A four-month RRB NTPC plan: month by month, week by week

Four months is about 120 days. At five to six hours a day, that is roughly 600 to 700 hours of study. It is enough to cover the CBT 1 syllabus properly and build exam speed, but only if the hours are spent in the right order. Most candidates who fail with four months in hand did not lack hours. They spent the first two months collecting books and videos and the last two panicking.

This plan assumes you are starting about four months before CBT 1, with Class 10 level Maths that has gone a little rusty. If you have less time, keep the order and shorten each phase. If you work, see the adjustments at the end.

The shape of four months

The order matters. Speed work before foundations only makes you fast at wrong methods. Mocks before coverage only tell you what you have not studied yet.

Month 1: foundations

Maths. Tables up to 20, squares up to 30, cubes up to 15. Then number system, LCM and HCF, simplification, percentage, ratio and averages. Learn why each method works, not just the trick.

Reasoning. Analogy, classification, number and letter series, coding-decoding, blood relations and directions. Solve 20 to 30 questions of each type, slowly and correctly.

General Awareness. Start the science NCERTs from Classes 6 to 10, about one chapter a day. Open a current affairs notebook and add to it every day.

Month 2: full coverage

Maths. Profit, loss and discount; simple and compound interest; time and work; speed, distance and trains; mensuration; algebra; geometry and trigonometry basics; elementary statistics.

Reasoning. Syllogism, Venn diagrams, seating arrangement, puzzles, statement and conclusion, data sufficiency, mathematical operations.

General Awareness. History, polity, geography and economy at the NCERT level; static GK such as national parks, dances, awards and firsts; the basics of Indian Railways. Keep science revision and current affairs going.

By the end of Month 2, every topic in the syllabus should be ticked at least once. Our syllabus guide has the full list to tick against.

Month 3: speed

• Sectional tests. 30 Maths questions in 30 to 35 minutes, 30 Reasoning in 25 to 28 minutes, 40 GA in 15 to 18 minutes. Three or four a week.
• Past papers. Solve previous RRB NTPC questions topic by topic. They show the real level better than any guidebook.
• First full revision. Go through all GA notes once. Make one-page summaries for every Maths topic.
• One full mock a week from the middle of the month, to get used to 90 minutes.

Month 4: mocks and revision

• A full mock every day or every other day, at the time of your likely exam shift.
• Analyse every mock the same day: why each wrong answer was wrong, and which skipped questions you could have done.
• Revision sheets for formulas, reasoning methods and GA facts. Revise from these, not from new books.
• Last week: light revision, sleep by a fixed time and no new topics.

A daily timetable (full-time preparation)

The blocks add up to about eight hours at the desk. On most days, five to six of those will be truly focused, and that is what the plan needs. In Month 4, replace the 9:00 to 11:00 block with a full mock and its analysis on mock days.

A weekly rhythm

Worked example: fitting a weak subject in

Suppose an aspirant's first mock at the end of Month 2 shows GA 22/40, Maths 14/30 and Reasoning 21/30. Where should the extra hours go?

1. Maths has the lowest score: 14 out of 30 is about 47%, against 55% for GA and 70% for Reasoning.
2. But GA has the most marks on the table. Raising GA from 22 to 30 is 8 marks, and GA questions take only seconds each.
3. A sensible shift for Month 3 is one extra hour a day: 30 minutes to GA revision and 30 minutes to arithmetic speed. Reasoning stays at its current time, because it is already the strongest.
4. Recheck after two weeks of mocks, not after one.

The lesson: do not only chase your lowest percentage. Look at where marks are cheapest to gain.

Revision methods that work

• Short notes: one page per topic, in your own words.
• Formula card: every Maths formula on two pages, read daily in Month 4.
• GA flashcards: question on one side, answer on the other. Carry a stack.
• Error notebook: every mistake from practice and mocks, with the correct method. Read it before every mock.

Common mistakes with a four-month plan

• Month 1 spent collecting material. One book per subject, past papers and one mock series are enough.
• No GA until Month 3. GA is the largest section and needs repeated revision, which takes time.
• Mocks without analysis. A mock without analysis is only a number.
• No rest day. A week without any break usually ends in a lost week.

If you start late or work full-time

• Three months left: combine Months 1 and 2 into six weeks, with foundations only in Maths. Keep Months 3 and 4 as they are.
• Two months left: skip lower-priority Maths topics at first; do arithmetic, core reasoning and science plus static GK; start mocks by week 4.
• Working full-time: study two to three hours on weekdays and longer at weekends, and stretch the plan to six months if you can. See our guide to preparing with a job or college.

What to do this week

• Put the four month blocks on a wall calendar, counting back from the exam.
• Buy or choose one book per subject and one mock series. Stop there.
• Start tables, squares and the Class 6 science NCERT today.
• Open an error notebook and a current affairs notebook.
• Book a rest evening every Sunday.