Change in CAT 2011: 'Certainly lesser things to worry about'

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MBAUniverse.com News Desk |
March 22, 2014
The announcement of the new exam pattern in CAT 2011 has raised a buzz amongst the CAT takers. Everyone is trying to contemplate the pattern and preparation strategy for CAT 2011.

The announcement of the new exam pattern in CAT 2011 has raised a buzz amongst the CAT takers. Everyone is trying to contemplate the pattern and preparation strategy for CAT 2011. 

To address this issue, AskMBAUniverse.com conducted Live Expert Chat on the topic ‘How to prepare for the new pattern of CAT 2011'. The chat which was held on Thursday, July 28, 2011 with Byju Raveendran, founder, Byju's CAT Classes received a plethora of queries from the candidates on what the new pattern would be like and what would be the preparation strategy for CAT 2011.

Excerpts from the Live Expert Chat:

Q: NISHIT: I am weak in English. How will this new pattern change affect me? What strategy should I adopt?

A: This pattern might prove to benefit those who are weak in Verbal Ability, as they can manage the VA-LR section to a certain extent if they are strong in Reasoning. There is more flexibility because of inclusion of logical reasoning questions..

Q: Janvee: I am preparing for CAT since last year. But even now I am afraid of Quant, especially algebra section. Please help me out to take me out of this phobia. Please tell me what should I do at this stage?

A: Broadly speaking Algebra is all about questions in terms of variables, hence most of the times you have the flexibility to assume values- i.e. you can convert a difficult question to an easy one by assuming numbers in place of variables. Basic knowledge of the topic is still a prerequisite, so revise your fundamentals. Then you can make algebra your scoring section.

Q: Sourabh: The new CAT pattern is said to be more user friendly, but the students not allowed to jump between sections and the sections being combined. Do you think it is student friendly?

A: There are certainly lesser things to worry about! There is a specific time allotment for each section; hence you need to think only about managing the time within a section. Moreover, a sectional time-cut off would help avoiding skewed scores in one section. Hence, this move would definitely predict more accurately the overall aptitude and reasoning ability of a candidate.


Q: Sanymi: Apart from CAT, which other MBA exams should we focus on?

A: Apart from CAT we have other major exams such as XAT, FMS, IIFT, JMET and SNAP. Preparation majorly remains same because for all these exams the CAT acts like the universal set with slight variations here and there. All you need to do is to go through the previous examination papers just to get a feel of the exam and the pattern i.e. for JMET SOME TIME CAN BE SPENT ON HIGHER MATHEMATICS. For XAT, IIFT AND SNAP, just go through current affairs and general awareness other than CAT preparation.

Q: Naveen Sajeev: As announced this year only two sections, Quant + DI and VA+LR, what would be the arrangement of questions in paper? Would it be first 15 questions for Quant and then DI or it will be a mix, one Quant and next one is for DI?

A: Distribution of questions in a section is not yet specified. However, the weightage for the overall score might increase. There is a very good chance that the overall cut off will be higher than that of a three section paper as there will be more students who are likely to clear two sectional cut offs compared to three.

Q: Mandeep Singh: Any fixed duration for switch down the sections, as whole paper slot will 140 minutes?

A: Candidates will have 70 minutes to answer 30 questions in each section. Once the time ends for the first section, they will move to the second and will no longer be able to go back. You don't have the option to switch between sections.


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