How I Aced Quant Section In Every Entrance Exam I Jatin Jhamb

Attention! CAT 2020 Aspirants. Do you want a quant strategy that not only serves CAT but other exams like SNAP, NMAT, XAT, etc.?

Well, you are in the right place. In this article, I have penned down my strategy of preparing the quant section from basics to advance level. Having numeracy skills can go a long way in your life, especially when you are to become a corporate leader.

Talking about myself, I am from a commerce background, and like every average student, I also dreaded algebra, logarithms, exponentials, and whatnot. But before I share my Gyan with you, it is crucial to understand that one can change, only if he wants to. So, if you are serious, determined, passionate, and aspire to transform yourself, then this article is for you.

1. Clear with the basics: Getting the basics right does not mean only the formulas but basic calculation like adding/ subtracting 3 to 5-digit numbers, multiplying two/three-digit numbers, remembering squares, cubes, etc. This activity will increase your speed and will help you in the LRDI section too. Do this for at least half an hour for a month when you start your preparation.

2. Do not rush, go easy: Start with easy questions and do not dive into advanced problems in the beginning. Practice easy questions, build confidence, and be clear with your basics. Also, many students become impatient and start to look at a solution without even giving a second try. Please do not fall into this trap!

3. Practice and revision: “The only way to learn mathematics is to learn mathematics is to do mathematics.”

Merely knowing formulas won’t help you need to keep practicing to understand various concepts. I found TIME quant material to be great for practice. It involved the basic formulas of every topic and questions segregated according to the difficulty level. TIME also provided separate books for OMETs (Other Management Entrance exams). Taking sectional mocks will also help in practicing various questions under the time constraint. I used to practice Quant towards the end of the day after doing verbal and DILR because in CAT also this will be the last section in the series. Revision is also a must-do, so make a habit of revising the concepts again and again once a week.

4. Group study: Studying in a group will help you a lot. It will cover a variety of questions, promote healthy competition, help in covering different methods for a single problem. Fortunately, I had two friends who were also very serious for CAT preparation with whom I used to discuss. I practiced questions from Iquanta, a Facebook group, where students from all over India post various doubts related to CAT. Whenever I got free time, I used to open Facebook, start solving the questions mentally, and take screenshots of the difficult questions, to solve them later.

5. Try to do calculations mentally: When you have completed the beginner and intermediate level concepts, then it is all about how to do calculations quickly. Time taken to solve questions becomes the crucial factor in scoring well in exams like NMAT and SNAP, where you get one minute per question. Sometimes the problem may not be that simple but try to solve at least 1-2 starting steps of solution mentally and further improve on this habit. In the SNAP exam, I have solved most of the questions without even touching the pen with the paper.

6. Start finding patterns and your methods to solve the question: “Mathematics is all about creativity and seeing a pattern in numbers” – My Mentor

It may sound trivial but it is true. With lots of practice and hard work, you will reach a point when you begin to find easy and fast methods to solve questions and see patterns in numbers. It will also help you to solve complete the series questions asked in OMETs. Once you have reached this stage, you have attained Nirvana. Some basic examples are:

Q- Find 42.5% of 80

Method #1

(42.5/100) * 80 (The traditional way)

Method #2

Calculating 40% of 80 first then adding it to 2.5% of 80

[(40/100) * 80] + [(2.5/100) * 80]

Method #3

Converting it into fraction equivalent

(17/40) * 80

Easy-Pizzy. Isn’t it?

7. Do not overwhelm yourself: While preparing for the quant section, you will find many resources and online platforms to solve more questions. I know it gets to the nerves because you want to solve every problem that you find challenging. However, CAT is not about attempting every question right but is about finding the easy ones first. My advice is to look for quality instead of quantity because the opposite will do more harm than good.

Also, if possible, watch Shakuntala Devi - Our Indian computer - film that will motivate you to crunch more numbers. Keep your mind calm, control your anxiety, and be relaxed while giving any exam. Believe in yourself because if I can do it, you can do it too :)

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask in the comment box.

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