I have attempted the CAT twice, but before discussing my preparation plan, I want to brief you about “What exactly does cracking the CAT mean?”
What Does Cracking CAT Mean?
So, does cracking the CAT only mean scoring high? I don’t think so. It’s much more than that. It's about the mindset, the strategy, the execution, right guidance, and the most important one, "Confidence". So, to get the right guidance, you need to follow the right sources or people. I know now, you might be having a question, “What shall I do about it then? Just give up?”. The answer is simply “No”. Let me break it down for you.
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Introspection:
Everyone has weak areas, and no one is good at everything from the start. All you must do is to introspect and then reflect on yourself on where you are good at and where you are not. For example, “Am I good at time management? Or am I weak at quants?”. I’m pretty sure that, if you are a non-engineer, then you must be struggling with the quant part. Don’t worry, let me help you out.
Preparation:
1. There are a variety of topics to focus on in Quantitative Ability. I’m sure you are aware of the syllabus, but if you are not, then you can check the CAT Syllabus here.
2. Round up those topics that you are not confident about, and then search for those topics online (If you are willing to go for free, then YouTube might be the right choice.)
3. Now, get the conceptual understanding of that topic, and then start solving problems that are of a beginner level. After that, when you can quickly solve those beginner-level ones, switch to the intermediate level and start solving.
4. In this way, if you spend time on understanding the concepts of those topics, then trust me, you are already halfway through. Now, as soon as you have a basic to intermediate level of conceptual understanding of all the topics is just about execution.
Mock Strategy: What to Do & What to Avoid
1. After the completion of understanding the syllabus, it’s time to give mocks. “Is it necessary to score high consistently?” No, in the short run, but yes in the long run when the D-Day is near.
2. While you are giving mocks, it is highly important that even if your score is low, do not get demotivated and try to analyze why. Especially, quants. It can be tricky sometimes; the questions may seem easy to solve, but when you dive into them, they eat up a lot of time.
3. Solving different kinds of problems helps you remember patterns. For example, if there is a method to solve a question that asks you to find X, given Y, then that method will be stuck in your mind even if they Change the question changes by giving Y and asking you to find X.
4. Do not stick to one question for more than 2 minutes in quants. If you are not getting an idea, then skip it or “Mark for review”. Solve questions one by one in this way, and by the time you complete scouting for once, you would have solved 6-7 questions already, assuming 1-2 minutes per question, 10-15 minutes out of 40 minutes is already done.
5. Now, it’s time to find those questions that you have marked for review. These take a bit of time to solve, so think about the method to solve for 1 or 2 minutes, and then solve them. If you are not able to think about a method, then it’s better not to attempt that question.
6. In the remaining 25 minutes, while you are solving the rest of the questions which are marked for review, you should be able to solve at least 3-4 questions, then this makes up a total of 9-11 questions, which fetch you
plenty of marks in quant.
7. Practice this strategy in the mocks and try to improve your score every mock. Finally, when it’s exam day, you should feel confident and execute the strategy as you planned.
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