If you pass through the Portfolio Round, then you will get a call letter to sit for the admission test. The admission test is the second step towards the scholarship. There are usually four centres in the four zones where one can take this test. I feel the test is not that difficult and with a little bit of preparation, you are sure to ace through your admission test. It is basically of two components: Aptitude Test and Mathematics Test. There is no test on english or vocabulary as they expect indians to have good command over English Language. And anyways, this can surely be tested in the Interview.

The Aptitude Test is designed to test the reasoning ability and general aptitude of the candidate. It is a 30 minutes test and may be difficult for those who may be taking such a test for the first time. The pattern and even the questions for this component remain almost the same each and every year. 

Pattern

There is a booklet provided in which there are only one type of questions which I call as the Grid-In Questions. On one page is a 3-into-3 grid. Eight of the nine boxes are filled with some figures which follow some pattern and the ninth one is left blank. On the adjacent page are another nine options from which only one would fit in the blank box logically. The candidates have to figure out the pattern in a logical sense and then shade the appropriate answer in a given sheet.

The difficulty of the questions rises gradually. This means that the starting questions are much simpler than ones in the end. So one should strategize his time accordingly because often candidates find it hard to finish all the questions in time. As for negative marking, it is not disclosed whether there is any or not. But anyways, guesses would rarely work because there are a lot of options to choose from.

Preparation

These questions just require a bit of preparation so that the candidate becomes used to the common concepts that can be applied. The figures could follow a certain pattern in any way. Each row, or each column or sometimes all the nine boxes are supposed to follow some sort of a pattern. The common logics which can be applied are subtraction or addition of some parts to obtain a general trend in a row or a column. For preparation, one can easily find these sort of questions in any mental ability book. Tata McGraw Hill for NTSE does contain some sort of these questions. Alternatively, you can click one of the appropriate resources below.

The pattern of this test varies from year to year. Sometimes it is a 2 hour test and at other times it may be only one hour. Still there are some general guidelines in this component.

Syllabus and Pattern

This test contains certain numbers of subjective questions which have to be answered in a given time. Space is provided for writing the answers. So, clear presentation and explanation are musts. Apart from a few tricky questions, the general level of the test is easy. so extra care must be taken to ensure that you get all these questions fully correct. The topics covered are mostly from the tenth standard CBSE level, but there are a certain number of questions which cover concepts usually done in eleventh standard. Some of these topics which are covered in depth in eleventh class and may need a bit of practise are Probability, Permutations and Combinations, Progressions and Coordinate Geometry (Straight Lines).

Preparation

The test is held after the Board exams, so one is already well versed with the concepts. What is required is only a bit of brushing up of some concept. Also, by that time you must have started your eleventh class studies, so it should also aid you. Practising the aforementioned eleventh standard topics will also be helpful. One important notice for ICSE students is that the syllabus in the test is mostly based on CBSE class 10 book, so you might want to go through it and see if there are any topics missing.