SET Books 2025: Check out best books for exam preparation

Aspirants should start preparing for the SET exam at least six months before the test date. SET preparation requires planning thus one must start early. They can also join coaching institutes for focused preparation. Starting early will also help you assess that whether you need to join a coaching institute or not. Divide your preparation into three phases - 1. Covering the syllabus 2. Practicing mock tests, sample questions and 3. Revision.

The SET syllabus includes the following topics:

General English: Parajumbles, Sentence Completion, Grammar, Comprehension Passages, Synonyms and Antonyms, etc.

Logical Reasoning: Tables, Graphs, Pie Charts, Blood Relation, Seating Arrangement, Strong and Weak Arguments, and Syllogism

Quantitative Aptitude: Geometry, Algebra Number System Arithmetic, Mensuration etc.

General Awareness: Companies and Founders, Awards, Books and Authors, Sports, Politics, Current Affairs, etc.

You can read the following SET books for exam preparation:

• A New Approach to Reasoning by BS Sijawali
• Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation for the CAT by Nishit K Sinha
• Multi-Dimensional Reasoning by Mishra Kumar and Dr Lal
• Word Power Made Easy by Norman Lewis
• High School English Grammar and Composition by Wren & Martin
• How to Prepare for Quantitative Aptitude for the CAT by Arun Sharma
• Class 9 and Class 10 NCERT Mathematics books
• Quantitative Aptitude by R. S Aggarwal
• Manorama Year Book

If you have a good study plan, you can study independently at home for the SET exam. This exam is conducted only once a year and is relatively easier than other BBA entrance exams. The following is advice from professionals on how to create a SET study plan: 

1. Using the SET syllabus as a guide, make a list of the subjects that the study materials must cover.
2. Plan your study time on a monthly, weekly, and daily basis according to the time available.
3. Analyze previous SET tests to note important topics.
4. You can find a mentor to assist you or join any online study group.
5. To enable thorough planning, assign a time limit to each section.
6. Start reading newspaper and magazine editorials to gain a command of the verbal skill section.
7. For the quantitative section, read the basic concepts and formulas from school textbooks.
8. Examine your progress through mock tests on a monthly basis.
9. Keep analyzing and improving your score over time until test day.
10. Set your score to meet the cutoff for the college to which you want to apply.

The General English section of the SET exam is usually easier than the other two sections. This section of the SET question paper is based on English usage and Grammar. The General English section aims to assess the candidate’s hold on language comprehension, grammar and vocabulary. The section examines the candidates on how well they comprehend the given data, analyse the question, vocabulary, grammar, etc.

One can easily crack SET in three months. Here are a few tips:

• Time Management: Calculate the estimate time you are giving for preparations and divide it equally as per the syllabus. Adjust your time and try to solve each question within the prescribed timing. Make a suitable time-table for preparation as per your routine and include short breaks between the longer study periods. Divide the preparation in several steps and complete them one by one.
• Prepare as per Syllabus: Firstly, gather all the information about the officially prescribed syllabus for SET Exam. Each question paper of this exam will contain different sections. Include every single topic of the syllabus in your preparation as per the courses opted.
• Study Material and Previous Year Question Papers: Students can prepare for this exam through the study materials available in the book stores or Internet. Mock tests are also a good way for preparations of the exam. Students can practice the mock test and work on their difficult points. Students can also practice the previous year question papers of this exam. This will help students to understand the type of questions, question weightage and pattern of the exam.
• Maintain Health: A good health is an important thing which is required for a good exam preparation. A healthy mind and body will help you to concentrate on your studies. Take a nutritious diet in preparation time. Include fresh fruits and veggies in your diet and avoid oily and junk food. Practice Yoga and Meditation this will help students to concentrate better in the studies.

Preparing for the SET exam from books and study material recommended by experts is important in order to gain an in-depth knowledge on different topics included in the SET syllabus. SET reference books contain detailed information on each topic of SET syllabus and will acquaint the students with SET exam pattern and difficulty level of the questions. In addition, they also contain solved sample papers, which may or may not be present in online resources always. It is always a wise decision to refer to more than one book for SET exam. Test takers can make use of the additional information available in the books while preparing for SET exam. Cracking a competitive exam becomes easier with the right set of books and study material.

SET is a national-level entrance exam conducted for admission to various undergraduate courses. SET 2025 will be conducted in the computer-based test mode. The difficulty level of the SET exam is usually easy to moderate. But, a few questions might trick your mind and can be time-consuming. General Knowledge and Analytical and Logical Reasoning are easier than the Quantitative Aptitude section. In 2024, according to the students who appeared for the SET session 1 exam, the SET exam was moderate. The General English section was the easiest of all the four sections. The Quantitative Aptitude section was the toughest and the other two sections were moderate to easy. The overall difficulty level of the SET question paper was moderate. Students who appeared for the SET 2024 session 2 exam said that the overall difficulty level was easy. Again, the General English section was the easiest. In this session, the Analytical and Logical Reasoning section was also easy to moderate. The Quant section was easy to moderate and the General Knowledge section was difficult.

