Aptitude preparation for placements: topics, formulas and a study order

Last updated 20 October 2026 · By LogicWiz Team

Campus placement tests from TCS, Infosys, Wipro, Accenture, Cognizant, Capgemini and others differ in timing and sections, but the aptitude topics they draw from overlap heavily. This guide gives you one list of topics, an order to learn them in so each topic builds on the last, and the formulas worth memorising. Every topic links to free practice questions with worked answers on LogicWiz Exams.

The three areas

Some tests also include pseudocode (reading short code and saying what it prints), which is covered in the Infosys preparation guide. For the reported sections of each company's test, see the placement mock tests page.

Quantitative aptitude: the study order

Learn these in order. Each group uses the ideas of the one before it.

Stage 1: the foundations

1. Number system: divisibility, remainders, unit digits, factors.
2. HCF and LCM.
3. Simplification: BODMAS, fractions, approximation.
4. Percentages. This is the single most reused idea in aptitude.

Stage 2: everything built on percentages and ratios

5. Ratio and proportion.
6. Averages.
7. Profit and loss.
8. Simple and compound interest.
9. Mixtures and alligation.
10. Problems on ages.

Stage 3: rates

11. Time and work.
12. Pipes and cisterns (the same idea as time and work).
13. Time, speed and distance.
14. Problems on trains.
15. Boats and streams.

Stage 4: counting, shapes and data

16. Permutation and combination.
17. Probability (after P and C, because most probability questions are counting).
18. Mensuration.
19. Algebra and equations.
20. Data interpretation (last, because it combines percentages, ratios and averages on a chart).

Quantitative formulas worth memorising

Percentages

• Percentage change = (new value - old value) / old value × 100.
• Two successive changes of a% and b%: net change = a + b + (a × b) / 100. Use a negative number for a decrease.
• If A is r% more than B, then B is r / (100 + r) × 100 % less than A.

Profit, loss and discount

• Profit % = (selling price - cost price) / cost price × 100.
• Discount % = (marked price - selling price) / marked price × 100.

Interest

• Simple interest = P × R × T / 100.
• Compound interest amount = P × (1 + R/100)^T, compounded yearly; interest = amount - P.
• For 2 years, compound interest - simple interest = P × (R/100)².

Ratio, averages and mixtures

• Dividing S in the ratio a : b gives a / (a + b) × S and b / (a + b) × S.
• Average = sum of values / number of values.
• Alligation: quantity of cheaper : quantity of dearer = (dearer price - mean price) : (mean price - cheaper price).

Time and work, pipes

• If A finishes a job in a days and B in b days, together they take a × b / (a + b) days.
• A pipe fills a tank in a hours and another empties it in b hours (b greater than a): together the tank fills in a × b / (b - a) hours.

Speed, trains and boats

• Speed = distance / time. To convert km/h to m/s, multiply by 5/18.
• Average speed over two equal distances at x and y = 2xy / (x + y).
• A train of length L passes a pole in L / speed, and a platform of length P in (L + P) / speed.
• Relative speed is the sum of speeds for objects moving towards each other and the difference for objects moving the same way.
• Boat speed u in still water and stream speed v: downstream = u + v, upstream = u - v.

Counting and probability

• nPr = n! / (n - r)! (arrangements, order matters).
• nCr = n! / (r! × (n - r)!) (selections, order does not matter).
• Probability = favourable outcomes / total outcomes, and P(not A) = 1 - P(A).

Number system

• For two numbers, HCF × LCM = product of the numbers.
• A number is divisible by 3 (or 9) when the sum of its digits is divisible by 3 (or 9).

Mensuration

• Circle: area = πr², circumference = 2πr.
• Cylinder volume = πr²h; cone volume = (1/3)πr²h; sphere volume = (4/3)πr³.

Logical reasoning: learn it by question type

Reasoning has fewer formulas and more methods. Learn the quicker types first, then the long arrangements.

1. Number series and letter series: check differences, then ratios, then alternating patterns.
2. Coding and decoding: write the alphabet with positions 1 to 26 once at the start.
3. Analogies and odd one out.
4. Direction sense: always draw it.
5. Blood relations: draw a family tree with + and - for gender.
6. Clocks and calendars: the angle between the hands at H hours M minutes is |30H - 5.5M| degrees; an ordinary year has 1 odd day and a leap year 2.
7. Syllogisms: use Venn diagrams, and check "some" and "no" statements against every possible drawing.
8. Statements and conclusions and data sufficiency.
9. Seating arrangement and puzzles: place the definite clues first, then the conditional ones.

Verbal ability: a little every day

Verbal improves with daily practice more than with cramming.

1. Synonyms, antonyms and idioms and phrases: ten words a day.
2. Error spotting, sentence completion and sentence improvement: subject-verb agreement, tenses, articles and prepositions cause most errors.
3. Active and passive voice and direct and indirect speech.
4. Para jumbles: find the opening sentence (it introduces a subject without "this" or "he"), then pairs that must go together.
5. Reading comprehension: one timed passage a day. Read the questions first, then the passage.

How to practise for speed

1. Learn untimed. For a new topic, do 10 to 15 questions slowly, reading every worked answer, including for the ones you got right.
2. Then drill timed. Do sets of 10 at the pace of your target test. For example, TCS NQT Foundation is reported as 20 numerical questions in 25 minutes, which is 75 seconds each.
3. Keep a mistake log. For each wrong answer, write the topic and the reason: did not know the method, careless error, or ran out of time. Each needs a different fix.
4. Mix topics once you know them. Real tests do not group questions by topic. The Daily 10 mixes aptitude, reasoning, verbal and technical questions, and a free AI practice paper can target the topics you choose (3 a week on the free Spark plan).
5. Finish with full mocks. In the last two weeks, sit full company-pattern mock tests under the real sectional timers. Spark includes 1 full mock test a day.

If you know your test and date, the free personal study plan turns this order into a daily schedule aimed at your weak topics. For a test-specific plan, see how to prepare for TCS NQT in 30 days.

Frequently asked questions

Which aptitude topics are most important for placements?

Percentages, ratio and proportion, profit and loss, time and work, time speed and distance, and number series appear in almost every placement test. Learn those first, then probability, permutation and combination and data interpretation.

In what order should I study quantitative aptitude?

Start with number system, simplification and percentages, then the topics built on them (ratios, averages, profit and loss, interest, mixtures, ages), then rates (time and work, speed and distance, trains, boats), and finally counting, probability, mensuration and data interpretation.

How long does it take to prepare aptitude for placements?

With 2 to 3 hours a day, most students can cover every topic once in about four weeks and then spend two weeks on timed practice and mocks. If you have less time, focus on the most common topics first.

How can I improve my aptitude speed?

Learn each method untimed first, then practise in timed sets at your target test's pace, keep a log of why you got each question wrong, and mix topics once you know them. Speed comes from recognising question types quickly.

Is there free aptitude practice with answers?

Yes. LogicWiz Exams has free quantitative, reasoning, verbal and technical practice questions with worked explanations, unlimited on every plan, plus a Daily 10 and free company-pattern mock tests.