After having appeared for CAT 2018 and being extremely disappointed at my score (85.05 percentile) ,I tried cheering myself up settling for a mediocre college. I started feeding my mind that I must work hard in the institute itself and grab my dream job. But my dreams were too big to fit in this little box of compromise. Maa sat with me one day saw my tears rolling down and asked me ..”are you satisfied?” I did not want to make her sad and said yes. She gazed upon me ( a mother can see right through your soul). I burst out crying …”No maa… I am capable of a lot more .. I don’t want to settle.” She hugged me and said, “Why not give it another try . Vaise bhi tumhe pata hai na Koshish karne walon ki kabhi haar nahi hoti.” I was happy about the immense support from the family and was wary of the upcoming circumstances. I started to juggle my job and my CAT prep . I finally gained some ground around July and was able to handle things properly when she was called in for an urgent operation. Aghast I saw her on the OT bed and I can never forget the sight . I knew I had to handle the home now . The responsibilities more than doubled upon me . Right from cooking to cleaning ..managing a job and preparing for my dream.. I felt like the days passed in a blink. Tirelessly working since 4 a.m in the morning and crashing on bed at 10 in the night all for a fire burning inside me. I have to admit , I slept like a baby for those 3 months. I was managing on schedule preparations for the big day( CAT day 2019) and things were going well. I was so afraid of being stranded by the exam once again that I took NMAT as a safety net!
FAST FORWARD to 24th November 2019 . I couldn’t believe my eyes on the verbal I saw. I flustered badly in the second section and somehow managed to navigate through the third. I walked out of the centre dejected. “ALL FOR NOTHING!” I thought. By this time the NMAT score card had arrived and I scored 213. I was eligible to fill for the Mumbai institute and thought that my safety net actually saved me. I knew I was still settling but there was no option in front of me.
29th November the cat response sheet notification popped up. I was sitting in a group with three of my friends who were adamant on checking my score against my will. The response sheet this year was different from last year’s which were not known to us. I was sure that my answers were all wrong and that I will be deeply embarrassed at my score. My friend checked my answers and till 20th question, in VARC section my answers were correct as per the answer sheet. When the 21st answer mismatched I realized things are different. Upon calculating a total score of 126, I jumped in air shouting I made it. I was happy to fall in the percentile range of 95-96 and thought I would easily convert a good college. I started to prepare for interviews rigorously.
PS. IN CAT NO PERCENTILE IS ENOUGH.
As and when I met people and saw their profiles and scores I started losing my hopes upon seeing majority applicants with 98-99 +.I attended my interviews all in February and knew nothing about a good or a bad interview. In the wake of COVID-19, as the uncertainty increased so did the waiting time.
PS. : THIS IS THE WORST TIME IN WHOLE OF THE CAT JOURNEY .. WAITING..WAITING…WAITING…
I received a direct rejection from IIM KOZIKHODE and got waitlisted at IIM SHILLONG in late 200’s. Two of my popsicles were on the floor and two remained. MDI AND IITD. The chances at both institutes were slim due to a lower percentile than most applicants and hence I had no expectations. I had made my mind by this time to join the Mumbai institute. On 28th May my screen showed this message and suddenly everything made sense. My body filled with pleasure and my heartbeat was running at twice the speed. I DID IT … Koshish Karne Walon Ki Kabhi Haar Nahi Hoti
Later upon discussion with people, I realized that I am the lowest percentile in the PGPM batch (96.06). But it all is now synonymous to the trumpet of success. I am oozing with energy to start a life I have been waiting for for 2 years. Cheers. Mandevian for life.
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