SNAP Exam Analysis

SNAP Exam Analysis 2019 will be published by MBAUniverse.com immediately after the SNAP 2018 exam is over on December 15. The SNAP 2019 exam analysis will focus on following key trends in SNAP exam

• SNAP 2019 Exam Structure and Pattern
• SNAP exam difficulty level
• SNAP 2019 Sectional Changes
• Ideal attempts to improve your scores in SNAP 2019
• SNAP 2019 expected cut offs for SIBM Pune, SCMHRD and other Symbiosis colleges
• SNAP Percentile Vs Marks from Experts
• SNAP 2019 Analysis by T.I.M.E., Career Launcher, IMS and other prominent SNAP coaching centres will also be published. 

During the last two years since SNAP has changed its exam pattern by awarding the equal marks to every question and reduced the weightage to Reasoning section, it is expected that the SNAP exam 2019 analysis will reflect a changed difficulty level and twisted type of questions among other things.

SNAP Exam Analysis: Previous SNAP Exams
Below is shared the SNAP Analysis for past four SNAP exams namely 2018, 2017, 2016 and 2015

SNAP Analysis 2018
SNAP 2018 has got over on December 16, 2018 at 4 PM with a lower difficulty level than last year. This was the second computer based SNAP exam in the history of Symbiosis National Aptitude Test (SNAP) conducted by Symbiosis International University (SIU) Pune for MBA admission 2019 in 15 Symbiosis Institutes.

The second CBT SNAP exam was conducted in a single session from 2PM to 4PM in 92 test cities in India. The SNAP 2018 exam has changed its structure this year and followed a different pattern on the lines of CAT exam. The exam has been rated a moderate to difficult exam despite all the changes in the testing and scoring pattern. A major surprise in SNAP 2018 was that it did not contain questions on Data Interpretation.

Quick SNAP Exam Analysis:

• Exam Pattern and Scoring Pattern changed
• Total questions reduced to 130 from earlier 150
• Questions were divided into MCQs (Normal Questions) and Non-MCQ (Special questions) 
• Exam Divided in 4 sections with lowest weightage to Current Affairs (GK) section
• No Questions were asked on Data Interpretation
• Maximum Score for correct answers is 150
• SNAP 2018 test duration was of 2 hours from 2PM to 4PM
• Scoring pattern is +1 Mark for each correct answer for MCQs and +2 Marks for each correct answer for Non-MCQs
• All questions had negative marking of 25%.
• 2 RC passages rated moderate
• Few LR sets were difficult
• A few GK questions were based on Assembly elections held in November/December 2018
• Expected Cut off to remain 60-65 Marks out of 150

SNAP 2018 Exam Analysis: Test Pattern
The changed SNAP 2018 exam pattern had fewer questions divided into Normal questions and Special questions as detailed here under:

SNAP 2018 Analysis of Scoring Pattern
The scoring pattern in SNAP 2018 has changed. While the special questions of Non-MCQ type have been awarded higher weightage, the normal questions of MCQ-Type carry lower weightage.

SNAP 2018 Section wise Analysis

Section 1 Analysis: General English: Reading Comprehension, Verbal Reasoning, Verbal Ability

• SNAP exam 2018 first section on English had 35 questions this year as against 40 last year.
• Maximum score remained 40 as was last year despite fewer number of questions
• The section was divided into 30 Normal questions of MCQ type and 5 Special questions of Non-MCQ type
• Each correct answer for Normal Question carried the weightage of 1 Mark with 0.25 negative marking for wrong answer
• Each Correct answer for Special questions carried the weightage of 2 Marks with 0.50 negative marking for wrong answer
• Section consisted more Vocabulary based questions and 2 RC Passages
• One of the RC passages on Google Location Security was followed by 5 questions.The passages were moderate although a bit lengthy and consumed good amount of time.

