Full Mock, Practice Set or Custom Mock: Which to Use

Mock CSS gives you several ways to practice, and it is not obvious at first which to reach for. They are not interchangeable. A full mock tells you where you stand. A Practice Set fixes one section. Today's practice keeps you in the habit. Here is what each is for.

Full mock

Use it to find out where you stand and to rehearse the real thing. It is built for the test you chose: for the CSS MPT, 200 questions in 200 minutes with no negative marking; for an FPSC post, that post's own marks, time and passing rule, with 0.25 off for a wrong answer.

It is the only mode that uses up your free allowance. Free accounts get 3 full mocks a month, shared between CSS MPT and FPSC. A mock counts from the moment you start it. Premium has no limit.

Take one early as a baseline, then one every few days, with a proper review between them.

Practice Sets

Fixed sets that you can retake as often as you like. On FPSC, every post has three sets of 100 questions for each of its sections, and one set on every post is free. On the CSS MPT, three Practice Sets are free. The rest are Premium.

Use them to work a section that is costing you marks. They do not use your free monthly mocks. On FPSC posts they carry the same 0.25 penalty as a full mock, so you are practicing under the real rule.

Custom Mock (Premium)

You choose the length, 50, 100, 150 or 200 questions, and optionally which sections to include. The questions are drawn fresh and weighted to the syllabus. It is the right tool when you want a short, focused paper on one or two sections without waiting for a Practice Set to come round.

Today's practice

Ten questions, ten minutes, no negative marking, one set a day for each post you practice. It is free for everyone and does not use your monthly mocks. It is not ranked on the leaderboard.

This is the one to keep a streak going on days when a full session is not realistic. If you are on Premium, the set starts with up to five questions due from your revision queue, and fresh ones fill the rest.

Revision and the weak-area drill (Premium)

These two build sessions from your own results. Revision brings back what you got wrong on a schedule. The weak-area drill builds 30 questions from your three weakest areas. Both are practice: no negative marking, one minute a question, not ranked.

Past Papers: CSS MPT only

Past Papers are the real CSS MPT papers, with one free and the full library on Premium. FPSC job posts do not have past papers on Mock CSS. If you are preparing for an FPSC post, use full mocks, Practice Sets and Custom Mocks built from your post's syllabus. FPSC Test vs CSS MPT covers the other differences.

Badges, briefly

Badges are small private milestones, such as your first mock, your first pass, a number of mocks or questions, and streaks of 7, 30 and 100 days. Only you see them. Full mocks, Past Papers, Practice Sets and Custom Mocks count toward the mock badges. Today's practice, revision and drills do not, but they all count toward your streak and your question total.

A quick way to choose

Studying Smart for an FPSC Post shows how to put these together over a week.

Frequently asked questions