arnob : AS A WORKING INDIVIDUAL HOW SHOULD I DIVIDE MY DAY FOR CAT 2024
thomas : try to put in at least 2 hrs on working days and at least 6 hrs ( which includes writing a mock) on holidays

hero : VARC ME ACCURACY NHI AARAHI HAI
lakshmymenon : Hope you are taking AIMCATs regularly. First of all, how many questions are you attempting? You should not attempt all questions blindly from an RC passage. Remember that you only need approximately 50 percent marks in any section to get around 99 percentile. Spend enough time on checking the options carefully, revisiting the passage, and identifying any distortions, extreme statements etc. in the options. If you're still confused, leave it. You should spend 1-1.5 minutes on an average per question. At times, you may need to spend longer than that.Analyse your AIMCAT mistakes by listening to the video solutions and trying to identify the flaws in your logic.

adolf_hitler : DID VERY POORLY IN VA SECTION. ALTHOUGH I COULD UNDERSTAND THE PASSAGES AND FIND THE ANSWERS STILL IT DIDN'T HELP?
lakshmymenon : First of all, please note that you cannot really 'find' the answers from the passage. You need to infer them, but you need to do so based on the author's perspective. Do not answer all questions based on a passage just because you have read it. For each question, check each option carefully, revisit the relevant part of the passage and compare each option. After eliminating the obviously wrong ones, analyse the confusing options from the author's perspective. Do not bring in your own imagination. If you're still confused, leave the question.

muskan : HELLO, HOW MANY QUESTIONS SHOULD I ATTEMPT PER EACH SECTION?
thomas : it depends on how many you can answer. do not make any wild gusses. a score approximately half the maximum score will get you close to 99 percentile, based on previous years papers.

sanskar : HELLO SIR, I WANTED TO ASK THAT IF I DO NOT CLEAR CAT THEN WHAT OTHER EXAMS ARE THERE THAT I CAN TAKE?
thomas : XAT, NMAT, SNAP

adolf_hitler : PLEASE SUGGEST SOME METHOD TO IMPROVE IN VA SECTION. I CANNOT SEE ANY IMPROVEMNRYT IN IT !
tarannumraza : Focus on SM booklets and online sectional tests along with analysis

student : WHAT WAS THE DIFFICULTY LEVEL OF THIS AIMCAT? WAS THE DILR SECTION HARDER THAN CAT LEVEL?
thomas : dilr and varc was similar to Cat WHILE QA section was easier

bhca4a465 : HI
thomas : please post your question

sanskar : BECAUSE SIR OUR PARENTS CAN INVEST ONLY ONCE SO PLEASE TELL US WHICH OTHER EXAMS WE CAN GIVE ALONG WITH CAT ?
thomas : already answered.

anvii : I'M NOT ABLE TO COVER THE SYLLABUS OF QUANTS
abhishek : Work with a plan. Make a list of topics you wish to cover first. Give yourself a timeline and stick to it. Next two months focus on building concepts, later focus entitling on test taking skills.

karan : THIS IS KARAN FROM CAT24. I ENROLLED IN MARCH 2024, BUT DUE TO SOME PERSONAL ISSUES, I HAVE ONLY MANAGED TO WATCH 10 LECTURES AND HAVEN'T ATTEMPTED ANY MOCK TESTS YET. COULD YOU PLEASE HELP ME FIGURE OUT WHERE TO START NOW?
abhishek : Start where you left. We design the course in progressive manner to deal with complex concepts later. It is given that you will have to work(5-6 hrs) more now onwards

adolf_hitler : PLEASE CHART OUT A PROCESS WHILE ATTEMPTING THE ENTIRE VA SEWCTION
lakshmymenon : What process? The order of attempting questions, the number of attempts etc. will vary based on the individual's strengths and weaknesses. Can you clarify your question further?

harsh : SIR I AM NOT ABLE TO IDENTIFY CONCEPT TO BE APPLIED IN LRDI QUESTIONS IN AIMCAT , IN PREVIOUS 3 AIMCAT MY SCORE HAVE DIPPED A ALOT , I AM NOT ABKE TO SOLVE A SINGLE SET WITH 100 PERCENT ACCURACY
supratim : Have you solved all DI/LR sets of all previous AIMCATs? Start writing online sectional tests too.

muskan : I HAVE JUST STARTED MY PREPARTION. QUANT SEEMS TO BE TOUGH FOR ME. I UNDERSTAND THE CONCEPT. BUT WHILE ATTEMPTION QUESTIONS FROM THE BOOKLET, I SEEM TO TAKE A LOT OF TIME. ALSO, I AM NOT ABLE TO SOLVE ANYTHING EXCEPT THE EASY QUESTIONS.
supratim : While solving questions from exercise A, please take the help of solution booklets given. Then solve those same questions again. You will find that you can solve exercise B questions alone without help.

anvii : I'M STILL STRUGGLING IN BASIC OF QUANTS GIVE SOME IDEAS WHAT SHOULD I DO
supratim : Solve/revise simple equations, ratio-proportion-variation chapters from SM booklet. Solve at least 100 questions from these 2 chapters in the next 5 days or less. Then minutely solve/ revise percentages-profit-loss chapter. You should start doing well in quant.

