How to improve my drawing skills for CAT EXAM (creative ability test).. I m weak in drawing skills

Hello Geethika,

First of all, Creative ability test is more about how you present ideas and illustrate them. Drawing is a skill, anyone can learn and become good in it with consistent practice.

CAT has the highest weightage i.e 50% and it can determine your rank. To crack the exam, you need to understand the structure of the paper and what is expected from you as a student.

The type of questions that can be asked mostly are

1. Design related questions where you will be asked to Create anything from an object to a logo or any product.

2. Sequence sketches

3. Situation sketching

4. Posters, mural, mascots.

To be good at drawing, don't stress yourself going through all knows of books, just try to do live sketching. Keep the object in front and sketch it, it can be anything from a pencil to a plant or an animal. This is a great way to obtain understanding of light and depth.

Explore the basic elements of design i.e. Lines, dots, color, shape, space.

Buy good yet basic quality color pencils. Go for steadtlers if you can spend more. Practice blending and shading with color pencils. Practise sketching with more than one mediums.

When it comes design questions, the idea and the objective behind the design is very important then comes the presentation. Just refer old papers and don't search for ideas, you need to cultivate the habit of working on your original ideas and representation. This will help you in bigger picture.

Posters, murals and mascots - more than one object need to illustrated in them, you need to be clear about your idea and present it perfectly, the representation of each element in the design or the sketch should be unique.

It's better u give some time for yourself and work on sketching and originality of the design simultaneously as you are expected to be spontaneous in the exam.

You can even  join any institute if u need more guidance and have a choice of a good institute in your place.

Work hard, anything can be achieved by hard work and consistency.

All the best.

Hello Aspirant

The Creative Ability Test (CAT) is the national level test for admission in courses of design. This is applicable for both undergraduate and postgraduate courses. CAT is designed in such a way that the individual is assessed on his/her drawing skills, observational skills, creative ability and knowledge about the field of design. This entrance test is conducted by NIFT every year.

For the overall good performance in the exam, one should research well before the exam and manage their time properly. The students should focus on the exam step by step and not jump to other situations.

Students should get previous papers and practice repetitively. This will help them to get the hang of it.

There are many ways to improve drawing skills -

1. Draw anything

One way to be good at drawing is to keep drawing. You can draw any random image or a random abstract drawing. This would help you to use your drawing tools efficiently.

2. Understand art and drawings

If you try to understand a bit of art history and the thoughts that run behind any artwork, you might be able to draw better, Your thought process is reflected by your drawings.

3. Draw from professional sketches

This would help you to understand the technical aspect of drawing. Every line drawn has an impact and you must understand its value.

4. Draw from your surroundings

Observe around yourself and fix scenarios in your mind and then try to draw certain parts of the scenarios. This is not just a drawing exercise but also a memory exercise and it would help you to create drawings more quickly,

5. Join a drawing class

This should be your first step actually. A drawing teacher can help you in many ways that self-drawing practices can't. A routine drawing session also will improve your skills drastically. If it is available, then join a class that is especially for this exam. You would get to learn so much from this class and your drawing style and pattern would adjust according to the needs of the exam.

Drawing is not a very technical skill and it can be learned through time, effort and practice. Buy some beginner level drawing book and keep on practicing on it. Try to finish one page every night before sleeping.

Have an open mind. Imagination can lead to very beautiful drawings. Also, observe everything around. Ideas mostly come from your environment.

I hope that you are able to clear your CAT exam.

If you have any query then you can post it in the comments section.

Good Luck Drawing!

Thank You

Hello Geethika.........

There are few ways you can try to improve your drawing skills,just keep in mind these are just tips....

.try to draw larger,thumbnail drawing tend to limit the ability to express on a drawing.

.draw large shapes and lines,have a go at practising freehand lines across a page and large circles without use of erasers.it will help you to feel comfortable with pencil.

the skill you want to develop is the mixture between hard edge and smooth lines its all about the pressure applied to pencil at some specific moments,mix up your perspectives,while its great that you want to improve semething specific,

All the best

Thank you