CAT 2023 Topper Interview: Know how Vishesh Jain, 99.68%iler cracked CAT without coaching
Common Admission Test 2024 ( CAT )
CAT 2023 Topper, Vishesh Jain with 99.68 percentile shares his preparation strategy and important tips to crack India's biggest MBA entrance exam, CAT. Read further to know more about his CAT preparation journey and post-result career plans.
CAT 2023 Topper Interview: 99.68%iler
CAT 2023 Topper Interview: With a 99.68 percentile, Vishesh Jain is targeting IIM BLACKI. Jain has completed his BSc in Applied Statistics from NMIMS, Mumbai. After cracking CAT 2023, Vishesh is aiming to pave his way in the management field by targeting top b-schools in India such as IIM Ahmedabad, IIM Bangalore, IIM Calcutta and more. In his exclusive interview with Shiksha, CAT 2023 topper Vishesh Jain shares the CAT preparation strategy along with a few tips and tricks that helped him crack India’s largest management entrance exam, CAT. Read further to know more about CAT 2023 topper Vishesh Jain.
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CAT 2023 Topper Vishesh Jain: Interview Highlights
Check out the table below to get an overview of the Vishesh Jain CAT percentile 2023:
| CAT Sections |
CAT Percentile |
|---|---|
| Overall |
99.68 |
| 99.13 |
|
| 92.62 |
|
| 99.74 |
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Shiksha: Congratulations! Are you satisfied with your CAT result? How much score were you expecting?
Q: Which CAT exam slot is the toughest?
Q: How to prepare for CAT?
Preparing for the Common Admission Test CAT can be a challenging task, but with the right approach and study plan, it is possible to succeed.
Here are some tips on how to prepare for CAT:
- Understand the Exam Pattern and Syllabus: Start by understanding the exam pattern and syllabus of CAT thoroughly. The exam consists of three sections: Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension, Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning, and Quantitative Ability.
- Make a Study Plan: Once you understand the exam pattern and syllabus, make a study plan that works best for you. Allocate time for each section, and include time for revision, practice tests, and solving previous year's question papers.
- Strengthen Your Basics: CAT is a test of your fundamental concepts in Mathematics, English and Logical Reasoning. Hence, focus on building a strong foundation by revising and practicing the basic concepts.
- Read and Analyze: To improve your Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension, start reading newspapers, magazines, and books regularly. Analyze the content, style, and tone of the passages to gain a better understanding of the language.
- Practice Regularly: Practice is the key to success in CAT. Solve as many practice tests and previous year's question papers as possible to get familiar with the exam pattern and build your speed and accuracy.
- Time Management: CAT is a time-bound exam, and time management is crucial. Practice solving questions within the stipulated time frame to build your speed and accuracy.
- Join a Coaching Institute: If you find it challenging to prepare for CAT on your own, consider joining a coaching institute that offers specialised coaching for CAT. They will provide you with a structured study plan, guidance, and practice tests to help you prepare for the exam.
Remember, consistency, and dedication are key to success in CAT. Keep practicing and working hard, and you will achieve your goal.
Q: Is the CAT syllabus difficult?
Yes, the difficulty level of CAT syllabus is very high as compared to other MBA entrance exams. However, if you prepare well and follow the CAT exam pattern well, you will be able to score well. Besides having an understanding of the CAT syllabus 2025, candidates also need to be well aware of the CAT exam pattern before they start preparing for the exam. The CAT exam pattern was revised in 2021 and the number of questions were reduced from 76 to 66. The structure of CAT 2023 and CAT 2024 was the same. The syllabus is still tougher than other exams.
The most important things to keep in mind are:
- CAT exam mode is online
- Each question carries three marks
- There is negative marking of minus one mark for wrong attempts
The section-wise distribution of questions and difficulty levels as per the latest CAT exam pattern are listed below:
- Quantitative Ability (QA) - 24 questions, difficulty level - moderate to high
- Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning (DILR) - 20 questions, difficulty level - moderate
- Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension (VARC) - 22 questions, difficulty level - moderate. to high
Vishesh: Yes, I'm satisfied with my result. I was expecting a much better score in VARC (99.9+) due to it being my strongest area.
Shiksha: Was this your first attempt at CAT?
Vishesh: This was my first genuine attempt. I had attempted cat last year without much preparation.
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Shiksha: When did you start preparing for the CAT exam? What was your overall prep strategy?
Vishesh: I started preparing in April this year. Focus on studying the basics of all sections, especially QUANT until July. After July only did mock tests and analysis.
Shiksha: Please share with us your section-wise strategy.
Vishesh:
- VARC - Reading is crucial but more importantly is solving a lot of RCs. There is a huge difference between being able to read/understand and being able to solve the RC questions. VA is underrated and hard work in VA may give you great ROI.
- DILR- Solve 500+ sets ranging from all topics. Many people recommend sudoku, puzzles, etc. but it is the last priority. First, you should be able to solve a variety of easy-medium sets and master a few types of sets.
- QA- Focus heavily on arithmetic and algebra. It makes up a significant portion of the test. You need to solve at least medium level of questions with ease, as we have seen in this cat paper, with a majority of LOD 2 questions.
Shiksha: Which books did you refer to for CAT preparation?