muskan : HOW SHOULD I KNOW WHICH QUESTION I SHOULD ATTEMPT AND WHICH QUESTION I SHOULD LEAVE OUT?
thomas : this you will learn with experience of writing tests. that is the reason why we give you so many tests

sanskar : SIR MAIN ABHI SIRF CAT KE LIYE HI PREPARE KIYA HAI AUR KONSE SUBJECT HAI JO OTHERS EXAM MAIN AATE HAI ?
abhishek : Mostly the syllabus is same. However, in XAT there is a different section called Decision making, in SNAP, NMAT, CMAT, etc. LR is slightly different from CAT.

bbca4a080 : DO BACKLOGS AFFECT MBA APPLICATION? I HAVE A PROFILE OF 8,9,7 AND A 95 PERCENTILE IN GMAT AND HAD ONE BACKLOG IN COLLEGE. WHAT COLLEGES SHOULD I TARGET AS A FRESHER?
thomas : 1-2 should not be an issue. make sure that the overll score is good and you can hope to get calls from all the top ones, if you score well

chandan : HLO SIR,
thomas : please post your question

chandan : HOW CAN I INCREASE MY ACCURACY IN THE RCS
tarannumraza : It's important to understand what the author is actually conveying. Trace the idea flow as you read. Focus on clues that tell you the author's tone. See how the passage ends.

himanshu : CAN STARTUP BE COUNTED IN WORK EX
thomas : if you have a joining letter from the company and salary slips along with bank statement

tirth : HOW TO SELECT RC
lakshmymenon : Run through the first 2-3 lines of the passage. If you think you can comprehend it, continue reading. Please remember an important point: the choice of questions is much more important than choice of passages. Do not blindly attempt all questions from a passage you have read. After carefully checking the options and comparing it with the passage, if you're still confused, just leave the question. Remember that you only need around 50 per cent marks for 99 percentile.

muskan : ANY TIPS FOR QUANTS? I AM NOT GOOD IN QUANTS.
abhishek : With on improving the concepts first. Analyse your previous kicks and identify weaknesses. Also, try to limit your attempts to 70-80% of the current levels.

himanshu : I HAVE SRARTED A STARTUP WITH MY FIREND WILL IT BE COUNTED IN WORKEX
thomas : is your company registered? make sure that you are drawing a salary every month and it is credited in your bank account.

hero : ACTUALLY I AM ATTEMPTING ONLY 10QUESTION IN VARC AND IN CONSECUTIVE 3 AIMCATS RATIO OF RIGHT AND WROUGH QUESTION WERE 1:1
lakshmymenon : Okay, so your attempt rate is fine. Are you able to correctly identify the easy and difficult questions? Look at the questions you got wrong in previous AIMCATs. Try to remember whether you were confused between the right answer and the one that you picked at the time of answering.If you were not confused and were sure of your answer when you picked it, it means you need to spend more time on weighing the options. If you were confused and then ended up picking the wrong answer, listen to the video solutions to understand what was the flaw with the option you picked. Make notes if required about the types of mistakes you made. Revise these notes before the next mock. Your accuracy will improve.

: WHAT CAN I DO NOW I AM NOT ABLE TO SOLVE A SINGLE LRDI SET PROPERLY
thomas : practice the advanced online sectional tests and the aimcat-sa.

drcb4a142 : HOW TO PREPARE DLIR SECTION?
thomas : dilr can be improved only with practice, try to solve as many sets as you can. your speed will gradually improve as you become familiar with more models.

hero : AND HOW I CAN ACCESS THE VIDEO SOLUTION OF AIMCATS?
abhishek : The link will be provided in your student home page

vg : HOW TO SCORE GOOD IN DILR?
thomas : similar qn already answered. if you are really week in this section, make sure that you identify just one set and target to solve that accurately

hocd4a617 : I HAVE A DIFFERENT QUERY, I SKIPPED CLASSES FOR 1.5 MONTH DUE TO END SEMESTER EXAMS. WHAT STRATEGY SHOULD I USE TO COVER UP THE SYALLABUS QUICKLY?
supratim : 1. Start attending classes in your batch. 2. Request your center if you can sit with other batches for missed topics. 3. Start solving 20 quant questions, 3 LR sets and 3 RCs everyday.

gaurav : FROM JULY TILL DEC, I'VE JOINED A SOCIAL WORK COMPANY AS AN INTERN. I’LL COMPLETE MY GRADUATION THIS JULY, AND I DIDN'T WANTED TO GET INTO A FULLTIME JOB BEFORE TRYING MY SHOT AT CAT. CAN I CONSIDER THOSE 5 MONTHS (JULY TO NOV) AS MY WORK EXPERIENCE?
supratim : No. Only full time work ex ( paid) after graduation is counted as work ex.

muskan : I HAVE SOLVED ALL QUESTIONS FROM LR BOOKLETS. BUT I AM UNABLE TO SOLVE THE LR QUESTIONS IN AIMCAT.
thomas : practice from the advanced online sectional tests and the aimcat-sa.

himanshu : NO SIR MY COMPANY IS NOT REGISTERED BUT I CAN MAKE SALARY SLIPS FOR MYSELF
thomas : no, that will not be enough.making salary slips is not a big deal now. they will probably consider it as fake if the company is not registered.

hyca4a590 : MY ACCURACY IS VA IS FLUCTUATING, IS ANALYSING THE ONLY WAY TO SOLVE THIS?
lakshmymenon : Yes, and practice. Listen to the video solutions in AIMCATS, understand your flaws and make notes if required. Also, be very careful while choosing which questions to answer. Do not hesitate to leave confusing questions.

