APPSC has fixed the Group-I Screening Test for 24 January 2027 (para 1.7 of Notification 07/2026). Applications close on 27 October 2026. If you start on 26 October 2026, you have exactly 90 days to 23 January. This page lays out that plan, built from the official scheme rather than general advice. Study advice here is ours; arithmetic is labelled.
1. Know where the marks are
The Screening Test shortlists 50 candidates per vacancy and its marks do not carry into the final 825. Within it:
| Block | Marks | Share of the 240 |
|---|---|---|
| Paper-I A History and Culture | 30 | 12.5% |
| Paper-I B Constitution, Polity, Social Justice, International Relations | 30 | 12.5% |
| Paper-I C Indian and AP Economy and Planning | 30 | 12.5% |
| Paper-I D Geography | 30 | 12.5% |
| Paper-II A Mental Ability, Administrative and Psychological Abilities | 60 | 25% |
| Paper-II B(i) Science and Technology | 30 | 12.5% |
| Paper-II B(ii) Current events | 30 | 12.5% |
The largest single block is Paper-II Part A: a quarter of the whole test. It includes arithmetic, reasoning, data interpretation and, unusually, emotional intelligence and social intelligence. GS-heavy readers often underweight it. On the numbers, that is the most expensive mistake you can make.
In Mains, the five counted papers are 150 each (750) and the interview is 75. Each written paper is about 18% of the final total.
2. Time per question and when to guess
- Time: 120 questions in 120 minutes per paper, so 60 seconds each. That is generous for one-line GS facts and tight for data interpretation. Bank time on GS so you can spend 90 seconds or more on DI sets.
- Guessing: +1 for right, −1/3 for wrong. An attempt helps on average once your chance of being right is above 25% (arithmetic). Guess after eliminating at least one option; skip pure blind guesses unless you have tested your own guess accuracy in mocks.
3. One reading list for prelims and mains
Most screening topics are also Mains topics. Read once, in Mains depth, and test in prelims format.
| Read for | Screening part | Mains paper |
|---|---|---|
| Ancient to modern India, AP history | Paper-I A | Paper-II A and B |
| Physical, social, economic geography | Paper-I D | Paper-II C |
| Constitution, federalism, local bodies | Paper-I B | Paper-III A and B |
| Indian and AP economy, Reorganisation Act 2014 | Paper-I C | Paper-IV |
| S&T, space, energy, environment | Paper-II B(i) | Paper-V |
| Current events, AP schemes | Paper-II B(ii) | Paper-I Essay and all papers |
4. The 90-day Screening Test plan
Our plan. Move between phases on mock results, not just dates.
| Days | Dates (2026–27) | Focus |
|---|---|---|
| 1–30 | 26 Oct – 24 Nov | Foundation. One Paper-I part per week (History, Polity, Economy, Geography), then a catch-up week. Every day: 60 minutes of Paper-II Part A and 30 minutes of current affairs. |
| 31–60 | 25 Nov – 24 Dec | Topic practice and AP depth. Topic tests after each chapter. Two focused weeks on AP: the post-2014 economy and the AP Reorganisation Act (Paper-I C), and AP geography. Science and Technology (ISRO, ICT, energy, environment). Sectional timed sets for Paper-II A. |
| 61–80 | 25 Dec – 13 Jan | Full mocks. Two full screening mocks a week, each Paper-I and Paper-II back to back, two hours each. Analyse every mock the same day. Fill gaps between mocks. |
| 81–90 | 14 Jan – 23 Jan | Revision. No new topics. Short notes, formula sheet, last six months of current affairs, two final mocks at the test-day time slot. |
Daily minimum, all 90 days: 30 minutes of current affairs (Paper-II B(ii) is 30 marks and it feeds the essay), and a timed set of 15–20 Mental Ability questions.
If you are working
If you have only 3–4 hours a day, compress the same 90-day plan like this (our suggestion):
| Time | Task |
|---|---|
| Morning, 1 hour | That week's Paper-I part |
| Commute, 30 minutes | Current affairs and AP news |
| Evening, 1 hour | Timed Paper-II A set and error review |
| Weekend | One full mock (two from day 61) and the weekly revision |
Even when weekday time is short, do not skip the weekend mock: that is where test-day stamina is built.
