Careers360 Logo

Popular Searches

    Exam Prep

    KVPY SA Exam: Analysis Of Exam Pattern, Previous Years’ Question Papers

    By Ramraj Saini
    5 Mar'22  10 min read
    KVPY SA Exam: Analysis Of Exam Pattern, Previous Years’ Question Papers
    Synopsis

    The Kishore Vaigyanik Protsahan Yojana (KVPY) scheme supports and encourages science students in higher education. There’s no official KVPY syllabus. The KVPY exam conducted for Class 11 students (KVPY SA), is based on the science syllabus taught in Classes 9 to 12 but as the KVPY previous years’ question papers show, the weightage assigned to the syllabi of different classes varies. Here’s an analysis of KVPY question papers going back five years which looks at the KVPY exam pattern and the distribution of questions across the syllabi of the four subjects — Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, Biology — to help understand the KVPY SA syllabus and strategise to do well.

    KVPY SA Exam: Analysis Of Exam Pattern, Previous Years’ Question Papers
    Synopsis

    The Kishore Vaigyanik Protsahan Yojana (KVPY) scheme supports and encourages science students in higher education. There’s no official KVPY syllabus. The KVPY exam conducted for Class 11 students (KVPY SA), is based on the science syllabus taught in Classes 9 to 12 but as the KVPY previous years’ question papers show, the weightage assigned to the syllabi of different classes varies. Here’s an analysis of KVPY question papers going back five years which looks at the KVPY exam pattern and the distribution of questions across the syllabi of the four subjects — Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, Biology — to help understand the KVPY SA syllabus and strategise to do well.

    Around 50,000 students appear for Kishore Vaigyanik Protsahan Yojana - SA (KVPY-SA) every year of whom only 1,100 are selected for scholarships. As KVPY-SA is coming up soon, Class 11 students will be preparing for this exam and schools will work on getting them ready. Students of Class 11 can find all the important information related to KVPY-SA in this article.

    NOTE- DST has decided to subsume KVPY with INSPIRE. KVPY Aptitude test will not be conducted from the year 2022 onwards. Ongoing KVPY fellows will continue to receive fellowship as per norms from DST.

    Given below is a detailed analysis of the exam and the syllabus. While there’s no officially-defined KVPY syllabus, the exam asks questions from course content covered in Classes 9 to 12. The analysis of the KVPY exam pattern and comparison of the weightage assigned to syllabus of different classes will help students strategise and prepare for the KVPY-SA well in time.

    KVPY Exam, Eligibility Criteria

    The Kishore Vaigyanik Protsahan Yojana (KVPY full form) is a national-level fellowship programme in basic sciences conducted by the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru. KVPY is written by students who are interested in science and research and want to pursue a career in this field. It is a computer-based test containing three streams — SA , SB, and SX. KVPY- SA is for students of Class 11; SB is for Class 12 students, and SX is for students in undergraduate (UG) courses in the basic sciences.

    This fellowship programme was initiated and is funded by the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, to attract exceptional students to pursue careers in science. Students eligible for KVPY can get scholarships up to pre-PhD level as well as admission into institutes like the IISc and the Indian Institutes of Science Education and Research (IISERs), through their additional criteria. The main aim of this programme is to test the understanding and analytical ability of the student.

    Also Read,

    KVPY Scholarship Courses

    Students selected under this stream will receive their fellowships after joining an undergraduate course in basic sciences after passing Class 12. They can be enrolled in these programmes — BSc, BS, BStat, BMath, Integrated MSc or MS.

    KVPY Exam Pattern

    The KVPY-SA is an online exam. The KVPY question paper contains a total of 80 questions divided into two sections, Part 1 and Part 2. Part 1 contains 60 questions and part 2 consists of 20 questions. Part 1 and Part 2 are further divided into four sections each: Physics, Mathematics, Chemistry, and Biology. Questions in Part 1 carry one mark each and those in Part 2 carry two marks each. For every wrong answer, in part 1, 0.25 marks and in part 2, 0.5 marks are docked from the total. Both parts of the KVPY question paper contain multiple-choice questions (MCQ) and are in both Hindi and English. All questions are compulsory to attempt. The paper carries a total of 100 marks and the exam itself is of 3 hours duration.

