Are Mock Tests Really Important For Your CAT Preparation?

• How much time should I spend on preparing for each section?

Most of us discuss our preparation plans with our friends and thus get confused regarding what to focus on.  The first thing to do is to identify your strength areas while practising. For example, if you realise that you score maximum marks in the Reading Comprehension section but you struggle to attempt even half of your Quantitative Aptitude questions, it is quite clear what your strengths and shortcomings are. Focus on refining your strengths and overcoming your shortcomings in this limited time available to you by managing your preparation time accordingly.

• What percentile do I need to achieve for getting into XYZ b-school?

One of my mentors used to advise me to not bother about percentiles and just concentrate on maximising the raw scores. CAT being a relative exam, it is not possible to estimate or anticipate the performance of other candidates. In such a case, trying to predict your own percentile is just futile. Of course, most of the premium b-schools of the country must have already disclosed their cut-off percentiles. A thorough study of the criteria is important to strategise things. But the current focus should only be on speed and accuracy while solving problems and not on the results.

There will never be enough time for preparing and there will always be enough reasons for not preparing. The determination is what will help you fulfil your dreams. It is better to use this time wisely for guaranteed success than to hope that you get lucky on the day of the exam. I wish good luck to all the CAT 2017 candidates for their preparation.