adolf_hitler : AS THE QUESTION IS FREQUENTLY ASKED, I AM ASKING IT AGAIN, IN VA HOW DO WE REALLY CHOOSE A SUITABLE PASSAGE AND WHICH ONE OR HOW MAY SHOULD BE LEFT OUT. PLEASE KINDLY DO AVICE !
lakshmymenon : Run through the first 2-3 lines of the passage. If you think you can comprehend it, continue reading. Please remember an important point: the choice of questions is much more important than choice of passages. Do not blindly attempt all questions from a passage you have read. After carefully checking the options and comparing it with the passage, if you're still confused, just leave the question. Remember that you only need around 50 per cent marks for 99 percentile

hero : I COULD NOT ATTEMPT ANY OF THE SET FROM DILR AND IF IM DOING THAT MOSTOFTHE TIME IT IS GETTING WRONG AND THE SETS WERE NOT EVEN CLOSE TO THAT OF STUDY MATERIAL OF TIME, HOW TO GET THESE QUESTION AND MAINTAINING SPEED SIDEBYSIDE
supratim : Have you started solving online sectional tests of DI/LR? Have you started solving DI/LR from the second set of books given to you? Have you revised all DI/LR sets of previous AIMCATs?

himanshu : SO SIR SHOULD I FILL WORK EX COLUMN IN CAT APPLICATION FORM OR NOT
thomas : i have given you the reason why it will not be considered. better to give as 0 experience nd if called for the interview, tell them about your company. if hey are convinced, they will give you credit

kongi : IS THERE A NEED TO RESIGN MY JOB FOR IT TO BE CONSIDERED AS WORK EXPER?
lakshmymenon : Absolutely not. Your current job will count as work experience.

pg : HI, I AM GOOD AT QUANT BUT WAS ABLE TO ONLY SCORE 25-30 MARKS IN QUANT EVEN THOUGH THIS TIME PAPER WAS EASIER I WAS ABLE TO SCORE ONLY 25 BUT I KNOW MY POTENTIAL OF GETTING 40+, WHEN I ANALYSED MY AIMCAT I REALISED I DID A LOT OF SILLY MISTAKES AND EVEN LEFT THE QUEST WITHOUT READING, WHAT SHOULD I DO TO SCORE MAX MARKS IN QUANT
supratim : Select your questions correctly while writing the AIMCAT. Solve all questions of quant from previous AIMCATs.

tej : SIR, I AM A BTECH CSE STUDENT IN MY FINAL YEAR. IS IT PREFERABLE TO GET A JOB AND THEN DO AN MBA, OR CAN I CONTINUE DOING AN MBA AFTER MY BTECH?
supratim : It's for you to decide.

a : NOW ONLY I STARTED MY PREPARATION AND I GET LOW SCORE IN AIMCAT. SO WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF ATTENDING THESE TESTS? ISN'T BETTER TO ATTEND THESE AFTER COMPLETING THE SYLLABUS?
supratim : No. Keep on solving/revising and keep on writing AIMCATs. Learn from mistakes, improve and move on.

muskan : HOW MANY QUESTIONS/SETS I SHOULD SOLVER PER DAY TO GET 99 PERCETNILE?
abhishek : Difficult to answer. So as much as you can. Quant I will keep the number at 30+ and LRDI at least one good quality set each.

a : ANY TIPS FOR ODD ONE OUT AND SENTENCE ORDERING?
tarannumraza : Form mandatory pairs using: n-pr pair, conjunctions as transition words, problem- solution, cause-effect, idea- example, chronological order, fill gorm shorthorn...focus on the idea flow.

harsh : SIR I AM NOT ABLE TO IDENTIFY CONCEPT TO BE APPLIED IN LRDI QUESTIONS IN AIMCAT , IN PREVIOUS 3 AIMCAT MY SCORE HAVE DIPPED A ALOT , I AM NOT ABKE TO SOLVE A SINGLE SET WITH 100 PERCENT ACCURACY , WHAT SHOULD I DO TO IMPROVE IT ?
thomas : forget about the concept. most dilr questions can be solved just with basic intelligence and common sense. try to ensure that you aim for solving just one set accurately in the test, for the initial fe tests

a : WHAT IS MEANT BY TOTAL CUT OFF, CUT OFF OF EACH SECTION AND PERCENTILE OF EACH SECTION?
thomas : cutoff is the minimum score you are expected to score to get call from a college. it will depend on the college. percentile is basically an indication of your position ( something like rank)

kongi : AS A WORKING INDIVIDUAL HOW DO YOU THINK I SHOULD LOOK AT MY RESUME/CV/PORTFOLIO?
philipthomas : Try to see that your knowledge and skills are in place, do try to diversify by doing projects and certifications that are not part of your basic skill set.

raj_123 : HOW MUCH PERCENTILE SHOULD I TARGET
thomas : already answered

gaurav : APART FROM TIME BOOKS, WHAT ARE OTHER STRONG LR BOOKS FOR CAT? ANY EXAM WILL WORK, I’M RUNNING OUT OF GOOD QUESTIONS TO SOLVE FOR PRACTICE? (PLEASE SUGGEST APART FROM MOCKS, I’M GIVING THEM CONSTANTLY)
supratim : Have you solved online sectional tests? Have you solved all LR/DI sets of previous AIMCATs? Have you solved all DI/LR sets from the second set of books given to you?

