The CAT Guide: Your Key to Success!

The Common Admission Test (CAT) is a national level MBA entrance exam conducted by Indian Institute of Management (IIM). The marks scored in CAT exam are accepted by 19 IIMs offering approximately 3700 seats. Also, more than 100 B-schools take admissions through CAT scores.

The CAT Exam is one of the most competitive exams in the country as lacs of aspirants take the CAT to get into a good Management College.

The CAT exam has 3 sections

a)Quantitative Ability- 34 questions

i.Arithmetic

Numbers, Divisibility Tests, HCF and LCM

Logarithms, Surds and Indices

Functions

Sequences and Series

Set Theory

Permutation and Combination

Probability

ii.Algebra

Basic Operations, Algebraic Expressions and Factorization

Equations

iii.Geometry

Lines, Planes, Angles and Triangles

Quadrilaterals and Higher Polygons

Circles

Coordinate Geometry

Trigonometry

Mensuration

iv.Miscellaneous

Derivatives

Maxima, Minima and Inequalities

Symbolic Logic

Clocks, Pipes and Cisterns

b)Verbal Ability- 34 questions

i.Reading Comprehension

Politics & Sociology

History & Mythology

Science & Technology

Economics & Management

Literature & Arts

Philosophy & Psychology

ii.Verbal Logic

Paragraph Arrangement

Paragraph Completion

Paragraph Summary or Main Idea

Fact, Judgment & Inference

iii.Vocab

Word Meaning

Contextual Usage

Diction

Antonyms

iv.Grammar

Parts of Speech

Verb Tense, Voice & Mood

Subject-Verb & Pronoun Agreement

Phrases & Idioms

Punctuation

Parallelism

Redundancies

Miscellaneous

c)Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning- 32 questions

i.Data Interpretation

Tabular Presentation

Bar Charts

X - Y Charts

Pie Charts

Caselet Form

ii.Logical Reasoning

Family Tree

Linear Arrangement

Complex Arrangement

Conditionality and Grouping

Codes

Numerical Logic

Data Sufficiency

Candidates cannot switch through the segments while answering and have to complete a section first before attempting the next.

Candidates must fulfil the following eligibility criteria in order to qualify for giving the CAT exam:

50% marks or equivalent CGPA in graduation from a recognised institute or university.

45% marks for reserved category (SC/ST/PWD/DA)

Final year graduates who are awaiting results are also eligible to apply.

Post the exam and declaration of the CAT result, candidates must go through a Group Discussion and Personal Interview to get admission into major institutes.

An Academic Writing Test is now being conducted by IIM's instead of a Group Discussion. Post this the final selection is made.

The CAT exam's duration is 180 minutes or 3 hours. 1 hour should be dedicated to each section in order to get through the exam proficiently.

The exam is marked the following way:

3 marks for each right answer.

Negative marking of 1 mark for each wrong answer.

These are the tentative exam dates for CAT 2017. Keep coming back to find updated dates:

Start Date of ApplicationAugust 2017

Last Date of SubmissionSeptember 2017

Admit Card Download DateOctober 2017

Exam DateDecember 2017

Result DeclarationJanuary 2018.

For General and OBC category candidates, the application fee is INR 1600.

For SC/ST/PWD category candidates, the application fee is INR 800.

For CAT 2016, the registration process will only begin in August 2016.You can register yourself by visiting the official website.

Candidates are required to fill the form and give a preference of three test cities of which one is alloted after the final day of registration.

The candidate can then get his admit card once it is released by the official website. The admit card can be downloaded at any time between October 2016 till the day before the examination.

The Reservation of seats for CAT is as follows:

SC Candidates: 15%

ST Candidates: 7.5%

OBC Candidates: 27%

Disabled Candidates: 3%

This percentage can be changed according to the rules and norms set by the Indian Government.

Become thorough with the CAT format before the actual exam. Click here.

This is one of the most popular CAT preparation websites helping you prepare for the D day well in time. Click here.

Take chapter wise mock tests to practice on your weaker sections.Click here to know your performance.

This is an amazing website helping you polish your vocabulary and take practice tests. Click here and become a word guru.

Take free practice tests and demo lessons here.

Prexam papers are designed to cover questions ranging over 6000 topics to give you an indepth practice of CAT. Click here.

T.I.M.E. brings to you a host of practice tests that are designed for you to know what the CAT is all about. Click here.

Career Launcher tests are extensive giving you a taste of every topic that can be asked in the CAT exam. Click here to take the test.

Understand the CAT and improve your chances to get into the top IIM's. Click here to download your pack.

