CAT Exam FAQs
Clarify your doubts and get a solution to all your CAT-related queries.
Clarify your doubts and get a solution to all your CAT-related queries.
The first step to starting your preparation for CAT is to decide whether you wish to take CAT classes or prepare by yourself.
If you plan on taking CAT coaching, it is advisable to review your chosen institute, the features offered and your own goal. At Career Launcher we offer online classes, classroom coaching and even night classes for students and working professionals. So, choose a program that meets your needs and is in sync with your aim for CAT.
If you wish to self-study, it is ideal that you pick the correct study material, outline the syllabus and pick the right books for practice. At present, books such as those by Arun Sharma are best to prepare for CAT and establish a foundation. Preparing by yourself can be a lot of hard work as you will be required to understand the syllabus, implement a strategy and study without the guidance of an expert or coach.
Many coaching institutes and CAT experts offer advice and guidance on their Youtube channels. However, there is no single channel that helps prepare for CAT in a step-by-step process.
People who score the 99th percentile or aim for it, have an exam strategy set out for them which they consistently modify and change based on their preparation. For candidates who wish to reach the 99th percentile, here is a strategy that can be implemented:
For a detailed strategy to ace CAT, click here.
There is no ideal time period for CAT preparation, candidates can prepare for CAT as early as 12 months or even more. However, a dedicated and consistent preparation in 6 to 8 months is ideal for a candidate to confidently attempt CAT. Other factors such as exam strategy, diligence and mock exams also play a role in the time required for CAT preparation.
Despite having the advantage of beginning preparations early, CAT aspirants can also attempt CAT after only preparing for 3 months. The exam preparation strategy of the candidates will be changed and moulded according to the time at hand.
Candidates who are still completing their degree can give 2 hours daily to CAT preparations after their college classes. As college students (and working professionals) have limited time in a day, you must establish a strong foundation and practically divide your schedule.
To crack CAT without coaching, an aspirant must adhere to a preparation plan. Without the formal guidance of any expert, a candidate will be required to plan and prepare every step of the way.
A disciplined candidate will be able to prepare on their own and even score well in CAT.
The IIMs do not release an exact syllabus for CAT. Thus, the CAT syllabus is collated by reviewing the past papers and candidates prepare accordingly. Based on past trends, the CAT syllabus focuses on school-level English and Mathematics. So for CAT 2022, the main topics covered in the syllabus for each section are as follows:
Click here for the entire syllabus of CAT 2022.
The first step to beginning preparations for CAT includes getting familiar with the syllabus and exam pattern after which you can focus on building a strong foundation and learning the concepts. For quants, you can begin with preparing Arithmetic and read more to enhance your vocabulary for VARC. From there you can build further by practising mock exams, reviewing past papers and revising consistently.
You can also prepare for CAT by joining online classes.
An online CAT course and an online CAT test series both have their advantages when preparing for CAT. So to choose one over the other, it is necessary that candidates identify their needs and requirements.
An online CAT course will help a candidate establish their fundamentals and learn the tips & tricks to solving questions accurately and quickly. It will also help candidates get expert advice and establish their fundamentals. On the other hand, the CAT test series will enable an already prepared candidate to practise and review their progress to identify their weaknesses and problems. It is for a candidate who has set their base and aims to revise and improve their performance.
The eligibility criteria, according to the official CAT notification, is as follows:
Thus, you are eligible for CAT and can appear for an interview when selected for further admission rounds.
Yes, a student already pursuing an MBA degree at a B-school is eligible to appear for the CAT exam. The eligibility criterion only requires a student to have completed their graduation with the minimum percentage to appear for CAT. Thus, as long as the requirement is met you can give the exam even while already doing an MBA.
Yes, a student who has completed their graduation with a minimum of 50% for the general category (45% for the reserved category) is eligible to take the CAT exam. The university awarding the degree should be recognised by the MHRD. As long as these requirements are met, the type of degree does not make a difference when appearing for CAT.
Candidates holding a professional degree such as Chartered Accountancy, CS, ICWA or Fellow of the Institute of Actuaries of India can appear for CAT if they meet the required score of 50% for General, NC-OBC and EWS or 45% for SC, ST and PwD categories.
The eligibility criteria for CAT is that the candidate meets the requirement of a minimum of 50% in their graduation for General, EWS and NC-OBC categories (45% for SC, ST and PwD). Aspirants who do not clear this requirement are not eligible to sit for CAT.
