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CAT Exam 2019 - Tips: 35 Resources For 20 Days

Oct 19, 2019 | 20 minutes |

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Cracking CAT can feel like an insurmountable task. But it's nothing that you cannot achieve. There are 2 lakh aspirants who apply for CAT each year and a fraction of them do make it to their dream b-schools. And no matter how you are performing right now, you can improve and do better on 24th November 2019. To help you with your endeavour, we have 50 plus essential resources that you must read; which will help you crack CAT in 2019. (The best way to use this list is to bookmark it. Keep coming back to it till CAT 2019. If you need advice, this is it. This is your gold mine to make the best of your time. Happy Reading!)  

CAT Exam Tips: List of 50+ Resources

15 Days To CAT 2019 - Essential Checklist
You’ll soon write CAT and hopefully get shortlisted for your dream b-school. While you’re brushing up on concepts, cramming in stuff you don’t know and generally revising, don’t forget to take some time to just breathe and be. In fact, there’s a list of hygiene things you must do in order to crack the CAT. An Essential CAT Checklist. How many of these are you following?

5 Ways To Win Over Your Weaknesses For CAT 2019 How do you prepare when one section could be your Achilles Heel? In this article, we share some strategies used by students when one section is found to be weaker. Find out how you can win over your weaknesses in this article.   Selection Criteria Of IIM A, B, C, L, K, SPJIMR Released | PGP 2020-22 Your CAT score may not be enough. What is the weightage given to 10th and 12th marks? Do you have to clear a GD round? Must you write a Written Aptitude Test or WAT? Is it easier to get into any of these schools if you’re not an engineer? Does academic and gender diversity count for much? And how much weightage does your CAT score hold? To answer all these questions, we compiled a list of selection criteria for the above-mentioned b-schools for the class of PGP 2020-22. Breeze through to find out how you can get into any of these top b-schools of India.   How I Cracked CAT In 75 Days And Got Into IIM Kozhikode CAT is pretty tough to crack, and it takes a well-organised strategy and a bucket load of determination to crack the exam. So what kind of strategy would a CAT topper recommend, especially when he prepared only for 75 days while simultaneously preparing for UPSC? In this video, we speak with someone who scored a very high percentile in CAT 2018 and got into one of India's elite business schools. If you're looking for tips on how to crack the CAT and the mental attitude that goes with it, this is a must-watch for you.   How I Got Into IIM Kozhikode In My 3rd CAT Attempt - Raunaq Singh CAT exam is a tough nut to crack, and it takes a well-organised strategy and a bucket load of determination to crack the exam. So what kind of strategy would a CAT topper recommend, especially when he has cracked the CAT only in his 3rd attempt? In this video, we speak with someone who scored a very high percentile in CAT 2018 and got into one of India's elite business schools. If you're looking for tips on how to crack the CAT and the mental attitude that goes with it, this is a must-watch for you.   From 58 To 92 Percentile In Mocks - CAT Tips - Nikith Reddy, IIM Kozhikode No matter your background, if you've practised those mocks well enough, chances are, you will be able to bell the CAT. At least that's what Nikith Reddy did when he managed to go from 58 percentile to 92 percentile in mocks. Get a download on CAT tips and tricks from this video featuring Nikith from IIM Kozhikode.   Crack The DI-LR Section - CAT 2019 | Tips From CAT Toppers, IIM Students, CAT Experts From tackling all 3-sections of CAT (VARC, DILR & QA) to identifying key strategies/tips for the CAT exam day, we have your back! Here is the ultimate CAT 2019 preparation guide series, curated by our team at InsideIIM, which is a collection of the most helpful tips and articles on our platform from CAT toppers, IIM students, and CAT experts who have been training MBA aspirants for decades! Check it out here!   'Don't Overhype CAT' - A CAT Topper Shares Tips To Score 99 Percentile In CAT 2019 The CAT exam is a tough nut to crack, and it takes a well-organised strategy and a bucket load of determination to crack the exam. So what kind of strategy would a CAT topper recommend that can help aspirants get a ninety-nine percentile score? In this video, we speak with a CAT 2018 topper who scored well over 99 percentile in the exam and got into one of India's elite business schools. If you're looking for tips from a CAT topper to crack the DI-LR section and improve your mock test scores, then you don't want to miss this video!   How 99+ Percentilers Prepare For CAT - Tips By Divyansh Gupta, IIM Indore, CAT 99.92 Percentiler How do CAT 99 percentilers gear-up for the exam? What is the number of hours they spend studying? How do they improve their weak areas, and how do they extract maximum value from mock tests? To find out, we spoke with someone who was in the top 0.08% of all CAT 2018 test-takers and made it to one of India's top business schools - IIM Indore. In this video interview, he reveals how he prepared for CAT and lays out some un-missable tips for all CAT aspirants.  