Yes, IPMAT books can be used for the SET exam preparation as both are BBA entrance exams. Candidates can use the same books for preparing for topics such as Quantitative Aptitude and General English. However, the difficulty level of the SET exam is much easier as compared to that of the IPMAT exam. To prepare for other sections of the SET exam such as Analytical and Logical Reasoning and General Knowledge, candidates should refer to the subject-specific preparation books. 

To prepare well of the SET exam, candidates must also solve previous years' question papers and sample papers in order to know the important topics in the exam, structure, weightage of the topics, etc. 

SET is a speed-based test which is designed to assess a candidate's analytical aptitude, logical reasoning skills, Quantitative Aptitude and English comprehension. It may sound tough, but these are the skills which we are taught in school so there is nothing new to learn. What is required is to brush on these subjects and topics. All you will need is to brush up on the basics and practice the concepts on advance level problems. Students should solve previous years question papers, attempt an ample number of mock tests and be consistent to score well in the SET exam. Having said that, the preparation for the SET exam requires focus, dedication, discipline and diligence. If you can do that, despite being an average student, you can crack the SET exam. SET is one of the easiest BBA entrance exams and a good preparation strategy can help you crack the SET exam with a good score. Generally, the toughest section of the SET question paper is Quantitative Aptitude. But with daily practice and focusing on understanding the fundamentals, this section of the SET exam can be handled easily.

The best books for Quantitative Aptitude preparation of SET exam are listed below. These are the recommended books by experts. 

1. NCERT Mathematics books (Class 9-10)
2. Quantitative Aptitude for Competitive Examinations by Abhijit Guha
3. Quantitative Aptitude by RS Aggarwal

The NCERT Mathematics book is recommended for SET preparation because it is the best source of building or revisiting the fundamentals of Algebra Geometry, Trigonometry Mensuration Number Systems and Arithmetic. The NCERT books are extremely helpful to students from non-Engineering background. Quantitative Aptitude books by Arun Sharma, Abhijit Guha, Nishit Sinha and RS Aggarwal are the main books for SET preparation as well as other BBA and MBA entrance exams. These books cover all the topics at intermediate and advanced level. They also have many sample questions of easy, moderate and high difficulty levels for practice.

The Logical Reasoning section of the SET exam is usually moderately difficult. Some of the recommended books for the Logical Reasoning section are as follows: 

1. Guide to Verbal Ability and Logical Reasoning by Pearson Publications
2. A Modern Approach to Logical Reasoning by R. S Aggarwal
3. Logical and Analytical Ability by Ashok Gupta.
4. Analytical Reasoning by MK Pandey
5. A New Approach to Reasoning by BS Sijawali and Sijawali
6. Multi-dimensional Reasoning by Mishra Kumar and Dr. Lal
7. Logical and Analytical Reasoning by K Gupta
8. A Modern Approach to Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning by RS Aggarwal.

When preparing for the SET exam, using the right books and study materials can make a significant difference in your preparation. Here are some recommended books for various sections of the SET exam:

1. General English:

   • Word Power Made Easy by Norman Lewis
   • High School English Grammar and Composition by Wren & Martin
   • Objective General English by SP Bakshi

2. General Awareness:

   • Manorama Yearbook
   • Pratiyogita Darpan
   • Lucent's General Knowledge
   • Current Affairs Magazines (e.g., Competition Success Review, Pratiyogita Darpan)

3. Quantitative Aptitude:

   • Quantitative Aptitude for Competitive Examinations by RS Aggarwal
   • Fast Track Objective Arithmetic by Rajesh Verma
   • NCERT Mathematics textbooks of Class 9 and 10

4. Analytical & Logical Reasoning:

   • A Modern Approach to Verbal & Non-Verbal Reasoning by RS Aggarwal
   • Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation for CAT by Nishit K. Sinha

5. Previous Years' Question Papers:

   • Solve previous years' question papers and sample papers for SET to get an idea of the exam pattern and difficulty level.

Apart from these books, make sure to check reliable online resources for additional study material and mock tests specifically designed for the SET exam. Many online platforms offer comprehensive study material and practice tests tailored to the SET syllabus.

Additionally, keep yourself updated with current affairs by reading newspapers, magazines, and following relevant news portals regularly. Staying updated with current affairs is essential for the General Awareness section of the SET BBA exam.