Along with free tests, the website gives you premium packs to truly ace the CAT. Click here.

In order to get into a successful management program, over 5000 graduate programmes and schools across the globe consider the GMAT score. It is a standardized test which is conducted in English.The GMAT follows a computer adaptive format in the quantitative and verbal section.

This allows the system to ask questions according to your previous answer. After each question is answered the test is updated. If the updated score is higher than the previous score, the next question is usually of higher difficulty, otherwise it is easier.

The computer adaptive nature of the test makes it self-corrective and making it more dependable accurate to find out the candidates true ability. This makes the GMAT valid and fair and no candidate has any kind of advantage over the other.

Started in 1996 by a group of IIM and XLRI alumni, Bulls Eye has trained more than 1, 00,000 students in the last 17 years. At present, Bulls Eye is located in 14 cities namely Pune, Chandigarh, Bilaspur, Jammu, Dehradun, Nasik, Ludhiana, Patiala, Yamunanagar, Ambala, Panchkula and Nagpur.

Find their contact information here.

As on September 2015, Career Launcher had 146 test-prep centres across 86 cities in India and 28 vocational training centres and offices. Started in the 1995, CL is a national level recognised institute in the field of test preparation.

The philosophy of BYJUS’s is to inspire a lifelong love of learning. BYJUS’s also offers an app for thorough teaching and learning. The app has more than 3.5 million students’ engaged.

Endeavour Careers is driven by the top B-school alumnus. The institute has branches in 10 states offering both online and offline coaching.

Triumphant Institute of Management Education Pvt. Ltd (T.I.M.E) was established in the year 1992 and is headquartered in Hyderabad. T.I.M.E. is highly acclaimed for national and state level exams like CAT, MAT, JEE MAIN and JEE ADVANCED and also, for international exams like GMAT, GRE, IELTS and TOEFL. T.I.M.E. has trained more than 17 lakh students since its inception. The institute is led by a team of 40 IIM/IIT graduates.

With over 34 years of experience in the education sector, IMS is one of the oldest coaching institutes in the country. IMS has 90+ branches in more than 44 cities.

MBA guru is headed by the IIT and IIM alumni. When it comes to service delivery, MBA guru surely ranks among the top names. The coaching institute claims to have achieved 22.5 IIM Calls per 100 students.

PT Education was established in the year 1993 in Indore. The coaching institute provides training classes for MBA, MCA, MMS/MCA, Pre Engineering Test, GRE/GMAT, and more. The average age for the PT expert panel is 30 years.

The coaching institute has trained more than 20,000 students since it was established in the year 2010 in Pune. All the faculty members belong to IIT and IIM with 5-10 years of work experience.

Career Launcher

IMS Learning Centre

Jamboree Education

TIME

PT Education

Achiever's Academy

Vidyasagar Classes

Career Forum

Career Launcher

IMS Learning Centre

T.I.M.E.

KITS

Career Launcher

IMS Learning Centre

T.I.M.E.

Career Line Education

Competitive Careers

Endeavor Careers

Excel Management Foundation

Expert Education

Foundation Studies for Management

Matrix Academy

Prism Centre for Education

Real Business Education

River Learn Education

CET Tutorials

Career Plan

Career Launcher

IMS Learning Centre

TIME

BYJU's CAT Classes

Brilliant Tutorials

Magnus Institute

Ascent Education

BYJU's CAT Classes

Career Launcher

IMS Learning Centre

For most of the candidates, Quantitative Aptitude is the most baffling and challenging section to crack. You must know your core strengths and weaknesses to tackle this segment. The idea is to hone your strength and work on the weak links. To master the Quant section, try out these highlights:

Spend time on Fundamentals

Start with a step by step process. Cover one topic a day and eventually set a pace. Do not always look for shortcuts and tricks. Get the fundamentals right. Visualize a problem and apply a creative approach to it. Solve as many examples as possible.

Pay attention to Algebra and Geometry

Every section further splits into different categories. Algebra and geometry has a considerable weightage score. Algebra questions are based on application of fundamentals. Geometry, on the other hand, is focused on topics like triangles,circles and volumes.

Time Management

The total time allotted to complete the exam is 180 minutes or 3 hours i.e. 60 minutes for each section. This requires each question to be solved in 2 or less than 2 minutes. Do full length practice tests, attempt mock tests and ensure you get the required speed.

Reading the question properly

Do not lose focus while reading the question. At times, you solve a question only to find out that you made a mistake while reading it. Read the question twice if need be. Re-read the question once you reach a solution. For example, the question requires you to find the value for x and at the last it may ask to find the value of x + 10.

