CAT BELL the
Nine things an aspirant needs to keep in mind
To finish first, you must first finish
If there is one exam in which you stand a chance to succeed, even with little time at your disposal, it is CAT (Common Admission Test). While a longer duration of preparation can increase your chances of success, you must remember that any game is decided in the final stages. Even if you are behind, how well you finish can change the game completely. To win it, you have to stay in it.
Unprepared is not the same as zero
If you are not prepared for CAT, it does not mean you are at zero. Take stock of where you are and what you need to cover. Knowing what you have done or are capable of doing makes you feel confident.
Think in percentage
You could look at it and think, “I have only 45 days left for CAT”. That would definitely induce panic. Alternatively, you could think “I still have a significant percentage of my preparation time left.” Even for someone who started the preparation 10 months ago, 45 days is around 15 per cent of total preparation time. And 15 per cent seems much more substantial that only 45 days. So, perspective is important to calm yourself down, and make best use of what you have.
Read online
Near one-fourth (24 per cent) of CAT for the past several years has been about reading comprehension. In fact, one could argue that the remaining 10 questions (out of 34) in the VARC (verbal ability and reading comprehension) section are also a test of your comprehension skills. More than one-third of CAT does not require anything more than the ability to read from a screen, comprehend and answer the questions based on it. Even if you are starting today, start investing 60 minutes in: reading three articles daily, reading them online and reading it from diverse sources. Draw the gist of each article in a sentence, and note down three most important points of the passage in your own words after the first reading. Read again and assess your comprehension against the actual article.
Cover your bases
This is true especially in case of quantitative ability (QA) section. Do not leave out topics completely. Have your favourites and know the topics you may want to avoid while taking a test. But leaving out topics is like going into a cricket match saying you can’t play an off-spinner. What if the opposition has many off-spinners? What if CAT presents four to five questions from the topic you love to hate? If they are simple enough, you must make them count. So, cover all topics even if you don’t like some.
Take mocks, but don’t overdo
Mock CATs are great for building test-taking strategy and temperament. But remember, they are just like matches. While
matches help you measure where you are, too many matches tire you down and keep exposing the same weaknesses without helping you improve. Analyse your match performance (mock performance), work on the weaknesses by going back to the nets (basics) before playing more matches (taking more mocks).
Make analysis simple and actionable All test series give you such in-depth analytics that you are likely to be confused about what to act upon. So, KISS (keep it simple, silly). Pick out one to two areas of improvement based on time management and question-selection and work on them before taking the next mock.
Never miss out on the non-MCQs Non-MCQ (multiple choice questions) in CAT are like free hits in cricket. You must not miss out on them for a lack of time or because you couldn’t understand or solve them. There is nothing to lose in attempting those. You must attempt every single TITA (type in the answer) type question.
Take breaks CAT is an exam that tests your presence of mind. Being mentally fresh is as important as being prepared.