How To Improve Your DI-LR Scores In Less Than 30 Days
If we are to conduct a short survey regarding the section that would be the most unpredictable and difficult to prepare, we are pretty sure that Data Interpretation (DI)- Logical Reasoning (LR) would be the undisputed winner. How do you tackle something that you have no idea about and something that has no rigid structure? Something that has no pattern? Well, if these questions haunt you, rest assured that they will be haunting all the other aspirants too. And this one is for you and everyone else. 

 

How To Ace The Verbal Section In Less Than 30 Days
With about a few days to go for CAT, it’s panic stations for a lot of aspirants. However, this need not be the case. It is imperative that aspirants keep a cool head on their shoulders and work systemically at plugging the gaps in their preparation. Here’s an article to help you do so in the Verbal Ability (VA) section of CAT. This article goes through each topic in the VA section systematically and looks at how you can improve your score in the short period of time remaining. Read here.

 

What Not To Do In The Last 30 Days To CAT
"Do not experiment with your schedule. If you haven't found a routine by now, well sucks to be you but it is not too late. The importance of having a routine is that it ensures you complete your work - the bigger and the smaller things alike." For more tips, read this.

 

Confidence-Boosting Hacks For CAT Takers
I have xx% in my Tenth, only yy% in Twelfth and zz% in UnderGrad... Do you think I even have a shot at IIMs??"

"2.1 Lakhs students appeared for CAT last year... Should I even attempt CAT??" If these thoughts run through your mind, then your confidence level is shaky. As these self-doubts creep into your mind, your brain, which is supposed to "Crack CAT", is busy answering these questions instead of focusing on preparation and crunching those valuable numbers. So, here are five tips from current IIM-B students to help you increase your confidence, keep cool and give the CAT a run. Read this!  

4 Common CAT Mistakes You Must Avoid
Avoid the following blunders at all cost! Read here.

 

How Much Should We Attempt To Get 99th Percentile?
If you want a higher percentile, make sure your error rate is close to zero. From 95th to 99th percentile, attempts go up very little, improved accuracy contributes most of the leap. Anyone who is ambitious enough to think of 99th percentile and beyond has to be absolutely pig-headed about accuracy. All this talk of 70% hit rate is humbug. Would you go on a bus if the driver had a 70% accident-free rate? Read how much you need to attempt to get to the 99th percentile here.

 

Seven Steps For Effective Mock Analysis | Tips From A 99.50 Percentiler
The count down towards CAT has begun and out of the two lakh people who appear for CAT, only fifty thousand something aspirants actually, prepare for CAT. Out of these fifty thousand aspirants, only around ten thousand serious aspirants would have survived the tolls of the CAT mocks. These students would be serious contenders to fight for the coveted 99 percentile in CAT. Well, the reason behind this thinning of the herd is that around this time many people realise that cracking CAT is not their cup of tea and sadly many more people give up after they score very low in the first few mocks. But here's how you can do effective analysis and thereby crack CAT. 

 

How Do 99+ Percentilers Prepare For CAT | Part 1 - Quantitative Ability
This article will primarily talk about how 99 percentilers usually prepare for CAT, the various books that they refer to and the various mock series that they give. It predominantly focuses on the quant section. So if Quant is your kryptonite, this is for you.

 

How Do 99+ Percentilers Prepare For CAT | Part 2 - Verbal Ability And Reading Comprehension
Students (read engineers) have always struggled while preparing for the Verbal Ability/Reading Comprehension section of CAT. It has been the nemesis of many coveted, math-brain monsters and has stopped them from entering the hallowed portals of management education. On the contrary, students who had been voracious readers since their childhood tend to just skim through this section. If VARC is your kryptonite, this is for you.

 

How Do 99+ Percentilers Prepare For CAT | Part 3 - Data Interpretation And Logical Reasoning
LR-DI has been the nemesis of a vast majority of aspirants for the last three years. The fact that they made a separate section for LR-DI and imposed a time limit of an hour to solve gruelling sets led to a scary prospect. And if LRDI is your kryptonite, this is for you.

 

How Do 99 Percentilers Gear Up For CAT | 30 Days To CAT
With barely a month to go, fear, stress and anxiety would normally flood you. But this is the stage which separates the men from the boys. Given the intensity of competition and the constant setbacks in the mocks, sometimes you may also ponder whether to continue preparing for CAT or just leave it to the gods to somehow favour you on the D-day. Here's a tried and tested approach you need to follow for the last 30 days.

