“Technology will not replace great teachers, but technology in the hands of great teachers can be transformational” – George Couros
In today’s era of technology, internet reach and speed has grown incredibly. Coaching for CAT which has predominantly been in offline mode is now starting to get online. As we all know nothing can beat technology, so is the offline coaching mode.
But has the Online mode of preparation for CAT already replaced the Offline Mode, that consists of the classroom classes in Coaching Institutions for CAT like Career Launcher, Time, IMS etc.? No, certainly not. But will it, someday? Yes, certainly.
CAT, the most important exam for the management aspirants, receives around two lakhs applications every year. Last year in 2017 only, around 2.31 students applied for CAT, and the number increases every year. The journey of each aspirant begins with the same thought of “whether I am” interested in management or not, even if not interested, is it worth to do management for a push in career? The answer to this question leads to another question, how to prepare for the same? To get the answers aspirants start with talking to friends or relatives, do an online search and read articles on the various platforms about the same. Most of them get the same reply, i.e. to join coaching. This only leads to another ball game whether to join online or offline coaching. That’s what I am going to talk to you guys.
In the recent years, the internet penetration in India has increased dramatically, thanks to JIO. Most of the Indian cities and many of the villages are now connected with a 3G/4G network, which has paved the path for Online education, including CAT preparation. Few of the offline coaching institutes for CAT have started their online courses also, and many solely focus on online coaching.
A year before around the same time, I was in the same dilemma, but with the importance of self-study in mind and belief in myself, I started my CAT preparation on my own with the help of online coaching going against the orthodox way of classroom preparation. Once Horace said, “Well begun is half done” and taking in consideration the same for all of you future aspirants, here are some key learnings from my experiences of online CAT preparation.
* No matter how big the name of the coaching is, it’s only your self-study that will pay you.
* Since you may or may not get the chance to get taught by best teachers in a classroom coaching, but in an online platform you can always view the lectures from the elite ones (in fact, they mostly put the best ones)
* Since our attention span is limited (say 30minutes average), in online lectures you have the facility to pause the lecture and refresh your mind, in offline lectures which are usually 1 to 1.5 hrs, once you lose attention for the rest of the lecture goes in vain and never recovered.
* Each one of us takes a different amount of time to learn and grasp a concept and Online coaching gives us that flexibility, here you can study at your pace, and it also saves yours travelling time.
* The offline institutes are way more expensive than the online mode. The coaching institutes take around 40k – 60k which is way more than what online institutes charge, i.e. 5k-25k. Moreover, when you go for offline institutes which are in cities other than your home city, you will have to live in PG or Hostels, which also cost a significant amount.
* Many of the online coachings also have a mentorship program where they provide you with a mentor for all your queries. As so much of the content is available, it becomes almost impossible for a fresh aspirant to filter out the relevant content. Thus, mentorship is the need of the day. Someone who could help you decide what to study and what not to study. Someone experienced to help you strategize and motivate. Someone who can resolve your conceptual doubts and provides feedback.
Wise men learn from their experiences, wiser from others. Choose the better option don’t follow the rat race.