Vishesh: Solved Arun Sharma for Quant. For the other 2 sections, books aren't as useful.
Q: Is CAT exam tough for an average student?
CAT is a speed based test which is designed to assess a candidate's analytical aptitude, logical reasoning skills, data interpretation and English comprehension. Now, it may sound tough, but these are the skills which we are taught in school so there is nothing new to learn. What is required is to learn these subjects at advanced level. If you are an average student but have studied Science or commerce in Class-12 and graduation, you will find a lot of familiar topics in Data Interpretation, Quantitative Aptitude and Logical Reasoning. All you will need is brush up the basics and practice the concepts on advance level problems.
However, since the competition is so high in CAT and less than 95 percentile can break your dream of joining a top college like IIM, the preparation for CAT requires a lot of focus, dedication, discipline and diligence. If you can do that, despite being an average student, you can crack the CAT exam.
Q: Are six months enough to prepare for CAT?
Q: Why is CAT considered a difficult MBA entrance exam?
Q: When should I start preparing for CAT exam?
Aspirants should start preparing for CAT exam at least nine months in before the test date. CAT preparation requires long-term planning thus one must start early. The best time to start CAT preparation is in March. Starting early will also help you assess that whether you need to join a coaching institute or not.
Divide your preparation into two phases -
- Covering the CAT syllabus
- Practicing mock tests, sample questions and revision.
The CAT syllabus includes the following topics:
- Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension: Parajumbles, Parasummary, Sentence Completion and Inferences, Questions based on passages, para meaning, order of sentences
- Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning: Tables, Graphs, Pie Charts, Venn Diagram, Blood Relation, Seating Arrangement, Caselets and Syllogism
- Quantitative Aptitude: Geometry, Algebra, Number System, Arithmetic, Mensuration.
You can read the following CAT books for exam preparation:
- CAT Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning by Gautam Puri
- Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation for the CAT by Nishit K Sinha
- Data Interpretation and Data Sufficiency by Ananta Ashisha
- How to Prepare for Data Interpretation for CAT by Arun Sharma
- How to Prepare for Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension for CAT by Arun Sharma and Meenakshi Upadhyay
- 30 Days to a More Powerful Vocabulary Mass Market Paperback by Wilfred Funk and Norman Lewis/ Simon and Schuster
- How to Prepare for Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension for the CAT by Sharma and Upadhyay
- High School English Grammar and Composition by Wren and Martin
- How to Prepare for Quantitative Aptitude for the CAT by Arun Sharma
- Quantitative Aptitude for CAT by Nishit Sinha
- Quantitative Aptitude Quantum CAT by Sarvesh Sharma
- Quantitative Aptitude for Competitive Examinations by Abhijit Guha.
Q: Can I prepare for CAT within 3 months?
Shiksha: How many mock tests did you attempt and how important is a mock test series?
Vishesh: Attempted around 60 CAT Mocks tests. Mock test is THE MOST CRUCIAL aspect of the cat preparation journey. It will help you build your test-taking strategy and stamina and prepare you to make the right question selection.
Shiksha: Did you join any coaching institute? How does the coaching institute help in CAT preparation?
Vishesh: No coaching institute for preparation. Only for mocks.
Shiksha: What was your exam day strategy?
Vishesh: Overall Strategy - Don't keep any targets and be free of any constraints. You have to solve as many questions as correctly as possible. Having a range is good but keep it flexible, as we have seen in this year's difficult paper.
VARC- Spend 30 seconds scanning for the best RCs. Did 3 of them consecutively in 30 minutes. Spent the rest 10 minutes solving all VA questions. In a difficult section like S2, accuracy becomes crucial and after solving many mock tests, you'll be able to judge the level of questions asked.
DILR- SET SELECTION is crucial. Spend 5 minutes going through all 4 sets and the approach to solve them. Spend around 5 minutes on a set. If you cannot crack that set, move to the next one. You need to maximize the questions solved, not the sets. Hence it is okay to solve 2-3 questions from each set. This strategy becomes critical when no one set is a sitter.
QUANT - The strategy of leaving questions in 10-20 seconds will be a disaster in this year's difficult paper. You need to give adequate time(2-3 minutes) to calmly solve around 10-15 questions with extremely high accuracy. Being able to guess smartly is also an underrated skill.
Shiksha: Which IIMs /Institutes are you targeting?
Vishesh: I am targeting IIM BLACKI (IIM Bangalore, IIM Lucknow, IIM Ahmedabad, IIM Calcutta, IIM Kozhikode, IIM Indore) and FMS, SPJIMR
Shiksha: Tell us something about your educational background, family and hobbies.
Vishesh: I have studied BSc in Applied Statistics from NMIMS, Mumbai. My father is a businessman and my mother runs a baking institute. My hobbies are to read to business books, researching stocks, and cooking.
Shiksha: Any tips for future CAT aspirants?
Vishesh: CAT is a game of strategy. You might only be able to solve easy-medium questions and be average in all sections and still score 99+. What you need to focus is on reducing the gap between your actual mock scores and the potential score (which is high for any well-prepared candidate)
Read More:
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- CAT 2022 Topper Interview: Work hard & World is yours. That's key to crack CAT, says Arka Saha, 98.76%iler
- CAT 2022 Topper Interview: Know how Parul Garg cracked CAT with 99.93%
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