raj_123 : GEM 10TH 91% 12TH 85% GRAD 8.3 CGPA FRESHER
thomas : scores are decent. 99.6+ for the top 3 and 99+ for the old iims. 95+ for new iims

vasu : SIR I'M PERSUING MY GRAD AS BSC(HONS) APPLIED MATHEMATICS, DOES IT FALL UNDER A4 OR A6 OF IIM A CRITERIA AND WOULD I BE CONSIDERED AN ENGG OR NON ENGG STUDENT?
supratim : BSc maths will come under non-engg.

arnob : FOR VERBAL WHICH IS A GOOD SOURCE AND HOW CAN I MAKE MY READING FAST ALSO UNDERSTANDING WHAT I AM READING
lakshmymenon : Our study materials, handouts, AIMCATs and sectional tests are enough for practice. Apart from this, read articles on a wide range of topics such as sociology, political science, philosophy, culture, history, biology, physics, psychology, technology etc. since these are the common topics in CAT. Also read the editorials of The Hindu etc. Some other sources are Aeon Essays (these are long - read only a few paras, about 500 words), National Geographic, Scroll, History magazine, Scientific American etc.

anvii : WHICH TOPIC SHOULD WE MORE FOCUS ON QUANTS?
supratim : You have enough time to do all topics minutely. If you solve 20 questions / day then you can solve 600 questions/ month. First solve arithmetic chapters, then solve all algebra chapters. Then solve other chapters.

kongi : MY DI/LR IS CONSTANTLY BAD, ANY TIPS AND TRICKS IN SELECTING THE RIGHT QUESTION?
supratim : Solve DI/LR from SM booklets. Solve DI/LR sectional tests. Solve DI/LR sets of previous AIMCATs. You will become good at DI/LR section.

adolf_hitler : YOU WERE SAYING THAT WE ONLY NEED AROUND 50% MARKS IN VA FOR 99 PERCENTILE I WAS ASKING MY QUESTION IN THIS PERSPECTIVE, SINCE EVEN AFTER ATTEMPTING ALL THE QUESTIONS MY SCORE IN VA IS VERY POOR
lakshmymenon : There you go! That is the main problem then. Why are you attempting all questions? The reason you only need 50 percent to get 99 percentile is that there are negative marks, and hence even the toppers do not attempt questions indiscriminately. Since you're attempting all questions, I assume that speed is your strength - very good. But use that strength to make smarter choices. If you are getting time to read all 4 passages, that gives you more scope for choosing which questions to leave, and also for analysing options carefully. After you revisit the passage and compare options carefully, if you're still confused, just leave it. Try to limit your attempts to 16-18 in the next few AIMCATs and see if your accuracy improves. Good luck.

kongi : WITH THE CURRENT TREND IN PLACEMENTS AND THE PACKAGES BEING OFFERED, I HAVE BEEN IN A CONFUSED STATE, 2 YEARS DOWN THE LANE I THINK I CAN MATCH THE SAME AVERAGE SALARY COMPARED TO IF I PASS OUT AND GET A JOB THROUGH MBA, BUT IF I CONTINUE MY JOB ILL HAVE EXPERIENCE. SO ITS LIKE ONE HAND I HAVEEXPERIENCE AND THE OTHER A NEW SKILL, WHAT IS BETTER?
thomas : it is for you to decide. if you are really happy with the current job and confident about the growth prospects, you should continue with the job

raj_123 : BABY IIMS OR OTHER COLLEGES SUCH AS FMS,SPJAIN,XLRI,NMIMS
thomas : SP JAIN, FMS,XLRI are much much better than the baby IIMs. Even NM mumbai is better than the baby iims

muskan : CAN WE LEAVE OUT ANY TOPIC IN QUANT SECTION?
thomas : leaving out a topic is risky as we have no idea about which topic might get more questions next year. try to cover at least the basics so that you do not miss out on the easy questions

tarika : SIR IN LAST AIMCAT I SCORED AROUND 18 IN VARC BUT THIS TIME SCORED ONLY 3 WHY IS THIS HAPPENING
philipthomas : You need to vary total attempts according to the difficulty level of the section. When the questions are difficult, reduce the number of attempts and focus on accuracy.

yash : I AM NOT BEING ABLE TO SOLVE QUANTS AND DI PROPERLY. MY MARKSS ARE BETWEEN 4-12 IN THESE SECTIONS. I FEEL SO DEMOTIVATED. AND THE BIGESST PROBLEM IS THAT I TAKE SO MUCH TIME TO SOLVE QA EXCERISES FROM SM BOOKLETS. THEREFORE I'M NOT BEEN ABLE TO COMPLETE EVEN 50% OF SYLLABUS OF QA.
supratim : If you solve 20 questions of quant / day then you will solve 600 questions in a month. If you solve 3 DI/LR sets/ day then you will solve 60 sets in a month. Why do not you start now and see the change in a months time?

muskan : SHOULD WE ATTEMPT FIRST? VA OR RC?
tarannumraza : You can choose based on your accuracy during practice, or try different strategies & see what works for you. Generally, an RC at the end doesn't work.

muca4a476 : HELLO SIR CAN YOU GIVE A BRIEF IDEA ABOUT HOW TO GO WITH QUANT SECTION IN MOCKS BECAUSE I AM CONSISTENTLY SCORING POOR IN IT AND AFTER ANALYSING I AM MISSING A LOT OF DOABLE QUESTIONS
supratim : Take time to select your questions. Then start solving. Practise that in online sectional tests too.

adolf_hitler : WHERE ARE THE PREVIOUS SETS OF AIMCATS AVAILABLE?
tarannumraza : If you have missed the, they will be available on your shp later.

