Interview - IIM CAT Crackers

CAT - Logical Reasoning

Logical Reasoning or LR in CAT is probably the toughest part of the exam. The questions are complicated with loads of information and the options are always very close to each other. So to crack this section you need extra care and a very sharp and logical mind. The following tips will certainly help you to sharpen your intelligence.

1. Go through the questions very carefully.
2. Do not assume anything if that’s not given in the question.
3. While going through the question, be extra cautious about the words - "all", "some", "none", "other than", "only", "unless". They provide very important and crucial information.
4. Before answering the questions carefully go through each of the options.
5. Easy questions are mixed with tougher ones. So its very important to identify the right questions.

Why English Usage is important in CAT?

English usage plays a very crucial role in CAT. Every aspiring MBA of today is going to be a manager tomorrow. He would be heading a team, and would be expected to motivate team members through interactive sessions, deliver presentation to important business clients. He should be someone, people would look up to, and be glad to listen to. For this reason, fluency in English is of utmost importance. Competitive exams, especially CAT, test a candidate by gauging him on certain parameters, which are necessary for him to be successful in the desired field of his expertise, and thereby select or reject him. CAT’s verbal ability section tests a candidate’s basic grammatical knowledge and also his vocabulary. There are questions on completion of sentences, synonyms and antonyms, analogies, logical sequencing of paragraphs and the like. This test would require one to go back to the basics that are taught in school.Here are a few tips on how to crack the verbal ability:

• Wren and Martin’s High School English Grammar and Composition would be of great help. Concentrate on the application of nouns, verbs, adverbs and adjectives in sentences.
• Learn the meaning of 15-20 words everyday from dictionary.
• Know the complete meaning and usage of words and their application in sentences.Remember that you will be tested on your knowledge of application of words rather than the meaning. So mugging up meanings would not be of help.

CAT - Reading Comprehension

Reading Comprehension or RC is one of the most interesting parts of CAT. In this section the answers are given in the passage. One just needs to find the correct one or rather interpret the correct sense of the passage to answer correctly. While preparing for your RC section just keep in mind the following points:-

• CAT Reading Comprehension (RC) can be on any subject. That’s why while preparing, start with the topics which you like and then gradually shift to other topics.
• There could be a question where more than one answer seems right. There you have to carefully determine which one is contextually relevant and then choose the correct option.
• Speed is extremely necessary. To increase your speed you must know ‘skimming’. It requires a lot of practice, but mastering it will dramatically increase your speed.
• The questions can have traps. E.g. - ‘Two year’ mentioned in passage could be referred as ‘Twenty four months’ in the question etc. So be careful.
• Answers of RC depends on interpretation, so while preparing if you make a mistake, make sure you know the exact explanation of the correct answer.

Gearing up for CAT – Some tips

Some points one should remember while preparing for CAT...

• Identification of easy questions is very important and can be done only after a lot of practice.
• Mistakes should not be repeated while practicing for CAT.
• One must have a strong decision making ability in order to select or reject a question.
  Time allocation plays a crucial role. There should be a fixed goal while studying the CAT preparation material. This would help in achieving much more in lesser time.
• All sections should be given equal amount of importance.
• Accuracy is a prime factor.
• Extensive reading will help in expanding the knowledge base for tackling the questions.
• Last but not the least - there should be zeal to reach the top.

CAT Quant

MATHS: SESSION 1

CAT : The Reality

"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