Cognizant GenC Next Placement Papers 2026 — Questions & Preparation

Last Updated: March 2026

Cognizant GenC Next is a premium hiring program offering a package of ₹6.75 LPA. It is designed for candidates who demonstrate strong technical skills and the potential to work on complex projects from day one.

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Cognizant GenC Next Program Overview

Aspect	Details
Full Form	Generation Cognizant Next
Package	₹6.75 LPA
Role	Programmer Analyst Trainee (Advanced)
Location	Pan India
Projects	High-complexity, client-facing projects
Eligibility	BE/B.Tech/ME/M.Tech/MCA

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Eligibility Criteria

• Academic: Minimum 65% or 6.5 CGPA throughout (10th, 12th, Graduation)
• Backlogs: No active backlogs
• Gap: Maximum 2 years gap between academics
• Degree: Full-time courses from recognized universities
• Additional: Strong programming fundamentals required

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GenC vs GenC Next vs GenC Elevate

Program	Package	Focus	Difficulty
GenC	₹4.0 LPA	Entry-level	Moderate
GenC Next	₹6.75 LPA	Advanced technical	High
GenC Elevate	₹8.0 LPA	Leadership track	Very High

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GenC Next Exam Pattern

Section	Questions	Duration	Difficulty
Aptitude	25	35 min	Hard
Logical Reasoning	20	25 min	Hard
Verbal Ability	20	20 min	Moderate
Code Debugging	5	15 min	Moderate
Coding	3	60 min	Hard
Total	73	155 min	-

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15 Sample Questions with Solutions

Advanced Aptitude (Questions 1-4)

Q1. A pipe can fill a tank in 6 hours. After half the tank is filled, 3 more similar pipes are opened. What is the total time taken to fill the tank completely?

• a) 3 hours 30 minutes
• b) 3 hours 45 minutes
• c) 4 hours
• d) 4 hours 15 minutes

Solution: Half tank by 1 pipe in 3 hours. Remaining half by 4 pipes: 1 pipe takes 3 hours for half, so 4 pipes take 3/4 hours = 45 minutes. Total = 3 hours 45 minutes.

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Q2. The sum of the first 20 terms of an arithmetic progression is 650. If the first term is 10, what is the common difference?

• a) 2
• b) 3
• c) 4
• d) 5

Solution: S₂₀ = 20/2 [2×10 + 19d] = 650. 10(20 + 19d) = 650. 20 + 19d = 65. d = 3.

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Q3. In what ratio should water be mixed with milk to gain 16⅔% on selling the mixture at cost price?

• a) 1:6
• b) 6:1
• c) 1:5
• d) 5:1

Solution: Gain% = 16⅔% = 1/6. If CP of 1 liter milk = ₹6, SP = ₹6 (cost price of mixture). To gain 1/6, CP of mixture = ₹6 × 6/7 = ₹36/7. Ratio = (6 - 36/7) : 36/7 = 6/7 : 36/7 = 1:6.

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Q4. Two dice are thrown simultaneously. What is the probability of getting a sum of 7?

• a) 1/6
• b) 1/9
• c) 1/12
• d) 5/36

Solution: Favorable outcomes: (1,6), (2,5), (3,4), (4,3), (5,2), (6,1) = 6. Total = 36. Probability = 6/36 = 1/6.

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Logical Reasoning (Questions 5-7)

Q5. If 'A × B' means 'A is the son of B', 'A + B' means 'A is the brother of B', and 'A - B' means 'A is the wife of B', what does 'P + Q - R × S' mean?

• a) P is the nephew of S
• b) P is the son of S
• c) P is the brother of S
• d) P is the father of S

Explanation: R × S means R is son of S. Q - R means Q is wife of R. So Q is mother of R, and S is father/mother of R. P + Q means P is brother of Q. So P is uncle of R and nephew of S (if S is P's parent's sibling).

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Q6. Find the missing number:

  5   7   9
  12  16  ?
  31  43  57

• a) 20
• b) 21
• c) 22
• d) 24

Solution: Pattern: (5 × 2) + 2 = 12, (12 × 2) + 7 = 31. (7 × 2) + 2 = 16, (16 × 2) + 11 = 43. (9 × 2) + 3 = 21, (21 × 2) + 15 = 57.

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Q7. Statements: All books are pages. All pages are paper. Some paper is white. Conclusions: I. All books are paper II. Some pages are white

• a) Only I follows
• b) Only II follows
• c) Both follow
• d) Neither follows

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Verbal Ability (Questions 8-10)

Q8. Choose the word opposite in meaning to "Benevolent":

• a) Malevolent
• b) Kind
• c) Generous
• d) Friendly

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Q9. Fill in the blank: Despite his _______ nature, he could not resist the _______ to help the needy.

