Expert Advice for IIFT GK Section

The Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT) conducts a test for admissions to its various MBA programs in December every year. Traditionally, the GK section in IIFT has been of higher level of difficulty as compared to SNAP, CMAT, MAT, etc. Due to this, a large number of applicants fail to clear the sectional cut-off of the GK section.

In this article, we will help you understand the type of questions from this section that can be expected in the IIFT test. Further, we will give you a methodical strategy to prepare for this section.

Even though the weightage for GK is less, however, each and every mark counts in this exam. Thus, it is advisable that you do not take this section lightly.

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Why is GK Important for IIFT?

GK section holds importance not just in terms of sectional cut off, but also impacts the overall score. Having a good grip on GK will help you with the following:

Better accuracy: GK-based questions give you the opportunity to increase your accuracy. This is because, if you know the answer to a GK question, there is no scope for confusion!

Time efficiency: Further, the GK section is highly helpful in time management as there is no calculation-work and analysis involved. You can use this to your advantage by allocating more time to other sections of the examination.

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Good back up: GK section in the IIFT exam can also act as a good back up for you, especially if you feel you are weak in any of the traditional sections like Quant, Verbal, DI, Reasoning, etc.

2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
Static 16 13 12 11 9
Current 9 5 6 9 11
Total 25 18 18 20 20
In IIFT 2021, most of the questions were from current affairs and very few were asked from static GK.
IIFT GK – Past Year Paper Analysis

Table 1 gives you an analysis of the IIFT GK sections. As you can see, there is no discernible pattern that emerges from the table above. Thus, your best bet is to spend appropriate time and energy on both, static and current GK. As you can see, where the IIFT GK 2016 section was more balanced in terms of Static and Current GK questions, IIFT GK 2017 was dominated by Static GK questions. In 2018 IIFT GK, there were mixtures of topics checking general awareness of the candidate across the all areas. In 2019 and 2020, nearly similar weightage was given to static and current GK, including questions from business, geography, international economy etc. However, 2021 paper was mainly dominated by current GK. In a nutshell, there is no standard practice followed in GK section.

Level of Difficulty and Sectional cutoffs

As mentioned earlier, the GK section of IIFT Test is relatively more difficult. This is reflected (Table 2) in the low sectional cutoffs for the GK section in the past few years.

Thus, you have to be careful in picking up questions and focus on clearing the cutoffs.

  2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 & 2021
GK Sectional Cutoff* 1.5 (out of 12.5 marks) 0.75-1 (out of 9 marks) 0.83-1 (out of 9 marks) 3.5-4.5 (out of 30 marks) 5+ (out of 30 marks)
*figures are indicative as IIFT does not release official cutoff marks
IIFT GK: Previous year Questions
Let us take a look at a few easy level questions from a previous year IIFT papers
1. Which of the following is NOT an activity generally carried out by using a shell company?
A)   Production and Manufacturing
B)   Transfer Pricing
C)   Tax Evasion
D)   Raising funds for starting business
2. Match the Biographies/Autobiographies of India's sport players:
1. The World Beneath His Feat      :         a. Milkha Singh
2. Imperfect                                      :         b. Mary Kom
3. The Race of My Life    ;               :         c. Sanjay Manjrekar
4. Unbreakable                                 :         d. Pullela Gopichand
A)  1-d, 2-c, 3-a, 4-b
B)  1-a, 2-b, 3-d, 4-c
C)  l-c,2-a,3-d,4-b
D)  1-b, 2-a, 3-d, 4-c
3. Correctly match the following terms?
 
1. Isobront                   :     a. Joins points with the same light intensity
2. Isocheim                  :     b. Joins points with the same wind direction
3. Isogon                      :    c. Joins points with the same mean temperature in winter
4. Isophote                   :    d. Joins points of a given phase of a thunderstorm activity
A)   l-d,2-c,3-b,4-a
B)  l-a,2-b,3-c,4-d
C)  1-d, 2-a, 3-b, 4-c
D)  1-a, 2-c, 3-d, 4-b
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4. Which of the following is a correct sequence of Sea Ports of India from 'South to North'?
A)  Cochin → Vizhinjam → Kozhikode → Mangalore
B)  Kozhikode → Vizhinjam → Cochin → Mangalore
C)  Vizhinjam → Cochin → Kozhikode → Mangalore
D)  Vizhinjam → Kozhikode → Mangalore → Cochin
5. Which of the following industry is the not covered in the 'Index of Eight Core Industries' in India?
A)  Electricity
B)  Crude Oil
C)  Natural Gas
D)  Pharmaceutical
6. Which of the following statement about American Businessman Elon Musk is not correct?
A) His full name is Elon Reeve Musk
B) He is Argentina-born American entrepreneur and businessman
C) He founded www.X.com in 1999 (which later became PayPal), Space X in 2002 and Tesla Motors in 2003
D) He is instrumental in leading the design and manufacture of electric Sedan and SUV cars
7. Which of the following company has designed the humanoid 'Sophia'?
A) Hasnenn Robotics Ltd.
B) Hanson Robotics Ltd.
C) Hansnow Robotics Ltd. 
D) Hemsen Robotics Ltd.
Question No.
Answer Key
1
A
2
A
3
A
4
C
5
D
6
B
7
B
Topics for Static GK

As the name suggests, Static GK consists of areas that do not change over time. You may expect questions from the following sub-topics in Static GK:

  • History
  • Geography
  • Economy
  • Companies and Brands
  • Indian Political System & Constitution
  • Organizations
  • Science & Technology
  • Sports
  • Miscellaneous – This section includes questions on various awards and honors, important international dates, books and authors etc.
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How to Prepare Static GK

While the syllabus for the Static GK section seems to be very vast, it can be completed effectively if you choose authentic and reliable sources to study from. Refer to NCERT books for further understanding of GK topics.

Topics for Current GK

In Current GK, you may expect questions from these broad areas:

  • Economy
  • Business & Corporate News
  • Indian Polity
  • Organizations
  • New Developments in Science & Technology
  • People in News
  • Sports
  • Miscellaneous

Questions from Current GK will focus on the important national and international events in the past 12 months in the areas mentioned above.

How to Prepare Current GK

Current affairs are the most dynamic part of the syllabus and you can prepare them from our Hitbullseye Gk Web portal which we is constantly updated. Along with the question bank and for articles, check our 'Special Report' and 'Topic of the week' column. We strongly recommend you to read newspaper, preferably 'The Hindu' on a daily basis.

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The Right Approach for IIFT GK section

Ideally, you should not spend more than 10 minutes on the IIFT GK section. This will allow you to allocate more time to other time-consuming sections. Further, we advise you to follow a 2-cycle method of attempting this section:

Cycle 1
  • Identify the very easy questions and mark their answers
  • Identify the questions, which you think you can attempt i.e. you feel that if you spend more time on such questions, you may be able to guess the correct answer.
  • Identify the questions, which you think you CANNOT attempt i.e. questions about which you have no idea. These questions are best left untouched.
Cycle 2

In the second cycle, mark the answers of maximum possible questions that you have identified in Step (2) of Cycle 1 through intelligent guessing using option elimination. For instance, if you are confidently able to eliminate 2 options out of 4, we suggest that you go ahead and attempt the question.

Lastly, make sure that you are well-versed with the latest news events of last 6-8 months.

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