Verbal Ability & Verbal Reasoning

• The Vocabulary based questions were found on moderate difficulty side
• Fill in the Blanks type questions were not very difficult and could be attempted by using common sense and elimination process
• Core grammar based questions like correction of sentence errors, identifying the parts of speech, Rewriting the sentences among others were not very difficult but those with good understanding of English grammar could attempt them without confusion
• Parajumbles were not very difficult and could be attempted by using elimination round
• Other questions on Synonyms/Antonyms, Idioms, Phrases, Usage tested well the understanding of English Language of the test takers
• Verbal Analogy and critical reasoning questions were also of moderate difficulty level.
• An attempt of 20-22 questions in 35 minutes with 90% plus accuracy could clear the cut off

Section 2 Analysis: Quantitative, Data Interpretation & Data Sufficiency

• The quantitative, DI & DS section although easy, turned out to be more time consuming.
• There was no question on Data Interpretation in the section
• QA, DI, DS section had 35 questions this year as against 40 last year.
• Maximum score remained 40 as was last year despite fewer number of questions
• The section was divided into 30 Normal questions of MCQ type and 5 Special questions of Non-MCQ type
• Each correct answer for Normal Question carried the weightage of 1 Mark with 0.25 negative marking for wrong answer
• Each Correct answer for Special questions carried the weightage of 2 Marks with 0.50 negative marking for wrong answer
• Arithmetic carried higher weightage. Questions were on Percentage, Profit & Loss, Time & Work, Number system among others and were of moderate difficulty level
• Weightage to Modern Math, Geometry has gone up. Questions were more calculation intensive.
• Despite being rated of moderate difficulty, the questions in this section were lengthy and consumed more time.
• An attempt of 24-25 questions in 40 minutes with 90% accuracy would be good to clear the cut offs

Section 3 Analysis: Analytical & Logical Reasoning

• Reasoning in SNAP exam has always remained key focus area right from the beginning even when it was conducted in paper pen mode and has been throwing surprises consistently sometimes by adding whatsapp jokes, pintrest post and inserting Quant based questions also in this section 
• Reasoning section had 35 questions this year as against 40 last year.
• Maximum score remained 40 as was last year despite the fewer number of questions
• The section was divided into 30 Normal questions of MCQ type and 5 Special questions of Non-MCQ type
• Each correct answer for Normal Question carried the weightage of 1 Mark with 0.25 negative marking for wrong answer
• Each Correct answer for Special questions carried the weightage of 2 Marks with 0.50 negative marking for wrong answer
• Overall the section consisted of moderate difficulty questions although a few questions were also found difficult
• One of the LR question sets based on Folding Shapes was found on higher difficulty side 
• Questions were based on Family tree, direction sense, clocks & calendars, series, verbal and visual reasoning, coding decoding, analogy among others. A few questions were based on Mathematics.
• Good attempt of 20-22 questions with 85% accuracy in 30-35 minutes should ideally clear the cut offs.

Section 4 Analysis: Current Affairs (GK) Section

• Current Affairs section covered the events of last 2 years
• Recent assembly elections in the States of Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Telangana, Mizoram became the topics of GK questions in this section
• One question was on number of seats won by the leading party in Chhattisgarh. Another question was to identify the names of the states where assembly elections were held recently.
• Those who knew the answers could attempt the questions promptly while there was no scope for those who had no clue to the answers
• Maximum score for the section was reduced to 30 for 25 questions
• The section was divided into 20 Normal questions of MCQ type and 5 Special questions of Non-MCQ type
• Each correct answer for Normal Question carried the weightage of 1 Mark with 0.25 negative marking for wrong answer
• Each Correct answer for Special questions carried the weightage of 2 Marks with 0.50 negative marking for wrong answer
• The section had questions on international events, Who’s Who, Business & Economics, Science & Technology, Sports, Awards, Geography, Schemes, Constitution among others.
• The section was moderate but was difficult for those who did not know the answers and easy for those who had prepared well for this section.
• A good attempt of 12-14 questions with 75-80% accuracy in about 10-12 minutes would clear the cut offs

Overall Suggested Attempts & Cut offs
Overall the SNAP 2018 exam is rated on moderate difficulty level. Candidates who have attempted around 80 questions with 85-90 % accuracy are expected to clear the cut offs.