On the other hand, XAT does not have a minimum percentage requirement. Thus, as long as a candidate has completed their graduation, they are eligible to give XAT.
To prepare for the VARC section of CAT, candidates must focus on improving their English skills, including grammar, reading speed and vocabulary. Reading comprehension is an important part of VARC, with 16 questions out of 24 total VARC questions. Here are some ways in which you can prepare for VARC:
For a detailed strategy to prepare for the VARC section, click here.
Among the plethora of books available to begin your CAT preparation, it is necessary to be able to identify the best books that can help you improve your CAT preparation. Given below are some of the best books to prepare for VARC:
Attempting the DILR section requires good time management skills and the ability to select the right questions. Here are a few tips and tricks on how to prepare for DILR:
The DILR section comprises two sub-sections, Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning. The Data Interpretation section includes questions that must be answered based on visual data such as graphs, caselets, charts, etc. On the other hand, Logical Reasoning questions have non-structured information based on which the candidate must derive the answer. Given below are the major topics covered in this section:
To view the complete syllabus of CAT and DILR, click here.
Irrespective of your weakest or strongest section in CAT, if you clear the sectional and overall CAT cut-off along with the following admission rounds, you can get admission to a college of your choice.
To improve your performance in the quants section, you can follow the given steps:
Here is how you can prepare for cat quantitative aptitude.
The IIMs do not provide a CAT exam pattern or syllabus and as the CAT exam pattern changes every year, it is not possible to define the exact questions that are asked from each section. However, based on the CAT papers from the past few years, it can be deduced that three topics of QA i.e. arithmetic, algebra and geometry dominate the section.
Giving mock tests regularly for your CAT preparation is important for a number of reasons:
After giving a mock test, the candidate should spend time thoroughly analysing the performance to identify weak points, strengths and the paper pattern for CAT.
To learn how to improve on your CAT mocks and analyse them, click here.
TITA or Type in the Answer are questions in which the candidate will not have any options to choose from. Instead, as the name suggests, the candidate is required to type in the answer for the given question based on their understanding. Based on past trends, the VARC section will contain around 5 non-MCQ or TITA questions.
Previous years’ CAT papers are easily accessible online. You can also find the past papers by clicking here.
Yes, doing the previous years’ papers is beneficial for the following reasons:
Yes, for admissions to the IIMs, 85% in 12th is sufficient.
Getting admission to an IIM is dependent on various factors, along with 12th scores. The profile of the candidate, the CAT score and the performance in the GDPI round together determine whether a candidate is admissible for admission or not.
Yes, candidates who score a high percentile might still not make the cut for IIM-A as the CAT scores are not the only criterion for admission to an IIM. The performance of the candidate in further admission rounds, the overall profile, including 10th and 12th grades, work experience, qualification etc, also plays a role in the final score given to the candidate.
Every year, over 2 lakh students register for CAT, out of which 1.9+ lakh candidates appear for CAT on the exam date. On the other hand, the overall number of seats in all the IIMs is approximately 5500 as of 2021. So even though many candidates crack CAT and get admission to some of the top B-schools in India, out of the 2 lakh students applying for CAT, only a few thousand get admission into one of the IIMs.
Yes, a candidate who has completed MBBS can appear for CAT and get admission into an IIM. The eligibility criteria for CAT is that a candidate must hold a bachelor’s degree. So as long as the condition is met, the candidate can appear for CAT.
After CAT, when the candidate receives calls for further admission rounds at an IIM, various factors will be taken into account while creating the final merit list. The candidate can also get points for profile diversity.
No, the reputation of the UG college does not make any difference during the interview rounds in top B-schools such as IIMs and FMS. The graduation marks are the only criterion based on which the candidate’s performance is measured.
Extracurricular activities play a role in making a stronger profile for selection to top B-schools as it gives you an edge over peers with similar profiles.
For an MBA aspirant, it is essential to identify the best business institutes and the eligibility criteria to get admission to any one of them. So here are some of the top B-schools in India:
Extracurricular activities play a role in making a stronger profile for selection to top B-schools as it gives you an edge over peers with similar profiles.
All the top B-schools require candidates to clear one of the entrance exams such as CAT, XAT, SNAP, NMAT, etc. So candidates can identify their institutes of choice and prepare for the entrance exams accordingly.
To review the entire list of top B-schools in India, click here.