After messing up my CAT last year, I re-attempted the exam this year. Finally, this year, I did get calls from a lot of popular B-Schools. As the interview season began, I faced a hurdle named the IMT CTPI (Critical Thinking and Personal Interview). But first, let me introduce myself.
Hi, I'm Ritabrata, an incoming MBA student at IIM Lucknow. Having completed a Political Science major from Hindu College, I secured 99.56%ile in CAT '24, and cleared CFA L1 alongside. Here, I share my heartfelt thoughts on embracing this path and clearing the hurdles while hailing from a non-technical educational background.
What three CAT attempts taught me about preparation, pressure, and perspective. If you assume this is a consistent improvement story, think again. Because the truth is, repeating CAT doesn’t always mean a better score. There are some things that no one tells you about, and even if I do, you would probably understand it on your D-day.
When I began preparing for the VARC section of the CAT exam, I had no clue what I was doing. I consistently scored low in mocks and often struggled even to understand what the questions were asking. It wasn’t just about reading slowly—it was about feeling disconnected from the content.
This interview was conducted with Aniruddha Sharma, who will join the IIM Ahmedabad 25-27 batch after 3 years of UPSC preparation. It is a Journey of Purpose, Perseverance, and Redirection. His Profile:
70- 80 % of aspirants who come here to read this will be engineers, and yes, I am an engineer too. VARC—engineers a never-ending love story, and Hold your nerve, Mock scores in VARC are like stock market fluctuations: sometimes they're 5 and sometimes even 50.
This is one of the most frequently asked questions by students gearing up for CAT prep. Working 12+ hours, 6 days a week, and then coming home to study for the CAT can initially seem daunting and make you consider this question. Students who couldn’t perform as expected this year might also think they could dedicate more hours to prep if they quit their jobs. While CAT preparation requires immense dedication and calculated planning to score in the 99th percentile, as it is more difficult than other MBA entrance exams conducted in the country.
After messing up my CAT last year, I re-attempted the exam this year. Finally, this year, I did get calls from a lot of popular B-Schools. As the interview season began, I faced a hurdle named the IMT CTPI (Critical Thinking and Personal Interview). But first, let me introduce myself.
Hi, I'm Ritabrata, an incoming MBA student at IIM Lucknow. Having completed a Political Science major from Hindu College, I secured 99.56%ile in CAT '24, and cleared CFA L1 alongside. Here, I share my heartfelt thoughts on embracing this path and clearing the hurdles while hailing from a non-technical educational background.
What three CAT attempts taught me about preparation, pressure, and perspective. If you assume this is a consistent improvement story, think again. Because the truth is, repeating CAT doesn’t always mean a better score. There are some things that no one tells you about, and even if I do, you would probably understand it on your D-day.
When I began preparing for the VARC section of the CAT exam, I had no clue what I was doing. I consistently scored low in mocks and often struggled even to understand what the questions were asking. It wasn’t just about reading slowly—it was about feeling disconnected from the content.
This interview was conducted with Aniruddha Sharma, who will join the IIM Ahmedabad 25-27 batch after 3 years of UPSC preparation. It is a Journey of Purpose, Perseverance, and Redirection. His Profile:
70- 80 % of aspirants who come here to read this will be engineers, and yes, I am an engineer too. VARC—engineers a never-ending love story, and Hold your nerve, Mock scores in VARC are like stock market fluctuations: sometimes they're 5 and sometimes even 50.
This is one of the most frequently asked questions by students gearing up for CAT prep. Working 12+ hours, 6 days a week, and then coming home to study for the CAT can initially seem daunting and make you consider this question. Students who couldn’t perform as expected this year might also think they could dedicate more hours to prep if they quit their jobs. While CAT preparation requires immense dedication and calculated planning to score in the 99th percentile, as it is more difficult than other MBA entrance exams conducted in the country.