nini : SIR IS ATTEMPTING GMAT EXAM ADVISABLE TO CAT ASPIRANTS?
lakshmymenon : Not required. You have 55 full length mock CATs and also sectional tests. GMAT has a slightly different focus. However, you may want to check out some GMAT critical reasoning questions from various sources if that is an area you need to improve on in CAT RC.

sanjana : DILR QUESTIONS ARE LITTLE DIFFICULT IN AIMCATS COMPARED TO QUESTIONS IN BOOKS AND HANDOUTS HOW DO WE IMPROVE IN THOSE QUESTIONS?
thomas : try the questions in the advanced online sectional tests and the aimcat -sa.

alka : HELLO. THIS WILL BE MY SECOND ATTEMPT IN CAT. LAST YEAR, I WAS GETTING 90ILE+ FOR VARC IN TIME MOCKS WITH FLUNCTUATIONS IN BETWEEN. BUT IN ACTUAL CAT EXAM, I COULDNT EVEN CLEAR THE CUT OFF. HOW DO I MAKE SURE TO GET CONSTANT SCORE AND GOOD ACCURACY FOR VARC. I FEEL VARC CAN BE BASED ON LUCK AND HOW YOU INTERPRET THINGS AT THAT MOMENT WHICH IS VERY UNPREDICTABLE.
lakshmymenon : AIMCATs are very similar to CAT VARC, so probably you were overwhelmed by stress? Please relax and remember that even 50 per cent attempts with good accuracy can get you above 95 per cent. Please focus more on question selection and accuracy. Find time to relax in between your preparation. VARC is not based on luck, but on your focus and presence of mind. You need to be very careful in question selection. Good luck.

ajith : I AM ABLE TO DO FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTUAL QUESTIONS BUT WHILE ENTERING TO THE LITTLE BIT ADVANCED LEVEL QUESTIONS I AM LITERALLY CONFUSED WITH HOW TO START SOLVING THE QUESTIONS...
supratim : Take help of solution booklet while solving exercise A of any quant chapter. Then solve those questions again by yourself. Then solve exercise B questions yourself.

nini : SIR I FOUND IT REALLY DIFFICULT TO ATTEMPT THE DILR SECTION OF THE AIMCAT. HOW CAN I IMPROVE THE SCORES AT THIS STAGE?WHEN SHOULD I COMPLETE THE SYLLABUS OF THE SAME?
supratim : Solve DI/LR sets/day. You will start doing good after a month or so. Along with that solve all previous AIMCAT -DI/LR sets too.

sammartin : WHAT WAS THE DIFFUCULTY LEVEL OF AIMCAT2419 COMPARED TO REAL CAT?
thomas : dilr and varc was similar and QA was slightly easier than CAT

hocd4a160 : MY AIMCAT SECTION IS NOT GETTING OPENED. I EMAILED TO TIMES INFO BUT THEY SAID YOU ATTEMPTED LESS TEST. SO I STARTED ATTEMPTING SECTIONAL TEST. BUT EVEN THEN MY AIMCAT SECTION DIDN'T GET OPEN. I EMAILED AGAIN FOR THE SAME BUT NO HELP
thomas : no, the aimcat opening has no relationship with the number of sectional tests you have done. this is some other issue. please contact the centre or write a mail with all the details

hocd4a160 : HOW MANY MIN QUESTIONS IN VARC, DILR AND QUANTS SHOULD I ATTEMPT FOR GETTING INTO IIM.
thomas : this will depend on the paper ( you can have a look at the different aimcats) to see the difference in cutoff sores and also which IIM you are aiming for.

jay : MY MAIN ISSUE WITH THE VARC SECTION IS THAT I OFTEN GET MANY QUESTIONS WRONG. I ATTEMPT MOST OF THE QUESTIONS BECAUSE I BELIEVE MY ANSWERS ARE CORRECT, BUT THEY TURN OUT TO BE INCORRECT. HOW CAN I IMPROVE IN THIS SITUATION?
tarannumraza : Eliminate options. If you are left with two, try to find the difference between them. Read the question again so that you understand exactly what is being asked. For all the questions you get wrong, analyse well. Maintain an excel sheet to record regular mistakes. Work on your mistakes - concepts, time management, concentration, focus on number of questions rather than accuracy.

mahi : I'M UNABLE TO DO VARC, HOW TO GET THROUGH THIS SECTION TILL CAT EXAM WHICH IS GOING TO BE IN NOVEMBER?
lakshmymenon : Can you explain why you're unable to do VARC? What problem are you facing?

tarika : SIR IN 10TH AND 12TH I SCORED 88% AND GRAD CGPA IS 9.6 BUT 2 YEARS OF GAD AND NO WORK EX IS IT GOING TO BE A PROBLEM?
thomas : after covid, the placements are a problem at many colleges. should not be a major issue.

nini : SIR WHILE SOLVING MOCKS, SHOULD WE FIRST READ ALL THE QUESTIONS AND THEN START TO SOLVE IT? WONT IT CONSUME TOO MUCH TIME?
supratim : 3 sections will require 3 different strategies.

anu : WHICH IS THE MOST IMPORTANT CHAPTER IN QUANT?
supratim : There is nothing as such. Solve arithmetic chapters first. Then go for algebra chapters. Other chapters will come next. Solve 20 questions/day.

nini : WHAT IS SELF ADMINISTRATED MOCKS AND HOW DOES IT DIFFER FROM AIMCATS
supratim : These tests are slightly easier than AIMCAT and a very good place to experiment.