Expected Cut offs
It is expected that SNAP 2018 exam raw score between 58-65 will provide the required cut offs. However, the shortlisting by Symbiosis Institutes will be done by individual college and will depend upon the sectional as well as overall cut offs. If a candidate does not clear the sectional cut off, he/she may not be considered for shortlisting.

The expected overall cut offs are:

SNAP Exam Analysis: Last 3 Years
SNAP Exam Analysis for 2017, 2016 and 2015 is shared below:

SNAP Exam Analysis 2017

SNAP 2017 Analysis & Cut off predictions: MBAUniverse.com, CL, T.I.M.E

A lengthy exam
The first reaction after the SNAP 2017 paper was over, was more or less same from all the SNAP 2017 test takers who reported that the paper was a bit more difficult and lengthy and needed more time to solve.

There were 150 questions in SNAP 2017 exam and the allotted time to solve the question paper was 120 minutes. So less than 1 minute only was available to attempt 1 question. Reasoning was found lengthier than other sections. Current Affairs (GK) section was found a bit on difficult side but focused on last 2 years’ events in the revised exam pattern. This fact was already shared by MBAUniverse.com and the candidates were advised to focus their preparation on Current Affairs on last two years events.

Difficult SNAP than last year, expect low Cut offs : Career Launcher
The Analysis by Career Launcher has rated SNAP a difficult exam on following counts:

• The types of questions differed significantly from the last few years.
• Overall, the paper was more difficult as compared to that of last year.
• The sections were jumbled up.
• The English section was dominated by RC and vocab.
• The Reasoning section had only one question on Verbal Logic.
• Overall, the English and GK sections became much tougher.
• While LR continued its saga of incomprehensible question types, Quant turned out to be more painstaking as compared to previous years.

Expected cut offs by CL
Overall the paper was slightly tougher than last year, and students would have done well to attempt about 85-90 questions with 80-85% accuracy.

Suggested time distribution and attempts:

Difficult than last year: T.I.M.E. Analysis
In view of T.I.M.E. also, ‘SNAP exam, conducted on 17th Dec 2017, in the computer based test format for the first time ever, had the same pattern as it had last year. The overall difficulty level of the exam was higher as compared to last year’s. Since there was no sectional cut-off, it made the job of the students a lot easier i.e., they could focus on maximising the overall score instead of perforce trying to improve their sectional performances in tougher sections.’

T.I.M.E. Analysis highlights

• RC passages were lengthy in nature with around 1000-1100 words. Passage 1 was lengthy and was on “The right to be left alone” or “Privacy” taken from “The Indian Express”. The questions included Title and Tone of the passage and four ‘specific detail’ questions.
• RC Passage 2 was equally lengthy and was on “The Founding Fathers of Australia.There were 5 ‘specific detail’ questions and 1 Vocab based question. Around 20-22 can be considered to be a good number of attempts in this section.
• Quantitative Ability, Data Interpretation and Data Sufficiency was lengthier and relatively trickier. This was unlike last year when the section had more doable questions. Surprisingly, the weightage of Pure Maths was a little on the higher side.
• There were only two DI sets which were not calculation intensive and should be on the easy-moderate side for most of the students. There were no DS questions this year.
• One question was ambiguous (p^q =169) and two other questions did not have the correct answer options (1. Sale of two FM Radios, 2. DI question on the technicians and carpenters).
• Current Affairs had no static GK questions. Most of the questions were difficult. There were few easy questions but none of them can be categorised as sitters at all. Around 7-9 attempts in the section in around 10-15 min would have been good for this section.
• Analytical & Logical Reasoning section, unlike last year, apart from the standalone ones, had a few set based questions also. Added to this, there were some tough ones to crack. The level of the section could be pegged at a moderate level of difficulty. Around 18-20 attempts could be considered to be a good attempt in this section.

