how should i start CAT preparation

Hello…

If you want to pursue your MBA dream then you have to score high in the CAT entrance exam. CAT or the Common Admission Test is conducted every year, it is a computer-based exam with multiple-choice questions. Those candidates who completed their graduation with a minimum of 50% of marks are eligible to apply for the CAT entrance exam.

And to qualify for the CAT exam you can join a coaching center or can do some self-preparation. Below i will give some tips to do self-preparation

• Know Exam Pattern - Before applying for the CAT exam, the first thing you need to do is to prepare yourself properly, know the exam pattern and syllabus of CAT in detail. Next, you need to plan  properly. To do so you need to go through the previous year's questions and analyze them so you can understand the importance of each topic. Set priorities according to the requirement. The total mark of this exam is 228 having 76 numbers of questions. The exam is a multiple-choice based test focusing on 4 different areas like

1. Verbal Ability
2. Data Interpretation
3. Quantitative Ability
4. Logical Reasoning

• Right study Material - Getting the right study materials will boost your preparation. There are plenty of books, sample papers, question booklets, and study materials are available for better preparation of CAT. The use of sample paper and practice paper will increase your strength and you will also get to know about your weaknesses and can work on them. Having general knowledge is also important so regularly read newspapers and magazines to be properly updated
• Online Mock Test - Once you are done with the planning and preparation you need to evaluate your ability and for that, you can take an online mock test. Online mock test analysis will tell you in which area you are best at and in which areas you need to give more attention. Initially start with one or two online mock tests per week and then slowly increase the number of mock tests per week. While appearing in these mock tests keep a note of your common errors and try to rectify them. There are several coaching centers where one can enroll just for mock tests without enrolling in CAT classes
• Use the internet the most - There are ample educational websites, news websites, and social media groups where you can join. Here you can get sample papers, articles, study materials, and so on. You can download these materials for free
• Consistency, hard work, confidence & motivation- While preparing for anything whether by yourself or with some other person's help you always need to keep yourself motivated to work consistently and work hard. Along with that you also need to have faith and confidence in your abilities. With a positive outlook and hard work you can easily crack CAT

But if you are planning to join a coaching center to prepare for CAT then there are plenty of coaching centers available where you can enroll yourselves. There you will get a mentor who can guide you better.

I hope it helps you and if you have any doubts then feel free to ask in the comment section

Best Wishes.

Hello Aspirant,

Common Admission Test, in short CAT is conducted by any of the IIM in rotation every year , it is a computer-based entrance exam conducted for MBA/PGDM admissions at 20 IIMs and 1000+ B-Schools in India. Candidates who have completed graduation with 50% of marks are eligible to apply for IIM CAT 2021. As per the new paper pattern the paper is of total 228 marks and it will consists of 76 total number of questions divided in three sections namely VARC, DILR and QA. For complete exam pattern(latest) of CAT kindly check out the link given below :-

https://bschool.careers360.com/articles/cat-exam-pattern

You can get complete information about CAT 2021 from the link given below :-

https://bschool.careers360.com/exams/cat

Now let us discuss how to prepare for above mentioned three sections so that you can get the best score which can take you to the best B-Schools of the country like IIMs or some other.

For Quantitative Ability

> For this section your pre-requisite is the complete understanding of basics of Mathematics.

> You should have proper command on topics like profit and loss, number system, geometry.

> Practice as many as sample papers you can and go for some mock tests as well.

For complete details about preparation of QA section kindly check out the link given below :-

https://bschool.careers360.com/articles/how-prepare-for-cat-quantitative-ability

Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension

> Reading skill is the pre-requisite for this section, so try to read different English story books, magazines, etc.

> Go through newspapers, journals, blogs, articles, etc to enhance your reading skills and watch some English visuals such as English News, web series, movies and likewise.

> Try solving questions based on comprehension, inferences and para jumbles. You can purchase some booklets for the same from market.

For complete details about preparation of VARC section kindly check out the link given below :-

https://bschool.careers360.com/articles/how-prepare-for-cat-quantitative-ability

Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation

> This section seems to be the toughest section in CAT exam, but it is not if you practice a lots of questions on logical reasoning and practice solving different hard core problems so that your problem solving ability will increase, which is the pre-requisite for this section.

> Go through some basic topics like seating arrangements, blood relations, syllogisms, etc to get familiar with this section.

> For complete details about preparation of DI&LR section kindly check out the link given below :-

https://bschool.careers360.com/articles/how-prepare-for-cat-di-lr

I hope this information helps you.

Good Luck!!