geetha : ANY EXTRA MATERIAL FOR DILR?
supratim : Are you writing online sectional tests? Have you solved all previous AIMCATs(DI/LR)?

mahi : I BELIEVE THAT MY ANSWERS ARE CORRECT BUT THEY TURNOUT TO BE WRONG. IN THIS AIMCAT I'VE 1 RIGHT AND 6 WRONG QUESTIONS IN VARC SECTION.
tarannumraza : Could be one of the reasons: Reading the passage too fast hence full comprehension is not there, not understanding the question, unable to distinguish between the options

adolf_hitler : HOW MUCH MIN CUTOFFS ARE WE LOOKING AT FOR ADMISSION IN TYPE-A BUSINESS SCHOOLS?
supratim : Changes every year. You should look for surpassing an absolute score of 60.

t : IT'S SO DIFFICULT TO FIND THE ODD ONE OUT AS ALL THE SENTENCES FEELS LIKE FROM A SAME PARA. HOW SHOULD I FIND IT?
lakshmymenon : Start by doing a para formation. Arrange sentences as you would in para formation. Do not try to eliminate an odd sentence based on the theme. When you arrange sentences into a para, the sentence that need not form a part of this para is the odd one.

23a140020601 : SIR I'VE ATTEMPTED ALL AIMCATS AND MY SOCRE IS AROUND JUST 50-60 PERCENTILE. I'M DONE WITH BASIS I'M SOLVING AROUND 30-35 QS IN EACH AND GETTING ONLY 40% RIGHT ALSO IN DILR THE SET SEEMS SO DIFFICULT THAT TILL NOW I NOT BEEN ABLE TO SOLVE A SINGLE SET. SIR PLEASE HELP ME OUT. WHAT SHOULD I DO TO MAKE A GOOD PROGRESS IN MY SCORE'S.?
supratim : Revise all those AIMCATs(section wise. Start writing online sectional tests. You will see improvements in coming days.

nini : SIR I AM A BEGINNER AND I AM CONFUSED OF THE WHAT I SHOULD CLICK AFTER I SELECTED THE ANSWER , "MARK FOR REVIEW" OR "SAVE AND NEXT" OPTION?
philipthomas : Save and Next.

jai : I AM GETTING LOW SCORES IN THE MOCKS AND AM WAY BEHIND THE 100 MARK0S TARGET THAT I HAVE SET FOR MYSELF. HOW SHOULD I PREPARE FOR EACH SECTION SO THAT MY PERFORMANCE IMPROVES IN MOCKS? ALSO HOW SHOULD I PREPARE FOR CAT IN GENERAL SINCE I AM CURRENTLY WORKING RIGHT NOW?
supratim : Divide your target score section wise. Take improvement measures section wise. Writing online sectional tests and solving previous AIMCATs will help you improve.

hocd4a160 : I HAVE MARKED MY DOUBTS. BUT SINCE THE CLASSES ARE ONLINE. HOW TO ASK FOR DOUBTS
supratim : Request your center for doubt clearing session.

jai : HOW CAN I IMPROVE MY ACCURACY IN THE EXAM?
supratim : Improve accuracy section wise.

shru : HI, MY ACADS ARE(FEMALE) 10TH-77%, 12TH-86.5%, COLLEGE-7.7 CGPA, GAP YEAR-1 RIGHT AFTER GRAD AND WORK EXP-1.5YRS. WHAT CAT PERCENTILE SHOULD I GET TO GET ADMISSION INTO BLACKI AND FMS.
philipthomas : A 97+ percentile would be necessary.

muskan : WHAT SHOULD WE ATTEMPT FIRST? VA OR RC?
lakshmymenon : That depends on your strengths. Start with your more confident section, but allocate time wisely for both sections.

arav : I AM CONFUSED THAT SHOULD I KEEP GIVING MOCKS OR WAIT FOR SOME TIME AS MY VARC IS NOT READY TO FACE THE MOCKS AS I READ SLOW?
tarannumraza : Do carry on with the mocks. But very important to go through the study material and online sectional tests plus their analysis.

mahi : SIR MY TARGETED IIMS ARE IIM A B C K I. I'M A GIRL FROM ENGINEERING BACKGROUND. WHAT SECTIONAL CUT OFF AND OVERALL CUT OFF REQUIRED TO GET INTO TOP FIVE IIMS?
philipthomas : You will definitely require a 97+ percentile both in your sectional percentile and in your overall percentile.

ragib : IN THE LATEST AIMCAT , I USED TO DO RCS FIRST THEN VA AND SECURED GOOD MARKS , HOWEVER THIS TIME I CHANGED MY STRATEGY AND DID VA FIRST FOLLOWED BY RC.
philipthomas : Do the RCs first as you do not want to be under time pressure when you work upon the RCs.

supriya : IS THERE ANYTHING YOU HAVE TO KEEP IN MIND BEFORE SELECTING THE RIGHT RC?
lakshmymenon : It is not possible to make a perfect choice of passage, because an easy passage may have tough questions and vice versa. After reading 2-3 lines of a passage, if you're comfortable, continue reading. The more important thing is your choice of questions. Do not blindly attempt all questions from a passage. Be prepared to leave confusing questions.

