CAT Quant Marks Distribution, QA Topic-wise Weightage
The Quantitative Ability (QA) section of CAT has a well-defined syllabus which it sticks to. Since less than two months are left for the examination, this article focuses on CAT Quant Marks Distribution so that you are aware of which topics need more attention than others. In this article, we will take a look at the last years' papers and try to generalise the distribution of various topics in the quants section. We will break down the entire quant syllabus into smaller concepts such as Profit-Loss-Interest, Number Systems and analyze which areas need more focus.
In the QA section, there are a few topics are extremely crucial & repeated every year in the CAT exam. Some of the most important syllabus topics for CAT 2024 with their weightages in previous year CAT exams are given below.
CAT 2023 Quant Distribution:
| Topic Name | Slot 1 | Slot 2 | Slot 3 |
| Average Ratio & Proportion | 2 | 3 | 3 |
| Profit and Loss, Interest | 2 | 3 | 1 |
| Time, Distance and Work | 4 | 2 | 3 |
| Geometry/Mensuration | 3 | 2 | 3 |
| Quadratic & Polynomial Equations | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| Linear Equations & Inequalities | 3 | 3 | 4 |
| Logarithms, Surds & Indices | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Functions | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Number Systems | 2 | 3 | 2 |
CAT 2022 Quant Distribution:
| Key Topics | Sub-topics | Slot-1 | Slot-2 | Slot-3 |
| Arithmetic | Averages, Ratio and Proportion | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| Profit, Loss and Interest | 3 | 1 | 1 | |
| Time, Distance and Work | 1 | 2 | 5 | |
| Geometry | Geometry | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Algebra | Quadrilaterals, Polynomial Equations | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Progressions and Series | 1 | 3 | 1 | |
| Linear Equations and Inequalities | 2 | 2 | 3 | |
| Modern Math | Logarithms, Surds and Indices | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Functions and Graphs | 3 | 2 | 1 | |
| Probability Combinatorics | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| Number Systems | Number Systems | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Venn Diagrams | Venn Diagrams | 1 | 0 | 0 |
CAT 2021 Quant Distribution:
| Topics | 2021 - Slot 1 | 2021 - Slot 2 | 2021 - Slot 3 |
| Averages, Ratios, Percentage, Mixtures | 4 | 5 | 4 |
| Profit, Loss and Interest | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Time, Distance and Work | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Functions, Graphs and Statistics | - | 1 | 1 |
| Progression and Series | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| Linear Equations | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| Quadratic Equations | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| Inequalities | 2 | 2 | 3 |
| Logarithms, Surds and Indices | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Geometry | 3 | 3 | 4 |
| Number Systems | 1 | - | - |
| Probability and Combinatorics | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Venn Diagrams | - | - | - |
CAT 2020 Quant Distribution:
| Topics | 2020 - Slot 1 | 2020 - Slot 2 | 2020 - Slot 3 |
| Averages, Ratios, Percentage, Mixtures | 4 | 3 | 3 |
| Profit, Loss and Interest | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Time, Distance and Work | 4 | 5 | 4 |
| Functions, Graphs and Statistics | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Progression and Series | - | 1 | - |
| Linear Equations | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Quadratic Equations | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Inequalities | 2 | 4 | 2 |
| Logarithms, Surds and Indices | 4 | 1 | 4 |
| Geometry | 3 | 4 | 2 |
| Number Systems | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Probability and Combinatorics | 2 | 1 | - |
| Venn Diagrams | - | 1 | - |
CAT Quant TITA vs Non-TITA
| Question Paper Slot | TITA | Non-TITA |
| 2023- Slot 1 | 8 | 14 |
| 2023- Slot 2 | 8 | 14 |
| 2023- Slot 3 | 8 | 14 |
| 2022 - Slot 1 | 8 | 14 |
| 2022 - Slot 2 | 8 | 14 |
| 2022 - Slot 3 | 8 | 14 |
| 2021 - Slot 1 | 8 | 14 |
| 2021 - Slot 2 | 8 | 14 |
| 2021 - Slot 3 | 8 | 14 |
| 2020 - Slot 1 | 8 | 18 |
| 2020 - Slot 2 | 8 | 18 |
| 2020 - Slot 3 | 8 | 18 |
Quants Topic-wise Weightage: FAQs
What is the easiest topic in quants?
Arithmetic is one of the easiest and very important topics in QA section in CAT. If someone wants to score high then he/she should target this topic.
Can I skip Geometry for CAT?
Skipping any topic is not at all a good idea because CAT is very unpredictable exam. So I would suggest to not skip any topic entirely. You should at least get your basics concepts cleared, so that you don't miss out on easy questions.
Do quants use a lot of math?
Maths in CAT quants is not very calculation intensive, rather it is more of a logical in nature. One needs to be very thorough with the basic concepts to get good score in quants section.
How do I start preparing for Quant?
If you want to start preparing for I recommend you to go through this blog, (How to prepare for CAT quants) it will give you better insight. Also, go through the syllabus before starting your preparation.
Which topic is the most difficult in CAT Quants?
Generally, modern maths is considered to be the toughest topic in quants section of the CAT exam.
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