CAT 2014 Preparation: Countdown begins 60 days to go; focus on core topics.

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MBAUniverse.com News Desk |
September 10, 2014
CAT 2014 is 60 days away and this year higher level of concerted preparation to crack the test is expected from the CAT 2014 aspirants
CAT preparation requires much greater volume of dedication, study hours and the right strategic approach to crack the questions

CAT 2014 , computer based test  and  gateway to more than 4 thousand seats in 19 IIMs and more than 10 thousand in other top rated B schools, will be held in two sessions a day on November 16 and November 22, 2014 at 354 centres in 99 cities across the country.  Approximately 2 lakhs aspirants are expected to register for CAT 2014 by the registration closing date Sep 30, 2014.

 

Preparing the topics for CAT, the most favourite of all the MBA/PGDM entrance tests conducted in the country, has never been easy since CAT preparation requires much greater volume of dedication, study hours and the right strategic approach to crack the questions.

CAT 2014 is 60 days away and this year higher level of concerted preparation to crack the test is expected from the CAT 2014 aspirants. Apart from other significant changes CAT 2014 needs a preparation strategy that focuses on 100 questions as against 60 that used to appear in earlier CAT exams.

 

More questions: Less time; strategic approach needed

 

The 100 questions in CAT 2014 will be divided in two sections with 50 questions in each section. While number of sections is not going to increase, CAT 2014 preparation, in view of the changed pattern, poses challenge before the CAT 2014 aspirants since it has more questions and less availability of time.

 

With the beginning of 60 days countdown to CAT 2014, aspirants have to fine tune their preparation strategy and have to focus more on such topics as could become the source of more questions. So far CAT 2014 aspirants have  been devoting time to prepare and practice on the existing pattern which according to CAT Verbal Ability preparation expert Prof S K Agarwal, now needs to be topic centric instead of continuing as wide extensive approach.
 
MBAUniverse.com experts share the necessary topics which need to be covered in next 60 days with good volume of practice exercises and mocks.

 

Focus on Basics in Verbal Ability

 

Prof S K Agarwal, Verbal Ability expert on CAT preparation shares following topics and sub topics that need aspirants’ attention and in case aspirants face any weak areas in their preparation, it should immediately be overcome.

 

Get expertise in Grammar

 

To ace CAT 2014, your preparation must focus on grammar usage. You may expect 4-6 questions on core usage of English language that includes questions on Error correction in sentences and paragraphs; questions on wrong usage of words .

 

Following topics, if not well prepared should now be focused and prepared for CAT 2014 they will not only help you to solve questions based on them but also to solve the questions on other related topics and will improve the error free writing skill.

 Grammar topics- Parts of speech

Times zones- Tenses

a. Articles

a.Indefinite Tenses

b. nouns

b.Continuous tenses

c. pronouns

c.Perfect tenses

d. Adjectives/Adverbs

d.perfect continuous tenses

e. conjunctions

e.conditional and unreal past

f. Preposition & followed prepositions

f.Reported speech

g. Non-finites

Usage-Few, a few, the few, Little, a little, the little, some, any, each, every

h. Misplaced and dangling modifiers

Usage-Prefer, would rather, had better,No sooner, As soon as

i. Usage in Verb-agreement with subject

Usage-As well, as well as, neither-nor, either-or, else-or else, too-enough, many a,

j. punctuation

Fairly-rather; causative-have-get; also-too; also-as well; scarcely-when; hardly-when

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Vocabulary Preparation in 60 days for CAT 2014

 

Vocabulary usage include questions on contextual usage of synonyms, similar and confused words, different usage of a word from common usage; filling in the blanks with a pair of vocabulary words. Following types of questions can be expected on Vocabulary usage and all the types have to be practiced to prepare for CAT 2014. Number of questions on following topics may vary from 4 to 6. Now the preparation strategy needs more understanding and more practice of such questions.

 

Marking the correct use of words in sentences- This type tests the use of your vocabulary in different contexts. A key word is given which is used in four/five different contexts, you have to find out the correct use from the given options and mark the answer accordingly. The words are not difficult but you should be aware about their different  usage especially the forms of phrasal verbs.

 

Marking the correct choice of similar sounding/confusing word, used in same sentence- It also tests the vocabulary usage in specific context. Out of the two three words, used in a sentence, correct choice of the word, supposed to be used is to be marked from the given options.

 

Inserting the correct pair of words to fill in the blanks -Two Blanks are given in a sentence followed by four options of pairs of words, correct option has to be picked out
 Explaining the Words -  identifying their synonyms, antonyms phrases, idioms –used in the passage, using the confused words.

