The CAT exam is the most popular management entrance exam in India with over 3 lakh students participant every year. Not only is it the most popular entrance exam, it is considered the gold standard of management entrance because of its level of difficulty and the vast number of colleges that accept CAT examination scores.
Mocks are an important tool if you wish to ace the CAT. While there may be individuals who may disagree, many CAT toppers swear by the importance of CAT mock Tests. So much so that people give over 30 CAT mocks during their preparation.
Before diving into it, let us understand the CAT first.
The CAT exam comprises three sections:
Each of the section is for 40 minutes and the entire duration of the exam is 2 hours, there is no rest allowed in between the examination. Each section is meant to test different skills that a manager is supposed to posses.
Mocks are tools which are supposed to guide you on your journey to the 99%ile+ mark. While taking a lot of mocks may sound daunting and time-consuming - combined with the fact that it is also extremely demotivating to see low scores, it is essential. You should trust the process.
While the mock takes 2 hours, analyzing it is another task altogether, completing all the steps involved in a thorough mock analysis might take over 6 hours all-together.
Given below is an estimate where you can test how effectively you have been analyzing mocks.
6 hours + consistent blank spots | journey to the 99%ile |
4-6 hours + consistent blank spots | a very good and efficient effort |
6 hours + no blank spots | a wastage of time |
less than 4 hours | a half-assed effort towards mock analysis |
We have explained what "blank spots" are below.
It is essential to understand that the CAT is not a test of perfect knowledge, it is a test of your test-taking ability. It may sound weird but that is what it is. You can score a 99%ile by answering less than 50% of the questions with 100% accuracy. Thus, the correct test-taking is essential.
Blank Spots are areas where your test-taking skills are lacking. What it means is that while you have the knowledge do to this question, you, for some reason have not attempted it or have done something wrong in the process and therefore done it incorrectly. Essential, for whatever reason except a 'knowledge gap' - you failed to score marks here.
This is critical and elimination of these blank spots are essential to a high score in mocks and also the CAT exam.
Given below is a step-by-step process of mock analysis.
This is merely a guide, not a exhaustive guide but strong enough to help you decide the topics where you should divert more of your attention.
Your areas of improvement should not be based on accuracy alone but also on the time required by you to solve it while also keeping in mind the importance of the chapter - it might not be the best idea to study heavily for a topic that does not carry much weightage; you'd be better off studying for a chapter with high weightage that you face problem in.
Topics of Strength | High Accuracy + Low Time Required |
Topics where you need more work | High Accuracy + High Time Required |
Topics where you need to improve | High Importance + Low Accuracy |
Topics you need to ignore. | Low Importance + Low Accuracy |
4. Weak Areas: Once the segregation is complete, identify sections or question types where you are consistently scoring low. Focus on these areas in your study while brushing up on areas on strength. You should also keep in mind that the bulk of your score will be made up of your area of strength, the areas where you are not comfortable but have a basic knowledge of can help in giving your score a jump incase an easy question pops up.
5. Time Management: Review how you spend time across sections. Are you spending too much time on certain questions or sections? Please ensure that you are not spending more than 4 minutes when you try to solve a question. Constantly try to reduce the average time that you spend per question.
A strong foundation in the basics is key to cracking CAT questions. Here’s how to ensure your basics are strong:
A fair test of your conceptual clarity would be if you can solve 7 questions from every 10. The questions where - Topics where you need to improve - lie in this area.
This is meant for areas where you have high accuracy but are taking a lot of time to solve, therefore- Topics where you need more work - lie in this area. Just do as many questions as you come across.
Each section of the CAT exam requires a separate strategy. Here’s a brief overview of strategies for each section:
Time management is key in the CAT exam. Here’s how:
Guidance from mentors or peers can bring new perspective to your preparation. Unfortunately, this is the toughest and most important part. If you can get someone to guide you with your preparation, someone who has done this before, you can speed up your progress by miles.
This can be due to a variety of reasons ranging from pressure to syllabus issues. Ensure that you are confident while giving the mocks. Aside from this, also make sure that you make a list of questions for which you have completed the syllabus.
To achieve a 99%ile in CAT, accounting for the pressure of the examination and other such factors, make sure you are scoring above 70 marks in your mocks right now and increasing it gradually.
Focus first on 'low hanging fruits' - areas where you can improve faster by making the smallest effort - this can be a cleaner layout of the DILR section or a slower reading of an RC, then move to areas where you need more practice.
10 mocks are a basic minimum for the CAT. Try to complete at least 25 mocks which is the sweet spot.
How to Analyze Mocks To Improve CAT Percentile? Check Now
Read BlogHow Many Mock Tests Should One Take Before The CAT 2024?
Read BlogFree CAT Mocks Available Online, Full-length Sectional Tests
Read BlogWhen is the Right Time to Start Taking CAT Mocks?
Read BlogHow to Choose Best Mock Tests for CAT? Compare Now
Read BlogCAT DILR Mock Test Strategy, How to Prepare for CAT DILR?
Read BlogCAT Mock Taking Strategies for Quant, Check Details Below
Read BlogHow To Analyze CAT VARC Sectional Test? Check Now
Read BlogCAT Score Weightage in IIMs for Final Selection, Check Now
Read Blog