    KVPY Syllabus

    Although, officially there’s no chapter-wise syllabus, Careers360 analysed previous years’ question papers and found that the KVPY SA syllabus draws from course content taught in Classes 9, 10 and 11 and parts of Class 12 as well. Broadly, the syllabus covers Physics, Chemistry, Biology, and Mathematics. Questions asked in the exam are basically from textbooks by the National Council for Educational Research and Training (NCERT) for various Classes.

    KVPY Previous Years’ Question Papers

    A detailed analysis of the previous five years’ question papers can yield crucial insights into the class-wise weightage of syllabus and important chapters. Such insights will help students formulate their preparation strategy.

    KVPY SA Syllabus: Class-Wise Weightage

    A total of 460 questions were analysed from the past five years. The analysis showed that the maximum questions were from Class 11, followed by Class 10 and that the weightage assigned to the Class 12 syllabus was also appreciable. Given below is the distribution of questions across Classes.

    KVPY SA distribution of questions by classKVPY SA distribution of questions by class

    This implies that students in Class 11 have to study the Class 12 syllabus as well in order to get good marks. But focussing more on Class 11 will yield a better result. Now, let's have a look at the subject-wise, Class-wise weightage as well for better understanding and clarity on how to prepare.

    KVPY SA Syllabus: Subject-Wise Analysis

    As mentioned above, students are tested in four subjects for KVPY SA. An analysis of the weightage assigned to each chapter follows.

    Physics

    The table below shows the number of questions from each Class in the Physics section of five years of KVPY question papers.

    KVPY SA: Distribution of Physics questions by classKVPY SA: Distribution of Physics questions by class

    Almost half the questions in KVPY came from the Class 11 Physics syllabus. A quarter of the questions were asked from Class 10. Interestingly 18.26% questions were from Class 12 which means the Class 12 physics syllabus also demands significant attention.

    Light- Reflection and Refraction (Class 10), Thermal Properties of Matter (Class 11), System of Particles and Rotational Motion (Class 11), Mechanical Properties of Fluids (Class 11) and Units and Measurement (Class 11) are some of the important topics that students should study more thoroughly because they have had higher weightage over the past few years.

    The following chart shows how many questions came from each chapter.

    KVPY Physics Syllabus: Chapter Questions Over 5 Years

    Chapter Name

    Class

    No. of Questions

    Light- Reflection and Refraction

    10

    22

    Thermal Properties of Matter

    11

    10

    System of Particles and Rotational motion

    11

    8

    Mechanical Properties of Fluids

    11

    7

    Units and Measurement

    11

    6

    Electric Charges and Fields

    12

    5

    Electricity

    10

    5

    Gravitation

    11

    5

    Motion in a Straight Line

    11

    5

    Ray Optics and Optical Instruments

    12

    5

    Motion

    9

    4

    Motion in a Plane

    11

    4

    Current Electricity

    12

    3

    Work and Energy

    9

    3

    Work, Energy and Power

    11

    3

    Atoms

    12

    2

    Kinetic Theory

    11

    2

    Laws of Motion

    11

    2

    Mechanical Properties of Solids

    11

    2

    Nuclei

    12

    2

    Alternating Current

    12

    1

    Atoms and Molecules

    9

    1

    Dual Nature of Radiation and Matter

    12

    1

    Magnetic Effects of Electric Current

    10

    1

    Magnetism and Matter

    12

    1

    Moving charges and magnetism

    12

    1

    Oscillations

    11

    1

    Our Environment

    10

    1

    Thermodynamics

    11

    1

    Waves

    11

    1

    Chemistry

    The table below shows the number of questions from each Class’ Chemistry syllabus asked over the past five years taken together. Clearly in the case of Chemistry, Class 10 and Class 12 have about equal weightage but there was no representation at all of the Class 9 syllabus.