hyca4a590 : IN SECTIONAL TESTS (VA) , 11 ARE CORRECT , 2 ARE WORNG AND 2 UNATTEMPTED STILL GETIING AROUND 60 PERCENTILE ,HOW EXCATLY PERCENTILE IS CALUCULATED( I WAS EXPECTING AROUND 80'S)?
lakshmymenon : In sectional tests the percentile calculation is different because fewer students attempt it. The AIMCAT percentiles are more indicative of CAT patterns.

ragib : IN THE LATEST AIMCAT I CHANGE MY STRATEGY BY DOING VA FOLLOWED BY RC, WHICH RESULTED IN A DECREASE IN MY ALTOGETHER SCORE IN VARC. HAVE YOU BEEN I DID RC FIRST, THEN VA I WAS GETTING BETTER SCORE, COMPARED TO THIS NEW STRATEGY.
lakshmymenon : Each person will have their own ideal strategy based on their strengths and weaknesses. You're on the right track - by trying out different strategies in mocks, you'll know what works best for you. But you should also be flexible enough to handle surprises in the exam.

muskan : I GIVE 10 MINUTES FOR VA SECTION AND THE REST FOR RC SECTION. IS IT GOOD?
tarannumraza : Ok if your accuracy in RCs is good. You can try 25-15 break up

asin : I GOT 80 PERCENTILE IN THIS AIMCAT. IS IT CONSIDERED OK AT THIS STAGE OR AM I FALLING BEHIND SINCE I HAVE BEEN PREPARING FROM JANUARY. HOW MUCH SHOULD I AIM FOR NEXT AIMCAT.
supratim : Start revising and start writing online sectional tests. You will do great in coming days.

23a140020601 : SIR IN THIS AIMCAT I TRIED TO DO 4RCS. I ABLE TO ATTEMPT QS I SOLVED AROUND 12-13 QS BUT GOT ONLY 3-4 RIGHT. I TRIED THIS STRATEGY BECAUSE I'M NOT ABLE TO GET VA QS RIGHT. SHOULD I FOCUS MORE ON ACCURACY RATHER THAN JUST NO. OF ATTEMPTS. PLEASE SUGGEST WHAT SHOULD BE DONE.
lakshmymenon : Definitely focus on accuracy first.

ragib : WHEN DOING RC’S FIRST, I AM UNABLE TO TOUCH VA SECTION, IN FACT, I I AM ONLY ABLE TO DO 2 RCS. SUGGEST ME SOME WAYS TO INCREASE MY SPEED OF DOING OR SOLVING RCS FASTER. AS I HAVE A HABIT TO READ A SINGLE STATEMENT, MULTIPLE TIMES
lakshmymenon : You should learn to read fast by focusing only on the central idea and not worrying about details. Do not be tempted to go back and read all the details. Just read on, but with full focus. After every 3-4 sentences, ask what you've read so far and make a mental note before moving on. Practice reading newspaper editorials with a timer. Do a word count and set the timer at a reading speed of 200-250 words per minute. This means, you should read a 500 word article in 2-2.5 minutes. Do not be tempted to go slow - finish the article by the time the timer goes. Then, cover the article (don't look at it) and try to write down the central idea in one sentence. Now go back to the article, read it slowly and see if you got the central idea right. Central idea is not the topic but the main argument of the author. Try practising this daily.

swayan : SIR I AM WORKING WITH FATHER AT HIS BUSINESS, AND HANDLING A REALLY PRESENTABLE ROLE THERE. OUR BUSINESS WORKS AT A LARGE SCALE. HOW DO YOU THINK, I WILL BE ABLE TO JUSTIFY MY DROP YEARS?
lakshmymenon : You can justify it by explaining why you decided to work in your family business before doing MBA. For now, focus on CAT preparation. Once you get interview calls, the team in your centre will help you to frame your answers to these questions.

pooja : SHOULD WE READ AND UNDERSTAND FULL PASSAGE TO ANSWER QUESTIONS AS THOSE ARE VERY TIME CONSUMING?
tarannumraza : Practice reading online. Full reading of the passage is important. Skimming & scanning as first reading doesn't help.

supriya : CAN THE LEVEL OF SECTION LRDI BE SAID TO BE THE SAME AS THAT OF CAT EXAM ?
supratim : If you write all tests systematically from easy, moderate to difficult then they will help you navigate CAT LR/DIs better.

muskan : IF I ATTEMP 3 RC PASSAGES, IS IT ENOUGH TO GET 99 PERCENTILE?
lakshmymenon : Definitely, provided you select questions carefully, Around 50 percent marks are required for the 99th percentile, though this will vary slightly every year

yash : MY ENGLISH READING AND COMPREHENSION IS GOOD(ATLEAST I ASSUME THAT). I'M SCORING AROUND 23 IN MOCKS IN VARC. HOW MANY QUESTIONS TO SOLVE DAILY TO IMPROVE FURTHER HERE(GIVEN THAT I HAVE TO FOCUS MORE ON QA AND DI MORE)
lakshmymenon : There is no such magic number. Analyse your mocks thoroughly and understand your mistakes. Apart from that, read 2-3 articles daily on a variety of subjects and try to understand the central idea of each article. You may do this exercise with a timer set at a reading speed of 200-250 words per minute. This will help you, since you're already confident in this section.

hocd4a160 : 2 MONTHS BACK I HAVE STARTED MY PREPARATION. SHALL I KEEP ON ATTENDING MY CLASS OR FROM NOW ON SHALL I START SOLVING MY SECTIONAL TEST
supratim : Do both.