Understand Formulas

It is important to understand how formulas work. Simply mugging them up or mugging up short cuts will not help if you do not understand the relation between formulas and variables. A confusion in formulas will only increase your solving time as you'll try to figure out what you're supposed to use. If the concept of formulas is clear, you can handle this segment better.

The Verbal Segment in the CAT paper is one section students tend to take lightly as they feel it is merely testing English and not much practice is required. On the contrary, this is one of the sections that can increase negative marking if not attempted with care. Follow these tips to polish up the Verbal Segment and score high:

Identify the Sweet Spot

Though all questions carry the same weightage but some questions are easy and could be done at the first attempt successfully. Try to capture them first ensuring a positive score.

If you're confused, leave it

It is important to also identify confusing segments where there is a chance you will make a mistake. While taking practice tests, identify certain areas where you tend to make mistakes or where a sure shot answer cannot be guaranteed. One such segment is Parajumbles where options seem confusing. If you're unsure, it's better to leave it than risk negative marking.

Attempt as many questions as possible

Try to attempt as many questions as possible but not at the cost of losing marks. First, attempt the questions which are less time consuming and devote more time to questions which require a little thinking but be sure the questions you attempt will add to your marks. Avoid guess work.

Read, read and read again

Vocabulary cannot be enhanced in a day, week or month. Most of the vocabulary tested in CAT is obtained by reading daily and regularly. Keep a dictionary handy and find out meaning of new words so you understand and retain them better. Mugging up lists of words a day before the exam will not help.

Back to Basics

There is no use trying to mug up rules and hacks to get English right. Instead, it'll help to go back to basic grammar rules you learnt in school and understand how the language works. Even people who are fluent in English can mess up in this section as they do not practice enough. Brush up basic grammar to smoothly tackle this segment.

Post Quantitative Ability, the Data Interpretation segment seems to scare students more. However this is a question which judges your grasp of information and with the right approach, can become a high scoring segment. Check out some tips which will help you get through this segment:

Understanding the Question

One of the key criteria to solving DI is to understand what the question is asking and what the data is trying to tell you. A small mistake in misinterpreting the data can cost you the entire question even if you might know the technique to solve it. Scarier and tougher DI questions are actually simpler to solve but candidates tend to shy away from it. Practice to start seeing data patterns and trends in the question.

Work on Calculation Speed

Apart from understanding what the data is trying to tell you, it is equally important to work on your speedy calculation techniques in order to get to the right answer error free. Practice mental math and learn vedic math if that helps in order to quickly crack tricky calculations. Try to eliminate certain options by scanning options and land at the right answer faster.

Practice various types of questions

DI is a vast sphere but it is equally important to practice a plethora of data questions. Some questions will be shorter and accompanied with bar graphs and pie charts while others might have a paraghraph long question where you might have to get the data by reading between the lines. Either ways, you need to have thorough practice so that you can crack different questions on the test day.

Master Proportions and Percentages

Arguably, it is not possible to master every segment of quant, but if you're good with ratio, proportions and percentages, this will go a long way in helping you crack data questions as well. Having a good grasp and understanding on these topics can surely go a long way in simplifying the DI section of the paper.

Knowing when to Quit

It is important to know what data questions will consume your time and it is better to quit and move on than trying to wrack your brain and arriving at an answer.Understand what questions are difficult for you and are worth the risk of letting go than trying to attempt and wasting time. Attempt the questions you are absolutely certain of.

While most students find CAT an intimidating paper, with the right approach, the paper can be tackled with relative ease and help you achieve a good score. Keep these easy tips in mind before preparing for the CAT entrance exam:

Know the Syllabus

Have a thorough understanding of the syllabus. Set priorities according to what is difficult for you and practice this segment thoroughly. Cover all the topics and do not focus purely on the topics you're comfortable with.

Analyse your strength and weakness

Among the 3 sections, start the preparation with your weak areas. Post that, start with solved examples from the study materials. Polish your core strength. Practice more and more mock tests.

Be thorough with your fundamentals

Know the basics of every topic to start with. Purely mugging and cramming short cuts will not help and is not a long term approach. The more comfortable you are with actual basics, more your chances to cracking the questions. Also, revise all the basic concepts before the exam.

Time v/s Target

Assign time to every topic and study accordingly. It is important to stay focused from day 1 and stick to your preparation model. Do not lose focus and achieve whatever you have planned.Complete your daily study targets on time.

Practice Previous Year Papers

Previous year papers will give you an insight about the pattern of the questions. Solve them in order to crack a great score.