 

Tips From CAT Toppers, IIM Students, CAT Experts
From tackling all 3-sections of CAT (VARC, DILR & QA) to identifying key strategies/tips for the CAT exam day, we have your back! Here is the ultimate CAT 2019 preparation guide series, curated by our team at InsideIIM, which is a collection of the most helpful tips and articles on our platform from CAT toppers, IIM students, and CAT experts who have been training MBA aspirants for decades! Read this ultimate list here.

 

From The Mouth Of CAT Toppers | Tips To Crack CAT 2019
Every year, more than two lakh student appear for the country’s most trying MBA entrance exam called CAT (Common Admission Test). Only a few score 99-100 percentile and secure admission in the country’s premier b-schools. Want to know the tips, success mantra and the secrets behind scoring well during CAT? Here is a curated list of toppers who scored over 90%ile to finally get into their dream b-schools. Read their journey to get motivation and learn CAT strategies for your own prep.

 

All You Need To Know About Data Interpretation Section in CAT - Part I
As a marketing manager, you may have to make critical decisions on the launch of your new product based on the data provided by your market research department. As a finance manager, you need to analyze the financial data of your company and make critical decisions pertaining to some important factors. As an HR manager, you need to go through records of your employees in order to take decisions regarding appraisals and evaluation. Hence managers need the aptitude to process large amount of data and draw quick conclusions out of it. This, perhaps, is the reason CAT has a section dedicated to data interpretation and here's how you can ace it. 

 

2 Friends, IIT Roorkee And 99 Percentile
Every management aspirant dreams of getting 99 percentile in CAT, one of the most coveted management exams in India. However, only a handful of people realizes this dream.

What drives these people? What motivates them? What does it take to be in the top 1 percent of India? Find out here.  

'I Used To Study For Two Hours For Five Days A Week' - CAT Topper Shiksha Surana
"My weakest section was DI. So, I made it a habit to solve at least two to three DI sets every day. I was good at Quant but I practised it nonetheless. I followed a very simple strategy. I used to study new topics in individual sections for two hours for five days a week. But, I used to keep weekends for revision of old topics." For more expert tips, read this.

 

30 Days to CAT - A To-Do List
With exactly 30 days for the D Day, it is time for students seriously writing the exam to have an action plan for these 30 days and maximize their scores! Here’s a to-do list for the next 30 days.

 

'I Am An Engineer And I Am Better At Verbal Than Quant' - Shyam Ramakrishnan - IIM Shillong
Solving quant problems consumed a lot of time for me and often I ended up having not answered enough questions. Thus, being a section that I was comparatively weaker in, I ended up putting a lot more effort for this section than any other. Read this story here.

 

How To Prepare For CAT DI & LR Section - Edwin Jose, CAT - DILR 100 Percentiler, Overall 99.99%ile
So in order to score well, evaluate where you stand and take exams with strategies that are suitable for YOUR strengths and weakness. If you feel that you are not doing well in DILR then the first focus should be on your ACCURACY, don't bother about the speed at all at this point. Speed will eventually catch up if you keep practicing on a daily basis. For more pro tips, read this. 

 

'I Read 'The Hindu' Everyday To Prepare For VARC' - Mahakpreet Singh Bhatia - IIM Shillong
"I was relatively weak at VARC. To overcome this, I started reading ‘The Hindu’ with a special focus on the editorial section. This served the dual purpose of enhancing my reading skills as well as keeping me updated with the latest news. Apart from this, I ensured that I practise at least one reading comprehension a day. Regular practice did pay off and I managed to overcome this difficulty and score well in the VARC section." Read this story here.

 

Nietzsche's Guide To Getting Into Your Dream B-School - Abhishek, XLRI Jamshedpur
Friedrich Nietzsche died in 1900, but he can teach you more about getting that coveted B-school seat than most people you will ever meet. Cracking the admission process is never a question of knowledge - everyone knows the exam pattern, everyone has the books, everyone makes the schedule. It has been and always will 100% be a question of mentality. Getting the mentality right helps you find your drive, and finding your drive decides everything. Learn how to get it right here.

 

Definitive Reading List For CAT Preparation (RC) – Blogs & Websites
10+ resources in this! From international publications to Indian. Covers it all. Check it out!

 

Definitive Reading List For CAT Preparation (RC) - Books
One of the many things recommended to any CAT aspirant is an excellent reading habit. Maybe it's too late to start one but you can definitely use this list to make a good use of your break. Check it out here.

 

Quitting Your Job for B-School Entrance Tests – Pros and Cons
The stress of working around nine to ten hours a day on an average and managing your B-School preparations is clearly a daunting task. It requires you to follow a hectic schedule, with time and energy becoming major constraints. In order to devote absolute attention to your preparations, quitting your job may seem like a favourable solution. But, is it the best choice? Find out here.

