam.

Practice Plenty of Mock Tests:

Students often complain that they can correctly solve questions during preparation but fail to solve them in the examination hall. The problem here lies in not taking enough mock tests. Mock tests make us familiar with the questions and also improve our time management.

Balance Speed with Accuracy:

Learn the balance between speed and accuracy. There’s negative marking so go for the questions which you are sure about and attempt the difficult questions later.

Master & Memorize the Formulas:

The syllabus of EKT is vast as it tests your entire graduation knowledge in a single test. Formulas play a very important role in EKT exams. So, make sure you have made a separate list of all the formulas and memorize them thoroughly before the test. They help save time during the exam.

Solve Previous Years’ Questions:

Solve previous years’ question papers and model test papers as they help in your much-needed practice before the exams. They also make you aware of different types of questions and gauge your preparation level. This helps in planning your preparation for the examination easily.

Most Importantly, Get a Good Test Series:

Test-series are the most important part of any examination. A good test-series shows your detailed report of where you stand among other aspirants in terms of performance. There are many websites like Testbook that offer free subject-wise mock tests (EKT CS, EKT EE, EKT ME), test-series, and thousands of study materials related to EKT-AFCAT. You can subscribe/register yourself there too for regular updates.

Book References for EKT AFCAT:

Non-Technical:

• Lucent’s General Knowledge
• Modern Approach to Verbal & Non-Verbal Reasoning by R.S. Agarwal
• Analytical Reasoning by M K Pandey

Technical:

• Objective General Engineering by G.K. Publisher
• Let’s Crack EKT (All in One) by Shaurya Publications
• AFCAT (Flying technical & ground duty branch) by Arihant Publications

If you are applying for the EKT AFCAT, it’s always advisable to subscribe to some informative websites like Testbook that provide free practice exercises, mock tests, preparation tips, and steps to crack the AFCAT recruitment process.

 We wish you all the best!