ROAD TO CAT: Remove your DI & LR fright with MBAUniverse.com!
In the previous two articles on Quantitative Ability and Verbal Ability sections of CAT exam you have learnt about how to prepare for the same. But there is still one section in CAT exam which seeks everyone’s attention and that is Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning (DI & LR). This is one tricky section which most MBA aspirants and CAT exam takers are dreaded of, but CAT experts from reputed MBA coaching institutes say the section is not that difficult as it seems. Teachers of the MBA coaching institutes, while speaking to MBAUniverse.com said that regular practice can make anyone get a high score in the DI & LR section.
In CAT 2008, DI & LR section had six DI sets and one LR set, each consisting of three to four questions. IMS Learning, one of India’s leading MBA coaching institutes told MBAUniverse.com that the section was a good mixture of calculation and reasoning based questions. A good selection of questions would have led to the attempt of 12 to 14 questions in around 40 minutes, IMS Learning said.
What is DI & LR all about?
DI & LR, a section in CAT exam, tests your decision making ability and time utilization with limited inputs. The DI section consists of graphs, charts, tables etc. for calculating data. Though some questions need calculation, others can be solved without calculation. Since it is not compulsory to answer all the questions, you have to carefully select questions which can be answered by close scrutiny of the given data. No cumbersome calculation process is required. The LR, another section in CAT exam, is considered tougher than DI by most MBA aspirants as it consists of logical puzzles followed by several questions. “This section of CAT exam usually consists of family trees and analogies, which require a good concentration and flow of thoughts,” informed Kamlesh Sajnani, Managing Director, IMS Learning.
Preparation for DI & LR
Like other sections of CAT, this section also needs ample practice in order to excel in the final exams. Manish Gulati, cofounder and CEO, topCATcoaching.com, an online MBA coaching institute, said, “For DI & LR go through last five to six years CAT exam papers and try solving them without any preparation. Analyze and evaluate your approach with reference to every question including the one which you solved easily.”
Meanwhile, Sajnani said, “Refer to the graphs and data provided in various business papers and magazines. You need to identify techniques to solve questions which require big and time consuming calculations.” A sound knowledge about different forms of graphs, charts and tables is also necessary to excel in the CAT exam. “You must practice a lot in order to interpret the data. Solve at least one DI&LR problem every day. You must read articles, especially on business which are heavy on data and analyze them. This will keep your 'DI cells' on toes,” CAT expert Gejo Sreenivasan said and added that an MBA aspirant should spend at least one hour a day for this section.
A fun way of preparing for this section of CAT exam is by solving puzzles like Sudoku, Crosswords etc. “Solve puzzles from puzzle books easily available in the market, and puzzle sites on the internet, to improve reasoning skills and speed,” said Aziz Manva, Content Head, Testfunda.com.
Books and preparation material
Manish Saraf, COO of PT Education suggested a few books for the DI & LR section including ‘How to prepare for the Data Interpretation for CAT’ by TATA-McGraw Hill publications, ‘How to prepare for the Data Interpretation for CAT’ by Arihant Prakashan, Verbal & Non Verbal Reasoning’ by R.S. Agarwal (S. Chand and Sons publications), ‘Course In Mental Ability and Quantitative Aptitude’ by Edgar Thorpe, ‘Analytical and Logical Reasoning’ by B.S. Sijwali (Arihant publications), ‘Reasoning and DI for MBA Exam’ by Arun Sharma and ‘Fundamental of Reasoning: A Logic Book’ by Robert M. Johnson.
Many test sites run ‘Puzzle of the Week’, which is emailed to registered users every week. You can also take help of newspapers and previous years’ CAT exam papers in this regard.
