Tier-2 Examination and Typing Skill Test
The Tier-2 stage moves from recognition to production: a descriptive language paper and a typing skill test. The source does not enumerate the descriptive topics, so prepare for the forms that recur in office examinations - formal letter, précis, paragraph or essay, and report - in English or Hindi, followed by a computer typing test in the language you opt for.
Descriptive paper rules
- Précis: reduce to about one-third of the original, keep the central argument, drop examples and repetition, and add no opinion of your own.
- Formal letter: sender's address, date, receiver's designation, subject line, salutation, short body paragraphs, and closing. The subject line and designation carry format marks.
- Essay: three to four paragraphs, one controlling idea each; link paragraphs with connectives rather than headings.
- Word limit: both under-writing and over-writing are penalised, so count roughly by lines.
Typing test rules
- Gross speed = total words typed ÷ minutes. Net speed usually = (gross words − errors) ÷ minutes; check the notification for the exact deduction rule.
- Accuracy is usually the binding condition: a common ceiling is 5% errors, above which the candidate fails regardless of speed.
- Standard qualifying speeds are commonly 35 wpm English and 30 wpm Hindi over 10 minutes; confirm the figures in your notice.
- Learn the layout you will actually be given - Hindi tests often use Remington GAIL, not Inscript.
Worked example
In 10 minutes you type 340 words with 22 errors. Gross speed = 34 wpm. Error rate = 22 ÷ 340 ≈ 6.5%, above a 5% ceiling, so the test fails on accuracy even before net speed is calculated. Under an error-deduction rule, net = (340 − 22) ÷ 10 = 31.8 wpm, also below 35. The fix is to target about 36–37 gross words with fewer than 17 errors.
Traps that cost marks
- Backspacing repeatedly over one word; it consumes test time and can leave the passage incomplete.
- Ignoring punctuation and capitalisation, which many typing tools count as errors.
- Writing a descriptive answer with no paragraph breaks, or copying the question as the opening line.
- Practising on a different keyboard layout from the one named in the notice.