Jul 21, 2005 11:52 AM
10509 Views
(Updated Jul 21, 2005 11:54 AM)
I started preparing when I was undergoing my training in Infosys. It was really demanding and we had no time for it. I joined a test series of a leading coaching institute (That was IMS actually). Practicing was tough but a good score always motivated me to study and I managed to get some time out of my schedules.
The interview was grueling and went on for around 30 minutes. I was asked about my B. Tech Project and also about the relevance of my work experience with my Bachelors degree.
One very interesting question was “Please define your career path” where I was supposed to prove that this is an informed decision and I have thought over it well.
Thats about a bit of my overall experience ... now about the tips .... I would like to constrain this review to preparation for the written test .... would write next time for GD/ PIs.
One very important thing before I start .... CAT is NOT about cracking all 150 questions (or 180 or whatever) , so please refrain urself to calculating average time per question on the basis of that (which comes out to be 0.83 min thats around 50 seconds per question , which is very frightening ... isnt it ?).
Also , the negative marking in CAT is alwayz something that should be taken care of. All I can say is that PROBABLY it doesnt follow a straight line. WHat that means is that the penalty for 10 mistakes is not equal to double of that for 5 mistakes. Its much more than that. Hence accuracy should be one of the prime focus. (I would like to say , that these are purely my thoughts and all I can do is guess - an informed one offcourse , please dont count me for this VERDICT)
When to start : Its actually very subjective but I have come across this question quite often hence I would like to answer it from my perspective. Its never too late to start. I started in september and that too under the rigorous pressure of my work. All it needs is DEDICATION. I would say that around 8-10 months is good enough for a preparation with around 1 - 1.5 hrs daily.
Where to start : Make sure you have atleast 50 questions that you can do in around 40 minutes and are sure of more than 90% accuracy. U can actually take that as ur objective for the 10th to 50th minute in the CAT paper. (I know u would be asking that what in first 10 minutes ?? and the answer is READ the paper. Please do that and identify your 50 questions. Believe me , it helps a lot when you have done your best in the first fifty minutes and have to do the remaining few (say around 50) in 70 minutes , then the kind of confidence you have , you can do wonders.
Its about doing your best first. Please dont expect the paper to be in order of increasing (or decreasing) complication. Its all about identifying the target easy questions and cracking them first. (and first 10 minutes is a very wise investment). You may get panicky when everyone has done around 7 questions in first ten min and you are yet to start , but it helps... it actually does.
As someone said , its not a test for intelligence but a test of smartness. And everyone knows that if the duration of the test is increased that everyone can qualify (with basic intellect level).
CAT is not about excelling in one section and doing miserably in others. Its about doing everything well , hence make sure you attempt sufficient questions in all sections. You can actually guage the cut-off of a section by looking at its questions and hence perform according to that.
Essence :
TIME MANAGEMENT and FOCUS are the two buzz words that can get you to any of the IIMs. Trust me !
Will be back with tips on GD/PI soon !
