Saransh belongs to Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh. He scored 9.6/10 in class 10 and 90.6% marks in class 12. Saransh has completed graduation in civil engineering from NIT Warangal with a score of 7.19 out of 10. Saransh preferred to join FMS Delhi to other IIMs and B-schools that offered him admission.
Apart from devoting time to study, Saransh has great interest in Cricket, Football, Texas Hold’em poker and watching TV shows. He attributes his success inspiration to his mother, Cristiano Ronaldo – the renowned football player and his willingness to get recognized.
Exam:
My exam prep strategy, experience & Advice
For the benefit of MBA aspirants, MBAUniverse.com asked Abhay Agarwal about his preparation strategy and advice to do well in MBA entrance exams. Details follow
Q. What was your preparation strategy for CAT?
A. I came to Delhi for 40-50 days in June-July and I sat through all the Quant modules at ‘Alchemist’ which gave me a base. I started reading to increase my reading speed.
From September to November, I gave 20-25 mock tests. Each mock paper had different kinds of questions and solving 20-25 of them covered almost every type and pattern, which was essentially helpful for DI-LR section. I had 2 friends who were also preparing for CAT and after appearing in a mock paper, we used to discuss every question and compared the timings. This gave me an idea about my weak areas and while discussing, I sometimes got to know faster way of doing a similar problem. Also my strategy was to kill any kind of nervousness or impatience involved by giving mocks so that it feels normal on the Judgement Day.
Q. How did you prepare for each section QA, VARC & DILR? What study materials and books did you use?
A. For QA, I sat through all the modules in my coaching. Then I solved some chapters in face-to-face CAT to practice previous year questions. Then I gave mock papers and analysed my mistakes and speed after each paper. I used TIME material for formulas in different chapters.
For VARC, the question paper pattern changed a lot from 2014. There were 24 RC questions. So I started reading articles from different domains to increase my speed. For practice, i relied on mock papers.
For DILR, I solved face-to-face CAT for previous year’s questions. There are 8 sets of DILR and you get 60 minutes to solve them. So while giving mocks, I focussed on not spending more than 7-8 minutes on a single set.
Q. Was there any particular section that you were weak at? How did you overcome this challenge?
A. I was weak in VARC as you can see my sectional percentile scores. I overcame this through practice and reading.
Q. How can candidates use Mock tests better? What is your advice?
A. The sincerity while giving a mock should be such as if it’s the final CAT paper and there should be no internal and external disturbance for those 3 hours and you should only focus on the screen. Taking Mock in actual test condition will eliminate nervousness; will help greatly in time management; and will give you a lot of confidence. Post mock analysis is extremely important, or else you won’t improve. Lastly, you should give the same mock untimed (without the 3-hr restrain) to realize whether to work on speed or content.
Q. Did you go to offline coaching centre? What role does a coaching centre play?
A. I went to Alchemist Delhi for a crash course. It gave me a belief and confidence that I can score a high percentile. Also, studying with other students help you realize where you are and how much who have to work to be the best.
Q. Other than CAT, which exam did you appear?
A. I appeared only for CAT exam.
Q. Which institutes did you apply for admission?
A. Apart from CAT, which in itself is an IIM application form, I applied for FMS Delhi.
Q. Please share your strategy for the CAT Day. What was your last-minute preparation? How did you plan your CAT test taking?
A. For preparation of the CAT day, I started taking mocks aligned with my CAT timings so as to be more comfortable on the final day. This may seem strange; I appeared in my CAT exam wearing a track pant and a loose t-shirt to go along with slippers to make it like an absolutely regular day for myself. My plan to take CAT was to attempt as many questions as possible (I attempted 92-93) and not getting stuck on a question for more that 2 minutes. While there was a 15-minute wait for the paper to start, I was singing “waving flag” in my head to remain calm and motivated.
Q. Which B-school you decided upon and why?
A. I decided upon FMS Delhi. My first priority was IIM-A which I could not convert but post that I prioritized FMS as it is one of best b-schools of India.
I considered the feedback provided to me by alumnus from my graduation college, NIT Warangal who had gone onto study in IIM C, IIM L and FMS. Also, I believe that the exposure you get in Delhi is better than others.
Q. Any message you would like to share with the candidates preparing for CAT 2016.
A. I would ask all the candidates to remain calm and confident. Do not give up because it’s not as difficult as it looks. Read as much as possible. Also, learn to say no to a question and move to the next as time available is less. Focus equally on all the sections and lastly, I wish good luck to all.
At IIM Ahmedabad, Calcutta and also at FMS Delhi the PI questions ranged from my personal profile, academics, current affairs. The interview was in cordial and at times I was encouraged also.
At IIM Ahmedabad it was a case study to be attempted in 30 minutes. IIM Calcutta asked me to write on ‘How do you feel about people walking on street whilst talking to mobile phones’ in 20 minutes. The topic at IIM Lucknow was ‘How much do I love my country?’ FMS Delhi has no WAT round. There is extempore speech just before the PI round.
