Get ready for the real thing and design a strategy which can help you face the D-Day confidently
In the previous Road to CAT articles by MBAUniverse.com, you must have got a fair idea on how to start preparing and carry on with the practice. But when the time for taking the final CAT exam is just round the corner, how should you deal with your preparation? First, don’t let the terror bell ring inside your head when the exam starts knocking on the door! Instead of getting tense it’s necessary to design a strategy which will help you face the D-Day confidently.
MBAUniverse.com spoke to some of the last year CAT exam toppers to learn more about how to cope with the final moments. While talking to MBAUniverse.com, Glen D’Silva (99.83 percentile) suggested, “Rather than panicking, I feel students should prepare a proper schedule about the next six weeks at this stage.” All the hard work and preparation can get ruined if aspirants take unnecessary tension. “Nothing that has gone into preparations would be of any use if a candidate can’t keep his cool during the CAT exams,” said Sitaram Agarwal (99.53 percentile).
Here are some of the broad guidelines laid-out by the toppers that might help you too.
Revision
Two months before the final CAT exam, you should be all prepared and ready to take the tests head-on. According to the last year’s toppers, you should get comfortable and confident with whatever you have learnt thus far and should strengthen that by further revisions. Explain the point, Sahil Bansal (99.91 percentile), said, “The last two months should ideally be kept only for fine tuning the test-taking strategy.” You should be at ease with the basic concepts and speed. According to Anurag Goyal (99.56 percentile), preparation in the last two months are very crucial. He said, “The last month should entirely be dedicated for revision of Quants and DI concepts. Other than that, this is the best time to go through word-lists again since they will stay fresh in your mind just before taking the CAT exam.”
Explaining similar tactics, Amit Tandon (99.49 percentile) said, “One should try to look for different variety of questions on topics learnt. I would suggest the aspirants to forget any topic that they are not comfortable with.” While giving more tips, Sitaram Agarwal (99.53 percentile), said, “For October, the candidate should ideally divide his time between revising past mock tests, revising the concepts learnt through the text books and basic reading materials. For November, I believe it is crucial to revise the basic concepts again, so as to make sure they stay fresh in mind.”
Take final mock tests
As discussed in the earlier article, mock tests have immense importance for an aspirant who is about to sit for the final CAT exam. You should never stop taking the mocks even just a week or two before the actual test. It helps sharpen what you have learnt so far, and also strengthens your strategies. It makes sure that the strategy you have formed is the best one to be applied on the final day of the CAT exam. “The last month before the CAT exam should be spent on strengthening the concepts. The best way to do so is to be thorough with the concepts tested in the mock tests,” Anurag said. Meanwhile, Amey Mashilkar (99.14 percentile) explained that taking regular mocks before CAT exam helps build confidence. “The last month should be especially devoted to testing yourself against others,” he said.
On the other hand, for Amit Tandon, analysing the mocks minutely is more important than taking mocks one after the other. “One should spend considerable time on revising/analysing mocks that he/she has taken so far. Also, weekly mock tests should be continued, the number should depend upon the candidate’s comfort level,” said Amit. Voicing similar opinion, Glen D’Silva said that the mocks should be revisited to see if they can solve those questions which they found difficult earlier. D’Silva said, “Try and solve a few already taken mocks/previous CAT exam papers, but do not overdo it. Try and solve some sectional tests rather than going for a complete paper.”
For Sahil Bansal, taking mock tests gives you a realistic feel of the CAT exam environment. “Mocks or previous year CAT exam papers should be thoroughly evaluated. In this way, a comfortable strategy will be clear in the mind before the final day,” Sahil said. One of the CAT toppers also advised the candidates to take at least two mocks per week to keep the momentum going, while talking to MBAUniverse.com.
Solve previous years’ papers
Solving yester years CAT exam papers can give you a fair idea about the exact pattern of the test and how it has changed over the years. Although this year you will be facing a new format altogether, the pattern may remain more or less the same. Also visit CAT exam site to take the online mocks that have been uploaded there. This will give you a realistic feel of the CAT exam. Sahil Bansal said, “Last two weeks can be kept for taking online CAT exam mock papers or previous year’s papers at home while fully simulating an exam-like environment. No cell, no TV just you and the paper.” Solving previous years’ papers helps strengthening a strategy for the actual exam. “Although those questions might not get repeated, it is definitely worth solving them as it helps you prepare a strategy for the final CAT exam,” said Glen.
Avoid learning new things
This should be a definite No No! According to the CAT exam 2008 toppers, you should not try to learn something new prior to the exams. It can hamper your confidence. In this regard, Sitaram Agarwal said, “Nothing new must be done at that point of time, as it might seriously hurt the confidence of the candidate.” Amit Tandon said, “During this period one should not try to learn new things and should rather put more focus on strengthening the strong pints.” D’Silva too said the same thing. “One shouldn’t try and learn new concepts at the end time. It could lead to unnecessary panic,” he said.
Relax
There is no point getting hyper and overdoing your preparations just before the D-Day. It’s very important for you to keep your cool before the final CAT exam. Sitaram Agarwal while explaining what could be done at such time, said, “The most important thing while writing the CAT exam is to enjoy each and every minute of the test and not worry about the result. I feel the more you get hyper and tense the worse your attempt at questions becomes.” For that reason, the candidates must relax their nerves just before four or five days to the CAT exam. D’Silva feels relaxation is the key to success just before the test. “Please remember that CAT exam is more a mental game and the person who remains cool on that day will ultimately succeed,” he said.