• a) generous, urge
• b) selfish, temptation
• c) altruistic, desire
• d) stingy, impulse

Explanation: The word 'despite' indicates contrast. Despite being stingy, he felt the impulse to help.

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Q10. Identify the correctly spelled word:

• a) Recieve
• b) Occurence
• c) Separate
• d) Definately

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Code Debugging (Questions 11-12)

Q11. Find the error in the following C code:

int factorial(int n) {
    if(n = 0)  // Error here
        return 1;
    return n * factorial(n-1);
}

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Q12. Identify the bug:

public class ArraySum {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        int[] arr = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5};
        int sum = 0;
        for(int i = 0; i <= arr.length; i++)  // Bug here
            sum += arr[i];
        System.out.println(sum);
    }
}

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Coding Questions (Questions 13-15)

Q13. Write a program to find the intersection of two arrays.

Solution:

def intersection(arr1, arr2):
    set1 = set(arr1)
    set2 = set(arr2)
    return list(set1 & set2)

n1 = int(input())
arr1 = list(map(int, input().split()))
n2 = int(input())
arr2 = list(map(int, input().split()))
result = intersection(arr1, arr2)
print(*sorted(result))

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Q14. Write a program to find the kth smallest element in an unsorted array.

Solution:

#include<stdio.h>

int partition(int arr[], int low, int high) {
    int pivot = arr[high];
    int i = low - 1;
    
    for(int j = low; j < high; j++) {
        if(arr[j] <= pivot) {
            i++;
            int temp = arr[i];
            arr[i] = arr[j];
            arr[j] = temp;
        }
    }
    
    int temp = arr[i+1];
    arr[i+1] = arr[high];
    arr[high] = temp;
    
    return i + 1;
}

int kthSmallest(int arr[], int low, int high, int k) {
    if(k > 0 && k <= high - low + 1) {
        int pos = partition(arr, low, high);
        
        if(pos - low == k - 1)
            return arr[pos];
        if(pos - low > k - 1)
            return kthSmallest(arr, low, pos - 1, k);
        
        return kthSmallest(arr, pos + 1, high, k - pos + low - 1);
    }
    return -1;
}

int main() {
    int n, k;
    scanf("%d %d", &n, &k);
    int arr[n];
    for(int i = 0; i < n; i++)
        scanf("%d", &arr[i]);
    printf("%d", kthSmallest(arr, 0, n-1, k));
    return 0;
}

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Q15. Write a program to check if a binary tree is a BST.

Solution:

class Node {
    int data;
    Node left, right;
    Node(int d) { data = d; left = right = null; }
}

class BSTCheck {
    boolean isBST(Node node) {
        return isBSTUtil(node, Integer.MIN_VALUE, Integer.MAX_VALUE);
    }
    
    boolean isBSTUtil(Node node, int min, int max) {
        if(node == null)
            return true;
        
        if(node.data < min || node.data > max)
            return false;
        
        return isBSTUtil(node.left, min, node.data - 1) &&
               isBSTUtil(node.right, node.data + 1, max);
    }
}

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Topic-Wise Weightage

Section	Weightage	Priority
Aptitude	20%	High
Logical Reasoning	15%	Medium
Verbal Ability	15%	Medium
Code Debugging	10%	Medium
Coding	40%	Very High

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Preparation Tips for GenC Next

1. Quantitative Aptitude

• Focus on complex problems
• Practice probability and permutations
• Study work-time and pipe-cistern problems
• Improve calculation speed

2. Logical Reasoning

• Practice advanced puzzles
• Focus on family tree problems
• Solve coding-decoding variations
• Study statement-conclusion patterns

3. Verbal Ability

• Build strong vocabulary
• Practice reading comprehension
• Focus on grammar rules
• Practice sentence completion

4. Code Debugging

• Practice reading code carefully
• Learn common error patterns
• Focus on boundary conditions
• Study language-specific quirks

5. Coding Skills

• Practice on LeetCode (Medium-Hard)
• Focus on data structures
• Learn tree and graph algorithms
• Practice dynamic programming

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q1. What is the difference between GenC and GenC Next? A: GenC Next offers higher package (₹6.75 LPA vs ₹4 LPA) with more advanced technical requirements.

Q2. Can I directly apply for GenC Next? A: Yes, if you meet the eligibility criteria (65%+ throughout).

Q3. What coding languages are supported? A: C, C++, Java, and Python are typically supported.

Q4. How tough is the coding section? A: Coding questions are of medium to hard difficulty, similar to LeetCode medium problems.

Q5. Is there negative marking? A: Generally no, but check the specific drive guidelines.

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Related Resources:

• Cognizant Exam Pattern 2026
• Cognizant Placement Papers 2026

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All the best for your Cognizant GenC Next preparation! 🚀