Keep Calm & Aim High

Do not lose your calm during the preparation. A composed mind is the key for cracking the CAT exam. It is important to give the exam with a cool head too to avoid making silly mistakes.

This goes without saying but in order to score well you need thorough preparation for the exam. However, as this exam carries a penalty of 0.25 marks for every wrong answer, here are a few tips that help you better manage your score:

Unnecessary Guess Work

Avoid making unnecessary guess work. When you do go in for guesswork, try making an intelligent and estimated guess to have higher chances of ticking the right answer.

Strategise what you can Leave

When you do not know the answer to a question, leave it and come back to it in the end if time allows it. However do not leave too many questions unanswered as this will reduce your overall score.

Make use of the Options

Use the options given in the question to try find the answer if you do not know it. This will help reduce the chances of being completely incorrect and will help you make a better guess if you work your way through the answers.

Don't be in a hurry

Read questions carefully. In a hurry to complete more questions, you might end up making careless errors which can cost you marks.

Practice, and don't stop!

Practice as much as you can and try develop a knack of finding answers through short cuts. This reduces time and helps you attempt with good accuracy.

Making mistakes helps

Learn from your mistakes. There are some topics with which you must have struggled when preparing for the exam and you already know your chances of getting the right answer from such topics is low. Avoid these questions in the exam too if you have always found a certain topic difficult.

Double check the question

In the Quant and DI Section, be sure to read the question carefully as unnecessarily hurrying through it will cost you. Double check the units in which the question is asked and in which you are calculating.

Knowing how to take Calculated Risks

If you do guess, take calculated risks and know when to stop guessing. Do not completely skip over questions you do not know and do not solve all of them on pure guess work. Calculate the chance you can take by guessing and be sure on the ones you do attempt through guessing.

The evening before the exam can give a lot of people anxiety and panic as they try to revise whatever they can in the remaining time. Go through these tips to stay level headed and calm before giving the CAT exam:

Sleep!

This might sound like the last thing you want to hear, but the day before the exam is meant for you to relax and give your brain some rest. Do not stay up cramming more formulas or going through prep material. Just call it a night and sleep it off.

Pack the essentials the night before

It is important you pack your stationary, ID proof and Admit Card the night before to not forget them in a hurry the next day.

Make the 15 minutes count

Before the commencement of the CAT online exam, you are run through a tutorial session. No matter how many mock tests you might have taken, it is important to go through the tutorial patiently and understand all the points. Make yourself familiar with the software and UI to avoid wasting time later.

Arrive before time

Once your test centre is alloted, physically visit it before the exam to know how far it is and accordingly plan ahead of time. It is advisable to reach the venue before time than arriving late which might lead to further anxiety.

Don't be scared

While a huge part of your future career might feel at stake, give the exam with a calm mind rather than being nervous and panicky. This will only increase chances of you making silly mistakes. Trust your preparation and face the exam with confidence.

Stick to your plan

While preparing, you must be familiar with your strengths and weaknesses. Do not let questions confuse you on the exam day and stick to the strategy you had in mind to tackle various segments.

Focus on your and your work alone

While it is impossible to cheat while giving the exam, looking around at other students will not really help. It doesn't matter how much the person sitting next to you is scribbling on his paper, just focus on your computer screen and give the exam.

Stick to your time plan

It is important to stay focused on your time strategy and not get distracted by the timer infront of you. Practice in a way that you become good with estimating time and not having to look at the timer every few seconds. Do not let it unnerve you.

The candidate must hold a Bachelor’s Degree with minimum 50% marks or equivalent CGPA. The minimum marks for SC, ST, and DA is 45%.

The top B-Schools that accept CAT score in India are:

All IIM's

S.P. Jain Institute of Management and Research, Mumbai

Faculty of Management Studies, Delhi

Xavier Institute of Management, Bhubaneswar

Department of Fiancial Studies, Delhi

Department of Management Studies, Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi

National Institute of Industrial Engineering, Mumbai

Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies, Mumbai

Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, New Delhi/ Kolkata

Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai

For the full list of top B-Schools accepting the CAT score, click here.

Yes, candidates in their final year of graduation or the ones awaiting results can also apply.

In case, any candidates make mistakes while providing aggregate of marks, category, gender, personal detail, etc. then it is advised to re-register with a new e-mail ID. No refund will be provided for the previous/earlier registration.

In case the admit card is not received by the mid of October, the candidate reach out to help desk via phone call or e-mail.

No there is no age restriction or limit for taking the CAT exam.

No the CAT is not an online exam. It is a computer based test where no use of the internet is allowed.

The CAT score is valid for one year.

The CAT entrance exam is conducted once a year in the month of November (usually).