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Test Series Help

Test Series is a timed, negative-marked mock exam feature — a fixed question bank drawn randomly per attempt, scored the moment you submit, fully reviewable afterward. For pricing and a feature overview, see the Test Series page; this page covers how to actually use it.

A separate subscription from Study Notes/MCQ Practice

Test Series has its own packages and its own free trial — holding a Study Notes/MCQ Practice subscription doesn't include Test Series access, and buying a Test Series pack doesn't unlock Study Library content either. The two are independent by design; see Pricing for the self-study side and Test Series pricing for this feature.

Opening Test Series

Click Test Series in the sidebar (see Navigation Help), then pick your subject. You'll see a list of testable scopes for that subject:

  • Unit Test — one lesson at a time.
  • Topic Paper (where available) — a whole sub-domain of the subject at once (e.g. all of Organic Chemistry for Chemical Sciences). Not every subject splits into topic papers — this shows up only where a sub-domain is large enough to deserve its own full-length test.
  • Full Syllabus — the entire subject, exam-realistic, drawn across every unit in proportion to how often it's actually tested.

Each option shows its question count, time limit, and whether the question bank behind it is ready — if a unit's bank isn't deep enough yet, you'll see "Coming soon" instead of a broken purchase.

Getting your first attempt

  1. Use your free trial first. Every subject gives you one free attempt (any scope, your choice) — no card required. It's the fastest way to see the real test-taking experience before buying a pack.
  2. Once you're ready for more, buy a pack. Pick 1-Exam, 5-Exam, or 10-Exam — see Test Series pricing for what each includes. Payment goes through the same secure Razorpay checkout used elsewhere on the platform.
  3. Click Take Exam on any unlocked scope to start your attempt.

Taking the test

  • Unit tests are 25 questions in 30 minutes. Topic papers and Full Syllabus attempts are 45 questions in 60 minutes.
  • The countdown timer is server-enforced, not just a number in your browser — closing the tab, losing connection, or refreshing does not stop your clock, and reopening the attempt resumes exactly where you left off, same timer, same answers saved.
  • Answer questions in any order using the question navigator. You can change an answer any time before submitting.
  • Submit manually when you're done, or let the timer run out — an expired attempt is automatically submitted with whatever you'd answered so far.

Scoring and negative marking

Your score follows standard CSIR/GATE-style negative marking:

  • Each correct answer earns full marks for that question.
  • Each wrong answer costs a fraction of a mark (a fixed penalty, the same for every question in that exam type).
  • Unattempted questions are never penalized — skipping is always safer than a pure guess if you're genuinely unsure.
  • Your overall score is never negative — it's floored at zero even on a very rough attempt.

Reviewing a finished attempt

After submitting, you'll see your score immediately, followed by a full review: every question, your answer, the correct answer, and an explanation — so a wrong answer becomes something you actually learn from.

Review needs an active Test Series subscription

You can review any past attempt for a subject as long as you currently hold any unexpired Test Series pack for that subject — it doesn't have to be the same pack that funded the attempt you're reviewing. If your last pack has fully expired, past attempts stay safely on record (nothing is ever deleted) but are greyed out until you buy another pack, which re-opens your entire attempt history for that subject at once.

Retaking a test

You can retake the same unit, topic paper, or Full Syllabus as many times as you like, as long as you have attempts remaining in your subscribed package(s) — there's no separate per-unit limit. Each retake draws a fresh random set of questions from the bank, so repeat attempts rarely look identical.

Stacking packages

Buying a new pack never replaces one you already hold — packages stack. If you have 3 attempts left on a 5-Exam Pack and buy a 10-Exam Pack, you now have 13 attempts available in total. When you start a new attempt, it's automatically drawn from whichever pack expires soonest, so nothing you've paid for goes to waste.

Troubleshooting

Symptom Likely cause
"Coming soon" instead of Take Exam That scope's question bank isn't populated yet — try a different unit, or check back later.
A Take Exam button is greyed out You've used all your available attempts, or your last active pack has expired — buy another pack to continue.
The exam screen shows a different time remaining than expected The timer is server-authoritative and accounts for time already elapsed if you're resuming an in-progress attempt — this is expected, not a bug.
A past attempt looks greyed out in your history Your Test Series subscription for that subject has expired — buying any new pack for that subject re-opens review for your entire history there.
You got disconnected mid-test Reopen Test Series and resume the attempt — your answers so far are saved and the clock continues from where it actually is, not from when you reconnected.

Still stuck? Email support@examcatalyst.ai with your account email, the subject/unit involved, and (if relevant) roughly when the attempt happened.