By: Mr Supratim Chakraborty, Sr Faculty, T.I.M.E Education
CAT 2025 is scheduled on November 30, Sunday. With only a few weeks to go, it is a crucial time to focus on a feasible preparation strategy. It is not only thorough studies but also your attitude that helps you as an aspirant to improve your CAT percentile. You are intelligent enough to do well in CAT, but the next 50 days will be a test of your emotional resilience.
CAT is an exam where you have to optimize your resources and take calculated risks to perform well. Selecting the right questions at the right time will maximize your score. You need to learn when and where to take risks and when and where to avoid. Your ability to handle pressure matters more than anything else.
Writing mocks periodically and experimenting with them will help you assess how good your CAT preparation has been. You should continually keep checking your performance parameters. Observe patterns, like a steady improvement or stagnation in any one area, and try to remedy any issues that may need attention. Apart from taking full-length mock tests, you should also take online sectional tests and use them specifically for targeting areas of weakness, or for improving your understanding of specific concepts.
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It is natural for you to be slightly anxious at this juncture of your preparation. However, only by remaining patient can you perform well. Here are some tips for you all that will help in preparation and during the exam as well.
Prioritise your strengths
It’s obvious that you will face lots of highs and lows in the next 60 days. But how you weather the storm is up to you. Make a list of topics based on previous paper analysis. Prioritise them based on your preparedness and allocate time for revision for each area separately, with maximum time allocated to the most important topics.
Maintain a timetable
Have a scheduled timetable for your next two months of study and measure the outcome of every mock test you write. Try to stick to your timetable as much as possible. Having a set routine will make it much easier for you to tackle the time-related stress on the day of the exam. Disciplined approach is the key to success.
Revise Important Concepts and Formulae of Quants
Students fear the quants most. There is a misconception that the CAT is a mathematics-heavy paper, and students find it very difficult to score well in the exam. However, what students don’t realize is that more than 1/3rd, i.e., 8-9 questions, are based on simple, foundational topics like equations, ratios, time and work, time and distance, percentages, simple and compound interests, profit and loss, averages, progressions etc.
Time-bound practice will help you to understand what concepts you require to revisit. Prepare a compendium of formulas, topic-wise, in an organized manner. Spend time getting the foundational mathematical concepts in place before tackling exam-level questions. However, learning basic mathematical skills is just one dimension of the QA section. The ability to apply what you know, observation skill, decision-making, adaptability/flexibility, and finally, the ability to comprehend the questions are equally important. All these can be achieved if you prepare well in advance and hone your test-taking strategy. Remain calm and focus on your strengths.
Click here for the CAT Syllabus 2025
Be healthy and stay fit
Maintain a healthy routine with adequate sleep and healthy food intake. Do not eat junk food and endless cups of tea and coffee for the next two months. A healthy body houses a healthy and alert brain, thus leading to better performance. Eat well, sleep well, and stay well rested.
Avoid brain fatigue
It is vital for you to relax your mind and stay calm. It will not help your exam performance if you are stressed and get anxious. Being purposeful always helps in this situation. Spend time daily on meditation to improve concentration. A sound mind will help you to stay focused till you have completed the examination.
Test yourself and do not panic while writing mocks
It is important that you do not panic while writing mocks, for any reason. Be flexible in your approach to tackle the paper instead of having a pre-decided strategy. Act according to the paper composition and difficulty. Sticking to basics will help you avoid unnecessary stress during the examination. Take the mocks as actual CAT exams and free yourself of any other mental block. This paves the way for relieving pressure and performing to the best of your ability in the actual exam.
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Start with known and easy questions
Please go through the instructions first and then start answering the questions. Find out easy questions/ sets in each section that you are confident about and try answering them first. It will help you gain confidence and will save you the crucial time required to answer the difficult questions. For passages, in logical reasoning and data interpretation, the questions are already in sets, thereby making your job easier. Also, make sure that there is no question in the paper that is unread by you.
Mocks are your guiding light
It is better to leave a question unanswered rather than giving the wrong answer. Avoiding negative marking is crucial. Your sense of judgment is important for obtaining a higher percentile. Read all the questions, identify the ones you can attempt and attempt only the ones you are sure of answering correctly. Accuracy is of utmost importance. It saves your time.
Time is precious resource
If you feel a question is difficult and requires a lot of time, then do not waste your time and energy trying to solve it. Move on to the next question. You can attempt to solve a difficult question after you are done with all the easy questions. Any mistake in time allocation will take you away from your goal. Divide and spend your time judiciously.
Read more: Time Management Hacks Every CAT 2025 Aspirant Should Know
On a final note
Know and remember that the competition is bound to intimidate you on more than one occasion over the coming few weeks, and things will not always go the way that you may like them to. You should also be prepared for occasional spells of self-doubt, despair and discouragement – they are all a part and parcel of the journey, which you will eventually become accustomed to, overcome and hopefully, use as stepping stones to reach greater heights in your preparation.
Every minute is critical. One has to focus and prioritize one’s tasks when there is a test or a challenge around the corner. CAT is an exam with relative scoring, and remember that a difficult paper will be difficult for everyone. The key to success is to have a good presence of mind. Believe in your dream, work hard for it, and nothing will be able to stop you from succeeding. Once you get an interview call, you have as good a chance as anyone else to be selected in your dream IIM.
