Quantitative Reasoning: Speed and Accuracy Techniques
The CUET General Test contains 60 questions across General Knowledge/Current Affairs, General Mental Ability, Numerical Ability, and Quantitative Reasoning, of which students attempt 50 within 60 minutes — approximately 72 seconds per question. Speed and accuracy are co-equal priorities. The same +5/−1/0 marking scheme applies.
Quantitative Reasoning at CUET covers: percentages, profit and loss, simple and compound interest, ratio and proportion, time-speed-distance, time and work, averages, mixtures, and number system properties (HCF, LCM, divisibility rules, remainders). The difficulty level is broadly equivalent to Class 10 Mathematics. The challenge is not complexity but speed.
High-speed techniques: Percentage calculations — memorise percentage-fraction equivalences: 1/3 = 33.33%, 1/6 = 16.67%, 1/7 ≈ 14.28%, 1/8 = 12.5%, 1/9 ≈ 11.11%. For 'X% of Y = Z, find Y' questions: Y = Z × 100/X directly.
Compound Interest shortcuts: for 2-year problems, use the fact that CI for 2 years at rate r% = SI + (r% of first year's SI). For three years at 10%: multiplier = 1.331 (memorised). At 20% for 2 years: multiplier = 1.44. Using memorised multipliers eliminates step-by-step expansion.
Time-Speed-Distance: two trains of length L₁ and L₂ travelling towards each other at speeds S₁ and S₂: time to pass completely = (L₁ + L₂)/(S₁ + S₂). Same direction: time = (L₁ + L₂)/|S₁ − S₂|. Average speed for equal distances at speeds A and B: 2AB/(A + B) — harmonic mean, NOT arithmetic mean.
Work problems: A completes task in x days, B in y days, together: xy/(x + y) days. For pipes and cisterns: filling rates positive, draining rates negative — net rate per unit time.