Ahhhhhhhhh ,

back after 3 days of wild partying and chillaxing with friends . And id now like to post my entire CAT experiences on my blog , for those interested CAT aspirants .

Ever wondered what CAT is trying to test ?????

The English in the VA+RC section is standard day to day english . You needn;t be a Shakespear to understand it . While the GRE tests you with wierd words like phlegmatic , excoriate and tepid , the CAT does not require you to read n number of word lists . You just need a knowledge of std. english , grammar and need a reasonably good reading speed for RCs .
The math in the PS section is not IITJEE or GATE level . It is standard 10th -12th math , that you would have found way too easy 4 years ago .

So why do the IIMs test you with such basic stuff ???

Because they aren'ttesting our math and english i nthe first place . Eng. and Math are just TOOLS used to test more important parameters , namely :

> Ability to handle pressure ( 1.5 L students -> 1200 seats )
> Ability to priorotise ( 150 question , 2 hrs , choose the best questions )
> Ability to manage your time ( same , 150 Qs , 2 hrs )
> Decisiveness ( "Do I attempt this ques or not ??? " , " Shall I move on to the next section or not ??? " )

Net net , CAT seeks to determine if you have the necessary qualities to become a manager like ability to handle pressure , et all . VA , RC , Math , DI , LR are just tools to test these qualities . by giving you 150 questions that will ideally take 4 hrs to ans , and giving you 2 hrs instead , they are trying to test if you can decide which qs to attempt and which to leave .

But off course , you need a sound foundation in math and eng to tackle CAT . So here is how I went abt prepping .

June 25 : I started my BRMs . I couldnt till then coz of my GRE . Adv was I already know the word lists in and out , so the sentence completion ques in SIMs were a breeze .

I finished my brms by july end . I was reasonable confident with most of the quant problems in the BRMs by then . I didnt touch the VA and RC BRMs coz I didnt feel they were good , or worth it . I was already pretty good in VA and RC , so wanted to focus more on math and DI

Aug : I started work on the Part B material of IMS , with 5 sectional tests and 5 ACTs . I finished it pretty soon , and had a lotta time on hand b4 part C , so I contacted my IMS centre manager and got the previous year's PartBmaterial , and did most of that . Took a free TIME mockcat and did very well ,got AIR 105 or something .

Sep : I got IMS part C and finished that in 2 weeks . I jhad a lotta time coz I was bunking college like mad . I knew most of my profs pretty well and so attendence wasnt a problem . So had a lotta free time at home . SIMs had started and I BOMBED in the SIM1 . Was devastated after I got my rank : 2,000 outta 50,000 . i realized it was coz I was too tense in the SIM . Decided to chill out after that and took the SIMs easy .

Oct : Had finished most of the Math BRMs and was only taking tests . Halfway through this month , I had to slow down on CAT coz univs were starting . And like every other engineer worth his salt , I hardly follow any thing during the sem and I only study in the last 15 days . So CAT prepps slowed down . Was taking like 2 tests a week at best . But I took most of the TIME tests , which I feel are the most CAT like you can get . IMS SIMs are not very CAT like , and thats why I used to look back and feel that I should have joined TIME . All; you IIM hopefulls , take lotta TIME tests , very CAT like .

Nov : Tenshun rises . Univs in full swing . Was only taking tests . Revised formulae a week before CAT . and 3 days before CAT.............I stopped everyting and chillaxed .

No use telling u guiys how I prepped for the leaked CAT , coz u probably wont have that Dec- Feb period .

But I must say , fundae must be learnt in 1st month . From August onwards , take tests like mad . ANd analyse them a lot . 2 hr test = 4 hr analysis . Do all the PS problems and see if you can find shortcuts . Screw all this speed math . I didnt use it and neither did so many ppl I know . Its not needed . And read a lotta books , itll inc ur reading speed .

For DI , do a lot of simple calculations at home . Do 4 digit multiplication and time yourself , try to inc your calc speed . It works wonders for DI . But mainly , try to evolve a strategy to attempt teh test . Order of sxns , questions , etc .

All the best for CAT-2004 guys . Hope to see a lot of you at IIMB next yr . Post if you have any doubts . Or mail me . Ill do my best to ans them .

da STIFFmaester