"I have not got even a single Mathematics question in CAT that I had prepared throughout the year... Most of the questions were weird statements."
An honest confession of Rajeev Mukherjee, a CAT aspirant from Kolkata, immediately after the CAT was over last year. This statement can be an indicator of insufficient preparation or stress or lack of confidence or... But you can understand from an an in-depth analysis that the only mistake Rajeev committed was that he confused his Mathematics preparation with CAT Quantitative preparation. So what is the difference and why is it that CAT pundits say that "CAT has no Mathematics, only Quantitative Techniques". Let us try to understand the difference between Mathematics and Quantitative techniques.
Mathematics @ CAT
As you know, Mathematics is the science that deals with numbers, quantities, shapes, patterns, measurements, concepts related to them and their numerous relationships. It includes arithmetic, algebra, geometry, trigonometry, etc. In sharp contrast, quantitative techniques section in CAT is more of an application of the fundamental rules of mathematics in real life situations. There are illustrations of most basic concepts, which we have studied till our Xth grade and these questions check our ability to apply the concepts, which we have learnt to real life situations.
You can very well ask as to why such questions in an MBA entrance. The answer is pretty obvious. As a manager, one must exhibit good decision making capabilities. Tomorrow you may be standing with the CEO of a big petroleum conglomerate on a highway and analyzing a situation where in hoardings of two rival companies are flashing and you have to take a decision to exhibit your hoarding after a certain time interval. So you should have the ability to apply your acquired knowledge in real life situations. Thus the bottom line is, CAT is not a test to judge your pure subject knowledge as opposed to pre-engineering / pre-medical entrance examinations, where the test is of your knowledge in core technical subjects, but CAT is a test of your inherent smartness. How smartly you pick some questions and more important how smartly you leave others.
Performance in CAT depends heavily on Quantitative Ability and it is not just CAT that needs good ability in Quants - any MBA entrance exam you take has its own share of Quant. Fortunately, the prescription is the same for all the exams - a good amount of practice with high quality questions.
Most of us tend to forget the concepts we have studied till Xth. So the real preparation starts with concept building. Once thorough with the concepts or the accuracy part, start working on your speed. Even when you are practicing at home, do questions in a stipulated time period. You may start by allotting 2 min/question, and than gradually reducing time to 1 min/question and so on.
Preparation for CAT is an eye-opener. So many myths and prejudices about oneself just whisk away after a year-long preparation. One gets clarity about one self as to what he/she actually wants in life. So all it requires is smartness and aptitude. Also the need of a good mentor who can inspire you to perform to the best of your capability.
What About this Blog?
This blog will stand by the side of your preparation to this journey towards ultimate excellence. We have tried to make this section of the blog an interactive forum for aspirants in the area of mathematics. The following sections will be posted regularly as follows:
- An introduction to Vedic Mathematics
- Speed Calculation Techniques
- Higher Mathematics
- Other special topics of Mathematics
The objective of this blog will be successful only if you can actively participate by giving regular feedback or queries on any specific topic related to mathematics.
By:
Arjun Pal
Knowledge Cell - Globsyn Business School
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