    KVPY SA: Distribution of Chemistry questions by class

    KVPY SA: Distribution of Chemistry questions by class


    In the case of Chemistry, 85.22 % of questions were from Class 11 Chemistry syllabus.

    Organic Chemistry- Some Basic Principles and Techniques (Class 11), Structure of Atom (Class 11), Hydrocarbons (Class 11), Some Basic Concepts of Chemistry (Class 11), Chemical Bonding and Molecular Structure (Class 11), Periodic Classification of Elements (Class 10), Redox Reaction (Class 11), States of Matter: Gases and Liquids (Class 11), and Thermodynamics (Class 11) are some of the more important topics.

    Given below is a more detailed analysis of where the questions came from.

    KVPY Chemistry Syllabus: Chapter Questions Over 5 Years

    Chapter Name

    Class

    No. of Questions

    Organic Chemistry- Some Basic Principles and Techniques

    11

    18

    Structure of Atom

    11

    14

    Hydrocarbons

    11

    13

    Some Basic concepts of Chemistry

    11

    12

    Chemical Bonding and Molecular Structure

    11

    7

    Periodic Classification of elements

    10

    6

    Redox Reaction

    11

    6

    States of Matter : Gases and liquids

    11

    6

    Thermodynamics

    11

    6

    The P-Block Elements

    11

    5

    Equilibrium

    11

    4

    The S-Block Elements

    11

    3

    Amines

    12

    2

    General Principles and Processes of isolation of elements

    12

    2

    Hydrogen

    11

    2

    Aldehydes, Ketones and Carboxylic Acids

    12

    1

    Carbon and Its Compounds

    10

    1

    Chemical Kinetics

    12

    1

    Chemical Reactions and Equations

    10

    1

    Classification of Elements and Periodicity in Properties

    11

    1

    Electrochemistry

    12

    1

    Haloalkanes and Haloarenes

    12

    1

    Some p-Block Elements

    11

    1

    States of Matter

    11

    1

    Maths

    As the chart below shows, in the case of Maths, Class 9 and Class 12 syllabi have roughly the same weightage.

    KVPY SA: Distribution of Maths questions by class

    In the case of Maths, focussing on Class 10 and Class 11 syllabi only will be very effective for students as in past years, 87% of the questions were from them.

    Sequences and Series (Class 11), Complex Numbers and Quadratic Equations (Class 11), Binomial Theorem (Class 11), Conic Sections (Class 11), Coordinate Geometry (Class 10), Permutations and Combinations (Class 11), Straight lines (Class 11), and Triangles (Class 10) are important topics for the KVPY exam.

    The table below shows how many questions came from each topic of Mathematics over the past five years.

    KVPY Maths Syllabus: Chapter Questions Over 5 Years

    Chapter Name

    Class

    No. of Questions

    Sequences and Series

    11

    12

    Complex Numbers and Quadratic Equations

    11

    11

    Binomial Theorem

    11

    9

    Conic Sections

    11

    9

    Coordinate Geometry

    10

    7

    Permutations and Combinations

    11

    7

    Straight lines

    11

    6

    Triangles

    10

    6

    Circles

    10

    5

    Polynomials

    10

    5

    Relations and Functions

    12

    5

    Real numbers

    10

    4

    Linear Inequalities

    11

    3

    Surface Area and Volumes

    9

    3

    Trigonometric Functions

    11

    3

    Areas of Parallelograms and Triangles

    9

    2

    Introduction To Euclid's Geometry

    9

    2

    Limits and Derivatives

    11

    2

    Probability

    12

    2

    Real Number

    10

    2

    Arithmetic Progressions

    10

    1

    Conic Section

    11

    1

    Quadratic Equations

    10

    1

    Quadrilaterals

    9

    1

    Relations and Functions

    11

    1

    Sequence and Series

    11

    1

    Sets

    11

    1

    Statistics

    11

    1

    Statistics

    11

    1

    Triangles

    10

    1

    Biology

    Biology has the highest representation of questions from the Class 12 syllabus. As many as 25 have been asked over the past five years.

