CAT 2015: FMS student shares preparation tips

Himanshu Singh is a first year MBA student at Faculty of Management Studies – Delhi. A computer engineering graduate from NSIT Delhi, Himanshu shares his success mantra and tips for CAT preparation with Shiksha.com below:

 

 

Frankly speaking, CAT was my secondary option. My primary option was getting a decent campus placement. My main purpose was to clear the aptitude test of companies coming for the college placements.

Most companies conduct aptitude tests to shortlist candidates for the interviews. And aptitude tests are all based on CAT pattern. Which is why I joined a coaching center. I joined TIME’s CAT coaching classes during the beginning of my third year of engineering in June, 2012.

But eventually I started seeing the benefits of an MBA program over a Bachelors in Engineering degree and started preparing for CAT sincerely. I decided to take CAT 2013.

 

 

CAT Preparation Tips

I joined CAT coaching classes almost 13 months before the exam. But I think, anywhere between three to ten months are enough.

I followed the instructions of the coaching faculty. They categorized the preparation in the following parts: -

1. Quant
2. Verbal
3. Reading
4. Puzzles or LR

(This categorization is according to the CAT exam pattern.)

Right at the start, the faculty they told me to strengthen the basics, which I think everyone should while preparing CAT.

 

1. Quant

For quant, one should practice calculations as much as possible. Learn the squares and cubes of numbers, say up to 30. Try shortcut methods to find the square and cube. Learn to multiply large numbers quickly. This will take time but, the more you practice, the more you’ll find it easier.

 

2. Ratio and Percentage

Next, one should try the ratio and percentage part. Solve modules or whatever sources you have access to. This is beneficial for Data Interpretation (DI) part. DI is time-consuming but scoring. So, in order to reduce the time one should learn solving ratios and percentages. For example, learn the reciprocals (1/n) of numbers up to 20. Similarly, you will find the percentages easily.

 

3. Mathematics

Then, comes the general part – mathematics of up to Class X. This will be easy if basics are strong. All CAT problems are doable for an average person but the person taking the least time will be the winner. So, practice and trying shortcuts are the main factors for Quants.

 

4. Verbal & RC

Verbal and reading are the weakest parts for an engineer. I was no exception to this and had to put in lot of efforts.

What I did was monotonous, but I could sense an improvement.

For verbal, I started reading The Hindu newspaper. I made a point to read the entire newspaper, not just for knowledge, but to learn how to frame sentences in a better way. I tried to find the difficult but recurring words which were and framed sentences using those words.

Similarly, I read the editorial page daily as suggested by the faculty. Editorial page also contains material for Reading Comprehension part. Some articles are a good source of topics. However, reading requires continuous concentration. It’s difficult to read the article in the beginning, but with time, one gets used to it.

For the remaining verbal part, I relied on modules, articles on different themes like psychology, technology, science, etc.

 

5. Logical Reasoning

Now, comes the least boring part- Logical Reasoning). I loved solving LR questions. The questions are like brainteasers. For higher difficulty level, one can solve from puzzles book by George J. Summers. But, I found this part the easiest of all. You will get addicted towards these. Solving these are so much fun.

 

 

About MBA Life:

MBA is not just about the money. MBA is a lot more than just money. Here are some important points I wanted to bring forward to the aspirant.

At a higher position, you have commitments. Although, you may enjoy being the moderator of a product, but you are also responsible the functioning of the product. A product’s success or failure is totally dependent on you. All these help you in becoming a more person in a quick time.

MBA also helps channelize your efforts in the best way. You becomes more efficient, understand the value of time, efforts and capability.