 

The Tip

 

The best way is to read the given sentences at least twice, even if the words are not familiar to you. This will give you a general understanding of the sentence and will help you to mark the incorrect word-

 

What should you read to build the stock of Vocabulary and understand the usage

 

Sub topics                    

 

a. Common words in language from all walks of life   Understanding formation, roots,exercises -  

 

b. Phrasal verbs/confused words used in different ways in usage-spotting the wrong use -Formation with different words and usage- 

 

c. Fill in the blanks with correct vocabulary words- synonyms – antonyms - Understanding synonyms-antonyms with correct usage         

 

d. Idioms and phrases –correct usage - Understanding the meaning and usage

 

 

 

Paragraphs: 20 minutes a day

 

 This part in CAT will give you Weightage of  a percentile in the range of  40 to 50.  There were 4 to 6 questions in CAT 2013 of different types on paragraphs. If you can spare 20 minutes a day, you can overcome problems in solving questions based on paragraphs.

 

Following Sub-Topics require to be covered in paragraph preparation module-

 

i) Parajumbles - There are four types of jumbled paragraphs which may appear in CAT examination. It is of utmost importance to understand and solve the various types with ease.

 

ii) Completion of last sentence in the paragraph – Concept, strategy, class exercises and tips.

 

iii) Out of Context sentence in jumbled paragraphs – This type of question appeared in CAT 2012, aspirants were confused. The concept was to decode the jumbled paragraph and pick out the out of context sentence as well.

 

iv) Probable types in CAT 2013 – Inserting first sentence, picking out sentence relevant to header etc.

 

Reading comprehension for CAT 2014: 60 days are good to prepare

 

Expect 15 to 16 questions based on Reading comprehension passages in CAT 2014. In the next 60 days your strategy to prepare for RC in CAT 2014 should focus more on improving your reading speed, time management, understanding the tone and idea in the passage. Reading comprehension could form 50% part of Verbal Ability.

 

With the increase of 20 questions in Verbal Ability section, an increase of around 7-8 questions on RC could be there. To increase this number it’s possible that 2 more RC passages are added in this section or the length of RC passages are substantially increased to form more questions on them.

 

Focus on LR topics to get an edge in CAT 2014

 

10 questions on Logical reasoning may increase to 16 in Verbal Ability section. It’s better to prepare on different topics of Logical Reasoning as all the above cited topics are important and questions can be based on any of them. More practice topics on LR are seating arrangements; sets, blood relations, direction, assumption, premise –conclusion, team formation.

 

Practice topics on Quant: Overcome the weakness in 60 days

 

Till CAT 2013 composition of this section used to be of 20-22 questions on Quantitative Ability and 8-10 questions on Data interpretation. With the increase of 20 questions in this section, Mr Ankit Jindal, expert on Quant, shares the prominent & probable topics that might contribute more to the changed and enhanced number of questions in Quant section in CAT 2014.

 

35 questions can be expected only on Quant, out of which around 10 questions will be of easy to moderate difficulty level. Rest are expected to be moderate to difficult . But those who are clear with the concepts will be able to solve these. In CAT 2013 questions on remainder theorems were not there in most of the sets. This year we can expect questions from each chapter of the quant.

 

Majority number of questions are expected from number system, time speed distance, geometry, permutation combination and probability. We can also expect questions from indices surds, logs, progression, averages and profit loss.

 

15 Questions on Data Interpretation: Needs concentration

 

In DI, we can expect 15-18 questions distributed over 4-5 sets. Sets can be based on Venn diagrams and pie charts and rest will be based on calculation. While 2 sets will be easier and rest will be slightly more difficult and calculation intensive also.

 

What you need to do now

 

In view of Prof S K Agarwal Expert on CAT preparation, aspirants should now focus on core preparation of topics discussed above as well as on following parameters to crack CAT 2014

 

- Sectional as well as full length mocks. Attempt them with no breaks. Wherever you are lacking, make a note of it and make efforts to improve.

 

- Speed and accuracy are the 2 key factors. Focus on them

 

- More attempts within the given time frame. Try to focus on entire question paper, scan it once and maximize your score with more number of attempts.

 

- Keep your cool while preparing. Never get panicky when you are studying or attempting mocks, you may lose your confidence level.

 

- CAT 2014 will have no restriction and you will be permitted to solve any of the 100 questions from any section during the overall time limit of 170 minutes. With this changed pattern, you should go for revised computer based Mocks which contain 100 questions covering more topics and usage.

 

- Scoring pattern is expected to be slightly different in CAT 2014. So prepare and practice in the manner that you focus on the both the sections in a balanced manner. Balanced high sectional percentile is more important than overall high percentile. Therefore during your practice sessions, keep a clock with you and find out periodically how many questions from each of the sections you have solved.

 

- More questions may be based on more topics. So wide coverage on topics will be available hence practice more of them

 

- Prepare with an open mind, it will be easier to pick more questions out of 100 questions

 

- Avoid wastage of time. If you stick to one difficult question and try to waste your time, you may remain far behind in scoring. Time saved out of these attempts will be available before you to utilize for further attempts. Your level of preparation will equip you to make as many attempts as possible with accuracy.

 

Related links

 

Trends in CAT Exam; Still in Evolution process; impact will be on CAT 2014 test takers

 

Stay tuned to MBAUniverse.com for more preparation tips for CAT 2014