    KVPY SA: Distribution of Biology questions by class

    In Biology, 45% of questions were from Class 11 and nearly an equal number were asked from Classes 10 and 12, hence equal attention is advised for both.

    Heredity and Evolution (Class 10), Life Processes (Class 10), Biomolecules (Class 11), Cell: The Unit of Life (Class 11), Principles of Inheritance and Variation (Class 12) and Body Fluids and Circulation (Class 11) are some of the more important topics, as the table below shows.

    KVPY Biology Syllabus: Chapter Questions Over 5 Years

    Chapter Name

    Class

    No. of Questions

    Heredity and Evolution

    10

    9

    Life Processes

    10

    8

    Biomolecules

    11

    7

    Cell: The Unit of Life

    11

    7

    Principles of Inheritance and Variation

    12

    6

    Body Fluids and Circulation

    11

    5

    Breathing and Exchange of Gases

    11

    5

    Cell Cycle and Cell Division

    11

    5

    Diversity in Living Organisms

    9

    5

    Human Health and Disease

    12

    5

    Molecular basis of inheritance

    12

    5

    How do organisms reproduce

    10

    4

    Our Environment

    10

    4

    Respiration in Plants

    11

    4

    Transport in Plants

    11

    4

    Control and Coordination

    10

    3

    Digestion and Absorption

    11

    3

    Evolution

    12

    3

    Excretory Products and their Elimination

    11

    3

    Anatomy of Flowering Plants

    11

    2

    Biotechnology : Principles and Processes

    12

    2

    Chemical Coordination and Integration

    11

    2

    Morphology of Flowering Plants

    11

    2

    The Human Eye and the colorful world

    10

    2

    Animal Kingdom

    11

    1

    Ecosystem

    12

    1

    Microbes in Human Welfare

    12

    1

    Natural Resources

    9

    1

    Neural Control and Coordination

    11

    1

    Organisms and Population

    12

    1

    Photosynthesis in Higher Plants

    11

    1

    Strategies for enhancement in food production

    12

    1

    The Fundamental unit of Life

    9

    1

    Why do we fall ill?

    9

    1

    KVPY Exam: How To Make It

    Here are a few handy tips on how to approach your KVPY exam preparation and do well:

    • Start your preparation as early as possible. Ideally, you should start from just after the Class 10 board exams. One should target completing the Classes 9 and 10 syllabi in the time available just after the Class 10 board exams and before Class 11 begins. Revise all the important topics in-depth and practice questions. Starting early will also save you some time for revision during the last days

    • Cover the important topics from the Class 12 syllabus while studying for Class 11

    • Keep at least a month for revising the Class 9 and Class 10 parts of the syllabus

    • Attempt KVPY mock-tests online and improve your performance and strategy

    • Focus especially on mastering topics with higher weightage

    • Make a strategy or study plan but include breaks in that as well

    • Solve all the KVPY previous year's question papers

    • Keep negative marking in mind — don’t attempt questions if you are not sure of the answer

    • On the day of the paper, keep calm, stop revision one day before the exam and refresh yourself

    • Eat healthy and have a good amount of sleep.

    Study your school and the KVPY syllabi together. Go through important topics regularly, practice questions and diagrams diligently. It also helps to keep yourself updated with recent scientific research.

      Subscribe to Membership Plan

      *Unlock all premium content and benefits:
      Read more from Latest Stories

      Careers360 helping shape your Career for a better tomorrow

      student

      250M+

      Students

      colleges

      30,000+

      Colleges

      exams

      500+

      Exams

      ebook

      1500+

      E-Books

      Download Careers360 App's

      Regular exam updates, QnA, Predictors, College Applications & E-books now on your Mobile

      • student
        250M+

        Students

      • colleges
        30,000+

        Colleges

      • exams
        500+

        Exams

      • ebook
        1500+

        E-Books

      • certification
        12000+

        Cetifications

      student
      Mobile Screen

      We Appeared in