5. Running Mains and the language papers alongside
- Weekly Mains slot (from week 1): two hours a week on what the screening test does not cover well: AP history (Satavahanas to bifurcation), Paper-III ethics and basic laws, and one essay. After 24 January, switch to full Mains preparation.
- Telugu and English papers: qualifying, but each needs 40% (OC, Sports, EWS), 35% (BC) or 30% (SC, ST, PBD). From the Mains phase, do one timed set a week: letter, précis, report writing, translation, comprehension. The Telugu paper includes elaborating verses from Vemana and Sumathi Satakam, so revise those.
- Choose your Mains medium early. You may write in English, Telugu or Urdu, but one medium for all five papers. Make notes in the medium you will write in. If you write in Telugu, keep a small glossary of standard Telugu terms for administrative, economic and scientific words, with the English term in brackets where it helps the examiner.
6. Subject tactics from the syllabus
- History and Culture: the screening list names South Indian dynasties down to the Kakatiyas and Reddis, and the European companies' struggle "with special reference to" Andhra and the Nizam. Build a dynasty timeline with AP inscriptions and capitals.
- Polity: the notification adds statutory, regulatory and quasi-judicial bodies, rights issues and foreign policy. Make a one-page table of bodies with their basis (constitutional or statutory).
- Economy: the AP section is specific: bifurcation, river-water disputes, Vizag railway zone, Kadapa steel plant, special status. These are fact-dense and appear in both stages.
- Geography: World, India and "concerned State" at three levels: physical, social and economic. Use maps daily.
- Mental Ability: arithmetic (percentages, interest, time and work), DI and data sufficiency, plus EI and social-intelligence situation questions. Practise the situational type with the same care as arithmetic.
- Science and Technology: ISRO launches, satellite systems, DRDO, energy policy and India's climate commitments come largely from the news; read them alongside your current-affairs notes.
7. A weekly mock-analysis routine
Tag every wrong or skipped question:
- Concept gap – learn it, then do 10 questions on it.
- Fact slip – add to the revision sheet.
- Time – practise that block against the clock.
- Careless – slow the first read.
- Bad guess – guess only after elimination.
Count tags weekly; the largest is next week's work. Compare your percentile, not only your raw marks: on Pareeksha, everyone in a cohort sits the same fixed paper, so your percentile shows where you stand on identical questions. See how it works.
8. Mistakes this scheme punishes
- Treating Paper-II as an afterthought. Part A alone is 60 marks, the same as two Paper-I parts together.
- Reading AP topics last. The AP economy, the Reorganisation Act and AP geography sit in Paper-I C and D and come back in Mains Papers II and IV. Leaving them for December wastes their double value.
- Blind guessing. With a 1/3 penalty, a run of blind guesses can cancel several correct answers. Measure your guess accuracy in mocks before you trust it.
- Skipping the qualifying papers. No marks, but a fail ends the attempt.
- Stopping current affairs after the Screening Test. The essay paper has a full section on current affairs, and Papers II to V all ask about recent policy.
9. Last-week checklist (17–23 January)
- Hall ticket downloaded; centre address and travel time checked.
- Formula sheet, AP fact notes and the last six months of current affairs revised twice.
- One final mock at the real test time, on an OMR sheet.
- Sleep schedule set to the exam time; no new books in the last days.
10. After 24 January: the Mains phase
APPSC will announce the Mains date later. Use the gap after the Screening Test like this (our plan):
- Week 1: check the preliminary key, then start answer-writing at once. Do not wait for the result.
- Weekly cycle: one full paper (150 marks, 180 minutes) per week in rotation across Papers II to V, plus one essay set of three, one from each section.
- Language papers: one Telugu and one English set every week until Mains.
- Revision layer: AP budget and schemes for Paper-IV, ethics case studies for Paper-III, and recent S&T for Paper-V.
11. Practising on Pareeksha
- Free: the 10-question mini-mock to try the format, and the Daily Dangal quiz for daily current affairs and GS.
- Pro: full-length mocks, previous-year papers and topic-wise practice. See plans.
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