How to prepare for Police exams
State police constable and sub-inspector recruitment has two hurdles: a written exam and a physical test. The written exam is usually GK, reasoning, maths and Hindi or the state language; the physical test is pass/fail and must be prepared from day one.
- Typical selection process
- What the written exam asks
- Prepare the physical test early
- A simple 12-week plan
- Common mistakes
Typical selection process
- Written exam (objective, often with negative marking).
- Document verification and Physical Standard Test (height, chest, weight).
- Physical Efficiency Test (running, sometimes long jump or high jump).
- Medical examination.
What the written exam asks
- General Knowledge: Indian history, polity, geography, economy, science, and a large share of your state's history, geography, culture and schemes.
- Reasoning: series, analogy, coding-decoding, blood relations, direction, Venn diagrams, non-verbal figures.
- Numerical ability: percentage, ratio, average, profit and loss, interest, time and work, mensuration (class 10 level).
- Hindi or language: grammar (sandhi, samas, synonyms, idioms), comprehension.
- Some states add law and the Constitution, computer basics, or mental ability.
Prepare the physical test early
- Run every morning from the first week, building up to the distance and time in your notification.
- Check the height and chest requirements now; they are fixed and cannot be prepared later.
- Rest well before the test day and run in the kind of shoes you trained in.
A simple 12-week plan
- Weeks 1–2: read the official syllabus and solve one previous year paper without preparation, to see where you stand.
- Weeks 3–8: one subject block a day (for example Maths and Reasoning on alternate days), plus 30 minutes of current affairs and 30 minutes of revision of the previous day.
- Weeks 9–10: one full mock test every second day. After each mock, spend as long reviewing the mistakes as you spent taking the test.
- Weeks 11–12: a full mock every day in the same time slot as the real exam, and revise only your own short notes.
Common mistakes
- Guessing blindly where there is negative marking. Attempt a question only when you can rule out at least two options.
- Collecting many books instead of finishing one. One standard book per subject plus previous papers is enough.
- Skipping the official notification. Age, qualification and the exact pattern are printed there, and they change between years.
- Leaving the photo, signature and documents for the last day. Keep them ready in the sizes the form asks for.
Next steps
- Confirm the exact pattern in the official notification of your exam: it can change from one year to the next.
- Practise with previous year papers and keep your photo, signature and documents ready in the sizes forms ask for.
- Other guides: SSC exams, Railway exams, Bank exams, Teaching exams, State PSC exams, Defence exams, UPSC exams, Government job exams.