Should I focus on accuracy or number of attempts in SBI Clerk mocks?

With negative marking, accuracy is the base and attempts are the multiplier. Adding attempts at low accuracy can lower your score. Each wrong answer costs a quarter of a mark, and it also uses time you could have spent on a question you would get right.

A simple comparison (one 35-question section)

The middle row is the sweet spot: more attempts than the first, without the accuracy collapse of the third.

The two-stage method

1. Stage 1 (first 3-4 weeks of mocks): ignore attempts. Bring accuracy to 85-90% in each section by choosing questions carefully and checking.
2. Stage 2: raise attempts by 2-3 per section each week. If accuracy drops below 85%, go back to the previous attempt level for a week.

How to raise attempts without losing accuracy

• Faster calculation through daily drills
• Better question selection: read the first line of every question before solving
• Stricter time limits on puzzles and DI sets

Accuracy targets by section

• Reasoning: aim for 90%+ on puzzles you finish, because a fully solved arrangement gives definite answers.
• Quant: 85%+; most errors are calculation slips, so check units and signs.
• English: 85%+; most errors come from RC inference questions and close filler options.

Count your guesses separately in mocks. If guessed answers are mostly wrong, guess less.

Where extra attempts usually come from

The easiest extra attempts are questions you skipped but could solve, found during analysis. If you regularly find three or four of these per section, your selection is the problem, not your knowledge. Spend the first minute of each section scanning for them.