CAT success story: Every CAT aspirant dreams of seeing their hard work turn into life-changing results, and Amanjot Kaur’s journey is a powerful reminder that consistency, discipline, and the right mentorship can transform “average academics” into top-tier IIM calls.
In her conversation with Career Launcher, Amanjot opened up about her entire CAT 2024 journey, from preparation to interviews and how CL’s Test Series + PDP Personalised program helped her convert every call she received.
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Amanjot’s CAT Preparation: From Average Scores to a 99.47 Percentile
Amanjot describes herself as someone who had always performed “very averagely” in academics. But in 2024, she made a decision, “I want to give CAT my best” and that changed everything.
Here’s what her preparation looked like:
- Her approach was pragmatic, and she decided to complete her CAT syllabus by May, sticking to it, following different books and revising important Quant chapters twice.
- She joined the Career Launcher CAT Test Series, comprehensive and committed to solving the Daily Dose every single day without missing even one. Till the exam day, she did not miss a single day.
- She attempted Career Launcher 35 full-length CAT mocks and 20+ sectional tests, especially for DILR.
- She credits CL faculty for helping her build confidence in DILR “The Road to 99 percentile DILR session by GB Sir was the first time I felt the section was doable.”
- She also talked about the resources that “Career Launcher provides in detail, which helped her prepare rigorously for DILR
- She meticulously analysed every mock using video solutions by CL mentors (GB Sir, Gejo Sir, and GP Sir’s jugaad), which helped her improve accuracy and efficiency.
- CL helped her tremendously, especially considering that the recommendation came from her brother, who was also a student at CL.
- Her CAT preparation was a blend of both hard and soft approaches. The hard approach involved disciplined execution, like finishing her syllabus early, taking 35 mocks, 20+ sectionals, and doing the Daily Dose consistently, while the soft approach focused on mindset, where she stayed calm, trusted her mentors, and kept her confidence steady throughout the journey.
Amanjot’s biggest mindset shift was learning not to be afraid of mocks:
“Mocks are a learning tool; scoring low doesn’t define you.”
This approach eventually helped her achieve a 99.47 percentile, positioning her among the top aspirants in the country.
PDP Personalised: The Turning Point in Her GDPI Journey
After the CAT results, Amanjot began searching for interview guidance. She already knew of CL mentors (Gautam Bawa through her intensive DILR prep), but it was the PDP Personalised program that truly stood out.
She describes the experience as “instrumental and transformative” for three reasons:
1. A mentor who understood her
She was thrilled to be assigned Gautam Bawa Sir as her mentor.
Their backgrounds matched (Maths Honours + IIM Calcutta), and she says:
“I was so happy to get him as my mentor, knowing him because of DILR and our same backgrounds. The match felt intentional, not random. He understood exactly where I came from and thus grilled me and asked me a lot of Maths questions to prepare me for interviews, especially IIM Calcutta”
2. Honest, sharp, and personalised feedback
GB Sir helped her refine:
- her complete life story
- SOPs for different IIMs
- answers for profile-based questions
- math-heavy areas for interviews like IIM Calcutta
- current affairs, where she really felt underprepared.
She recalls:
“He didn’t sugarcoat things. If an answer wasn’t good enough, he said it directly and that honesty helped me grow the fastest. He told me that if the interviews were going average, you have to find the opportunities to make them interesting to stand out from the crowd”
3. Mock Interviews That Felt REAL
Each mock was aligned with the actual institute style and that was how she prepared for it.
- IIM Calcutta → quant-heavy grilling
- IIM Bangalore → SOP-driven deep dives
- Other IIMs → profile-specific questioning
This level of precision helped her walk into every interview fully prepared and confident.
The Result? 17 IIM Calls. 17 Converts.
Yes, she converted every single call, including the ones GB Sir had predicted she’d receive.
Amanjot gives full credit to CL’s structured system:
- The PDP portal with AI-assisted answer drafting
- her autobiography exercise
- personalised mock interview plan
- deep-dive sessions into academics and current affairs
- consistent mentor support
But Gautam Sir, as Amanjot mentioned, summed it up best:
“We only recommend. The hard work is yours.”
Amanjot’s Advice to CAT Aspirants
She leaves aspirants with two simple but powerful messages:
1. Don’t be scared of mocks, embrace them.
Low scores are feedback, not failure. Mocks are the learning tools; they help you grow and aren’t affected by your scores. Nervousness kills confidence.
2. Stay consistent and trust your mentors.
“If you join Career Launcher, follow your mentors blindly. They know exactly what they’re doing.” She recalled
Her journey proves that with focus, discipline, the right strategy, and personalised guidance, anyone can rise above their limitations and achieve extraordinary results.