Cut-Offs predicted by T.I.M.E
T.I.M.E has predicted following cut off scores for top Symbiosis institutes as under:

Overall Analysis of SNAP 2017: Highlights

• Quant was a little more difficult. SNAP test had emphasis on Arithmetic in the QA section 
• Reasoning was lengthy
• Verbal Ability, Current affairs were also on difficult side
• Overall paper was found lengthy and needed more time

Overall cutoff is expected to go down to 66-67

SNAP 2017 Paper composition

Section-wise composition of SNAP 2017 test paper

Section-wise Analysis & Cutoffs
SNAP requires the test taker to keep moving on and not waste time on any question that he/she is not able to answer. Solving 150 questions in 120 minutes requires presence of mind and speed also.

General English: Reading Comprehension, Verbal Reasoning, Verbal Ability
The English section had no surprises but it was a bit more difficult despite being on expected lines. The RC passages were not very difficult. Any student who had given time to attempt the RC passages would have got full marks in the same.

Fill-in-the-blank (FIB) questions were of moderate difficulty level. The section had dose of Vocabulary with Synonyms, Antonyms, Analogies and Idioms and Phrases. Questions on jumbled paragraphs were also doable.

A student who could give about 30 minutes to this section would have attempted close to 25-26 questions and a get a comfortable score of 21+.

Major Topics & Questions: General English
Following were the major topics on which questions were framed in General English: Reading Comprehension, Verbal Reasoning, Verbal Ability section of SNAP 2017:

• Overall Section: Lengthier than last year
• RC passages more lengthy
• Difficult vocabulary words in many questions
• Higher weightage to Vocabulary & Grammar based questions

Quantitative Aptitude, Data Interpretation, Data Sufficiency
The Quant section with DI and DS was very much on the expected lines but was a little difficult. The QA questions were individual questions while most DI and DS questions were in sets.  There were more questions based on Arithmetic. Besides, Algebra, Geometry, Pure Math, Mensuration also played an important part.

A good student who had spent about 40 minutes in this section could have attempted 24 questions accurately.

A good score in this section would be anything more than 19.

Major Topics & Questions: Quantitative Ability
Following were the major topics on which questions were framed in Quantitative Ability section of SNAP 2017:

• Overall Section: More Difficult than last year
• Higher weightage to Modern Math and Geometry
• No on-screen calculator available

Analytical and Logical Reasoning (LR)
This section was a nightmare for a lot of students. The fact that since last year, SNAP has increased the number of questions and reduced the marks made it difficult for students to score more in this section.

Except for a few questions, most of the questions in LR were either difficult or time consuming.

There were questions on Clocks, Calendars, Blood Relations, Coding-Decoding type among others. Overall this section was not easy. The student who could spend about 30 minutes would attempt around 15 to 20 questions.

A good score in this section would be around 15 marks.

Major Topics & Questions: Analytical & Logical Reasoning
Following were the major topics on which questions were framed in Analytical & Logical Reasoning section of SNAP 2017:

• Overall Section: Lengthy & Difficult
• Major topics of questions were Puzzles, Verbal Reasoning among others

Current Affairs
The GK section in SNAP 2017 had questions from the current affairs and general knowledge areas and that too from the past two years. The section was slightly on difficult side. A student who is a regular reader of News paper and follows news would find this section on doable side. Good attempt in this section would be around 11 questions and getting a positive score of 5-6.

Major Topics & Questions: Current Affairs
Following were the major topics on which questions were framed in Current Affairs section of SNAP 2017:

• Overall Section: Moderate to Difficult
• 19-20 questions on Indian national events – Business, economy, Governance, sports, Who’s who, Books, Awards
• 10-12 questions on International events

SNAP 2017: Expected Cut offs
Expected cut off at SIBM Pune could be 67-68 marks, while it could be 58-59 for SCMHRD and 49-50 for SIBM Bangalore. The expected cut offs in top B-schools are:

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SNAP test Analysis for 2016

The General Awareness section also was not difficult and hence the feeling was good once students came out of the exam hall. 