 

'I'm From A City Where 70% Of The People Don't Know The IIMs' - My Journey To IIM Ranchi - Nikhita's Story
"I hail from a city where around 70% of the people still don't know what IIMs are and what kind of an exam CAT is and all that people want from their children is to secure a government job. On the other hand, those few people from whom I heard about CAT made me develop a perception that CAT was an insurmountable task for average students." But here's how she made it and how you could too. 

 

I Did Not Join Any Coaching For CAT - Rushi Vyas - CAT 99.28%ile 
"I opted out of joining a coaching class because I’ve always loved to study and work according to my own methods. I studied according to a time table I prepare for myself which I preferred over time constraints of a coaching class. My parents supported me in my decision because they trusted me to give it my all even if I self-studied." Here's how Rushi did it and you could too if you gave it your all.

 

Reading Comprehension Tips For CAT
When it comes to cracking the verbal section, the only skill that really matters is critical reading. This is just a fancy way of saying: “Be alert when you read, and understand what the writer is trying to say.” You might think this is self-evident – Isn’t that what reading is about, you might ask yourself. But when you’re reading under pressure, it’s not always easy to act on this advice. But this post deliberates on the tips that you NEED to crack this section.

 

'I Solved All CAT Papers From 1991' - Nishant Shah - CAT 99.85%ile And IIM Ahmedabad Joinee
"Engineering background does help when it comes to the Quant and DI LR section of CAT, simply because of the fact that as an engineer you never lose touch with numbers, logic and reasoning. At the same time, it typically requires more efforts in VA section." Here's how an engineer aced the Verbal section and cracked CAT spectacularly.

 

Tips To Transform Your Low DI/LR Score To A Winning One
In the previous two CATs, the DI/LR section has been quite tricky. The level of difficulty has increased over the past few years. It is possible that this year as well, CAT will follow the same trend and the questions will be very different from what you have been practising in your mocks. So how do you make sure that you make the cut and get that competitive score. The answer lies in this article by an XLRI student. 

 

If You Are Appearing For CAT, You Need To Read This
"You see, CAT is the entrance exam for pursuing management education, which will eventually make you a manager. You, me, and every other aspirant aim for that best college where he/she wants to go. But, how do those colleges’ become best? This question will have a very comprehensive answer, so I’ll not touch upon it here! What do you do when you want to go to the of a mountain? You raise yourself to the level of the peak of the mountain." This is a letter you must read to if you are appearing for CAT or planning to appear for CAT in the future. 

 

Mock CAT Tips And Strategies To Boost Your Percentile
It can be disheartening to be honest if your persistent efforts don't translate into great results but CAT has always been less about knowledge and more about critical decision making under a time-constraint, resource-starved environment. But here's how you can make it right.

 

3 Step Approach To Get Into An IIM - Tips By An IIM Lucknow Student
There are three parts to getting into an IIM - nailing the CAT exam, getting the IIM interview call, converting the call. The second part is partially dependent on the first part and partially on your previous deeds and records (So, there's nothing much you can do about it!). All the effort has to be put in the first and the last part. Though one might think that cracking the CAT exam is the toughest part, trust me, it is only the tip of the iceberg. Remember that CAT is a process of elimination while the interview is the process of selection. Read more here.

 

A Boy From A Small City, 3 CAT Attempts, A Drop Year, And His Journey To NITIE Mumbai
Like all good stories, this also begins with a small boy from a small city aiming to punch above his weight. A must-read. Highly recommended. Read here.

 

70%ile To 99+%ile In The VA Section - An Engineer's Journey
Verbal Ability section is nothing short of a Gordian knot, more so if you’re an engineer. The kinematics, mathematics, and dynamics that you study in your undergrad leave you with very less knack for reading genres like psychology, economics, sociology, politics or even fiction. Well, take a sigh of relief! You need not be a Milton or a Shakespeare or even a voracious reader to ace the Verbal Ability section. Yes, you read it right, and that’s because VA is not equal to vocabulary or literature. It’s about your ability to comprehend while you read. It’s about filtering important information from a plethora of noise. PRO TIPS IN THIS ARTICLE; DON'T MISS OUT.

 

What To Do In The Last 15 Days To CAT? - Tips From An SPJIMR Student
"As clichéd as it may sound, it helps to take at least 3 mock tests every week. You can choose from any of the reputed test series available. Finish the test in one go, and spend time doing a detailed analysis – what worked for you and what you need to improve on. I would suggest going through all the solutions, irrespective of whether you got it right or wrong." Read more tips here.

  Bonus Read For Motivation : From Low Percentile To 99%ile After Multiple Attempts In CAT Exam | 10+ Stories Just a gentle reminder that no matter where you are in your preparation, you can always get better in the next 840 hours. Good luck!