The
Common Admission Test (CAT), the key to unlock the hallowed gates of the prestigious IIMs and various other stellar B – schools, is widely considered as one of the toughest exams to crack and is often greeted with intimidation and doubt by its aspirants. I had a very similar feeling on August 13, 2014, the day of inception of my
preparation for CAT 2015. Today, after having gone through the entire preparation, the D – day, the GDPI's and the selection phase, I’m really excited to share my experience of this roller coaster ride with everyone. Well, here’s how everything unfolded:
First half of the preparations:
Just like many others, I took off with an objective of settling with nothing less than the Top 6 IIMs and consequently the vigor of my preparations was at its zenith in the first few months. Then my undergraduate college examinations hindered my preparations for more than a month. Pulling your act together after such intermittent breaks really tests your mettle and your commitment towards cracking CAT. Many of my fellow classmates couldn’t keep up the tempo after such breaks but I, instead, positively revised the already covered concepts and strived to gradually earn back my erstwhile preparation status.
Second half of the preparations:
The ride was pretty smooth for many months until August 14, 2015, the day when I got recruited by Deloitte in an on - campus placement drive. A sense of complacency started besetting me and suddenly the ‘need’ to crack CAT had faded away. I had started frittering away all that I had learned for CAT in the past year. Fortunately, it didn’t take me too long to fathom that cracking CAT was not something that I needed but it was something that I always wanted for myself. Thereafter, I didn’t look back and charged myself up with an all - round revision and a plethora of mock tests leading up to CAT in November.
Days around the D – Day:
I’d strongly advice against burdening yourselves with the typical eleventh – hour studies because when it comes to competitive exams like CAT for which you’d have probably been preparing for more than a year, it makes little sense to bury yourselves into the study material on the last day. Hence, I indulged myself into relaxing activities like watching movies, having a shot at cricket and others on the day before CAT. Next day i.e. on November 29, 2015, from 9 AM to 12 PM, I solved the question paper for three hours just like I had wanted – with peace and calmness in mind.
Results and the GDPI stage:
On January 8, 2016, the moment of truth had arrived. The dream of scoring 99+ percentile in CAT was no longer a dream but a reality. Close on the heels of CAT’s result, I gave a slew of
interviews at various IIMs and other top – notch B schools. The pleasant fallout of the process is that I’m going to join IIM Indore very soon.
Expectations from IIM Indore:
I’m eagerly looking forward to maximize my learning from the classroom lectures, the guest speeches, senior and peer interaction, intra and inter college activities, et cetera. Also, I’m particularly ecstatic about the Student Exchange Programme through which I can have direct exposure of a foreign university. In a nutshell, I want to graduate from Planet-I as a more responsible individual, a better manager and an adept professional.
----------
About the author:
Abhinav Bansal, first year student from IIM Indore, is an engineer from Indore. He enjoys reading and writing during his free time.