VARC is not one, but two sections – Reading Comprehension and Verbal Ability.
In this article, we shall study the VA portion, and how it can be a make-or-break for you.
Doing only VA can help you clear the sectional cut-off.
Surprised? Let me explain. Generally, 70-75 percentile is the minimum qualifying cut-off for VARC, which translates to roughly 8 net correct answers. So, if you attempt the VA section with high accuracy, that alone can help you cross the first bridge.
During preparation, we often tend to ignore the Verbal Ability segment as we take it too lightly. However, it is actually a modest bargain! Most of the questions in VA are TITA (Non-MCQ) Type, and except for para-summaries, there is no negative marking. It’s like trading in the stock market with no chance of losses!
Now that I have hopefully convinced you about how important this section is, let us look at the 3 parts of Verbal Ability:
1. Para-Jumbles – you have 4-5 sentences in front of you, which you must arrange to form a coherent paragraph, and enter the order into the text box. (TITA Type)
2. Odd Man Out – out of the given 5 sentences, 4 are a part of a paragraph, one isn’t. You have to identify which is the odd one out and enter its number into the text box. (TITA Type)
3. Para-Summary – you will be given a paragraph of about 50 words, followed by 4 sentences, out of which you must choose the most appropriate one that summarises the above paragraph. (MCQ Type)
Next, let us devise an Attempt Strategy.
A learned teacher at my coaching institute suggested the order – Odd Man Out, Para-Jumble, Para-Summary, Reading Comprehension. His logic was that Odd Man Out puts you in the frame of mind of finding connections between sentences, which continues into the next step of developing an order for them in Para-Jumbles. Finally, doing the Para-Summaries sets in motion your train of reading paragraphs and making inferences, which develops a flow for the RCs (Reading Comprehensions) that follow.
I liked this logical flow, and after trying various combinations, the order I settled with was Para-Jumbles, Odd Man Out, Para-Summary, RC. This was purely because I enjoyed Para-Jumbles the most, and wanted to start with the part I liked. Some of my friends did RC first, then VA, while some did a few RCs, then VA, then back to RCs.
Essentially this means that you must experiment with various combinations during your mocks and sectional tests to develop a strategy that works the best for you.
Preparing for VA requires practice, practice and more practice. Every para-jumble, every odd man out is unique in itself, so more the number of questions you have tried, the better your chances will be of encountering a similar type in the exam. Be regular, be consistent. Try to do a 15–20-minute topic test every day for VA, because along with high accuracy, time management is also extremely important.
Keep working hard, and I’ll soon take up each of these 3 question types individually to talk about the tips and tricks that can be applied to tackle them most efficiently. All the best!