Highlights of SNAP Test

• The SNAP 2017 paper will have the same test pattern as that of 2016 exam.
• SNAP 2016, had 150 questions carrying maximum 150 marks. With the number of questions in GK section getting reduced to 30 (from 40 as the authorities would have realized that it is futile to check the non-existent GK aptitude of students!)
• The no of questions in LA section increased to 40 (from 30), but the marks allotted came down. The SNAP paper had 2 marks for each LA question till last year.
• SNAP test had emphasis on Arithmetic in the QA section.
• In the Verbal Section and the QA section, it was a bit of a surprise to get two sets each of RC and DI respectively.
• The overall paper was similar in difficulty to that of the previous year. However, since the total marks in the overall paper have reduced from SNAP 2015 which had 180 marks, the overall cutoff is to go down proportionately.

SNAP Paper Pattern

SNAP Analysis & Cutoffs

• SNAP is an exam that requires the student to keep moving on and not waste time on any question that he/she is not able to answer.
• Solving 150 questions in 120 minutes requires presence of mind and tremendous speed! That is less than a minute per question. 
• Considering that there are 30 questions of General Knowledge, it is still required a different mindset and speed to be able to ace the SNAP exam.

SNAP : Ideal Time Break-up
The ideal time break-up in SNAP test is as below with the number of attempts that a good student should make to ensure a call from the top Symbiosis Institutes

SNAP Analysis: General English
The English section had no surprises except that there were 2 passages of Reading Comprehension for a total of 11 marks. The two RCs, though long, had very simple and easy questions. Any student who had given time to attempt the RC passages would have got full marks in the same.

There were almost 10 Fill-in-the-blank (FIB) questions with various types. Four of which were of single blank and single word, two of them with a similar word meaning words to be selected for a single blank and 4 others which required one to understand the usage of homonyms (similar sounding words but with different meanings) to answer the FIBs.

The English section had liberal dose of Vocabulary with Synonyms, Antonyms, Analogies and Idioms and Phrases accounting for 14 marks.

There were 3 Para-jumble questions (not very difficult) and 2 Critical Reasoning questions, which were easily doable.

Overall the paper was doable and a student who gives about 30 minutes in this section would have easily attempted close to 30/32 questions (or even more) and a get a comfortable score of 20+

SNAP: Quantitative Aptitude Analysis
The Quant section was very much on the lines of the previous SNAP papers. There was a heavy tilt towards Arithmetic with about 9 questions in the same. Algebra (if we include Numbers in this) would be the highest weightage area in the SNAP paper as there were 12 questions in this (of which 6 questions were from Numbers area itself).

The surprise, however, was that there were 7 questions in Geometry and Mensuration.

A good student should have spent about 40 minutes in this section and he/she could have identified at least 22 to 25 questions that were easy.

However, having said the above, it is normal that most students always find the Quant area either tough or lengthy! Hence, a good score in this section would be anything more than 18!

SNAP: Analytical and Logical Reasoning (LR) Analysis
This section is usually a nightmare for the students. Last year also this section in SNAP took the candidates for a ride. The fact that they have increased the number of questions and reduced the marks (instead of 2 marks per questions, in SNAP 2016, each logic had only 1 mark for the correct answer) made it difficult for students to score more in this section.

Except for a few questions on Series and Input/Output type, most of the questions in LR were either difficult or time consuming.

There were questions on Clocks, Calendars, Blood Relations, Coding-Decoding type among others. Some of the questions resembled the question types that come in MENSA puzzles!

Overall this section was difficult. Ideally, the student should have spent about 30 odd minutes and attempted around 15 to 20 questions.

The extra time (that could have been allotted to this section) should have been allotted to either English or the QA area to maximize scores. A good score in this section would be 14+

General Awareness
The SNAP people were true to their word. The questions were from the current affairs and general knowledge areas and that too from the past two years.

A student who follows news would have found this section actually easy (for a change!). A good attempt in this section would be around 10+ questions and getting a positive score of 4 or more.

Top Institute cut offs

Expected cut off at SIBM Pune could be 58 marks, while it could be 56 for SCMHRD and 48 for SIBM Bangalore. The anticipated cut offs in top B-schools is shared below

15 Symbiosis Institutes to offer admission
Candidates will be shortlisted for 15 Symbiosis Institutes affiliated to Symbiosis International University (SIU), Pune on the basis of scores obtained in SNAP 2017 for admission to the flagship MBA 2018-20 programme