nini : WHAT HAPPENS IF WE CLICKED MARK FOR REVIEW?WILL IT BE TREATED AS THE ANSWER IF WE DIDINT CHANGE IT AT THE END OF THE EXAM?
lakshmymenon : Yes. If you choose an option and mark it for review, it will be taken as your answer once the time for that section expires.

sattwik : HOW TO IMPROVE IN DILR? IS PRACTISING SETS ENOUGH?
supratim : Solve them methodically - first LR from SM booklets, then LR from online sectional tests. After solving at least 15 LR online sectional tests, go for DI booklet, then solve DI sectional tests. Along with this solve all DI/LR sets of previous AIMCATs.

adolf_hitler : MOST SUTABLE TOPICS TO BE PREPOARED UPON FOR RCS
tarannumraza : Read on different topics. Include book reviews, research papers, travelogues in your reading . Anthropology, philosophy literature, sociology, business...read a lot

gowthaman : WHAT IS CITY RANK MENTIONED IN THE AIMCAT. MY NATIVE IS TIRUCHIRAPPALLI AND I JOINED LIVE ONLINE CAT 2024 COURSE IN HYDERABAD?
lakshmymenon : City rank is based on the city in which you have joined for the course.

ruchitha : SIR MY PROFILE IS 93,97,82 IN 10TH 12TH AND BTECH RESPECTIVELY. I HAVE 2 GAP YEARS AND NO WORK EXPERIENCE. WHICH IIM AND AIMCAT SCORE SHOULD I AIM FOR?
supratim : You should aim for 80+ score ( 36+, 20+, 24+ in 3 sections as they come in CAT). Concentrate on your preparation. IIM calls are reflection of your score.

gowthaman : WILL SOLVING CR IMPROVES RC SCORES?
lakshmymenon : Yes, since the majority of RC questions involves CR skills.

adcc4t001 : WILL OUR CAT SCORE BE GIVEN THE HIGHEST PRIORITY WHILE ADMISSION?
tarannumraza : For most coll9, yes. Prepare well to clear the sectional cutoffs required calls.

lncb4a325 : SIR, I AM A B.SC. AGRICULTURE STUDENT.HOW MUCH PERCENTILE WILL I NEED TO GET A PLACE IN TOP 5 IIMS?SIR I WANT TO DO FOOD AND AGRI BUSINESS MANAGEMENT. SIR, HOW MUCH PERCENTILE WILL I NEED TO GET A CALL FROM TOP 5 IIMS.
supratim : IIM A and IIM L is having ABM course. You may need 98+ percentile for IIM A and 97+ percentile for IIM L. ( considered you as general category student). For flagship MBA course you need to score 97+ percentile.

adcc4t001 : SHOULD I DO VA BEFORE RC BECAUSE WHEN I DID THIS I GOT PLENTY ENOUGH TIME FOR RCS
tarannumraza : Fine, but keep in mind the difficulty level of the questions. You may have to change your strategy accordingly.

adcc4t001 : SIR CAN U PLZZ TELL HOW MUCH TIME TO BE ALLOTED FOR READING RC AND SOLVING MCQS, I KNOW ITS SUBJECTIVE BUT WHAT IS THE IDEAL TIME?
lakshmymenon : Yes, it is subjective. As a general rule, 8-10 mins per RC set out of which you spend <2.5 minutes for reading the passage. About 8 mins for VA. If your reading speed is above average you can finish a moderate RC set in 6-7 minutes.

mahi : HOW MANY CORRECT QUESTIONS ARE REQUIRED TO SCORE A PERCENTILE OF 98 ACROSS SECTIONS IN CAT?
lakshmymenon : This varies a bit in every exam, but as a general rule you need a little less than 50 percent for 98 percentile

gowthaman : AIMCAT 2519 27.06.2024 VARC- 80.94 PERCENTILE DILR-66.82 PERCENTILE QA-65.91PERCENTILE ==================== OA-76.28 PERCENTILE. IS IT I CAN SCORE 70+ IN TIME MOCK, I CAN SCORE 90+ IN CAT 2024?
lakshmymenon : It is definitely possible. Keep analysing mocks and practising more questions in your weak areas.

dlca4af32 : I WAS ABLE TO ATTEMPT 7 QUES CORRECTLY IN QUANTS AND CLEARED SECTIONAL CUTOFF ONLY BY ONE MARK, WHAT SHOULD I MAKE OF THIS CONSIDERING I DID WELL OVERALL
supratim : Keep on practising 20 quant questions everyday. Start writing online sectional tests of quant too.

ayush : IS 75 AN ACCEPTABLE SCORE IN THIS AIMCAT FOR SOMEONE WHO IS TARGETING A 99.5%ILE? IF NOT THEN WHAT SCORE SHOULD I TAGET IN AIMCATS?
supratim : Target 80+ ( 36+, 20+, 24+ in that order)

sm888 : AIMCAT 2519: 32, 17, 36. PLEASE SUGGEST TIPS TO IMPROVE SCORE IN DILR AND SPEED IN VARC(CURRENTLY I'M UNABLE TO ATTEMPT FULL PAPER).
lakshmymenon : You should not aim to attempt all the questions, because there are negative marks. You should choose questions carefully. Focus more on accuracy than number of attempts.

gowthaman : HELLO TEAM! IS GMAT LEVEL OF RC AND CR IS ABOVE CAT LEVEL?
lakshmymenon : Not above or below, but slightly different in terms of the types of passages and the range of questions. GMAT critical reasoning has a much wider range of testing points.

sairipally : IS GRAMMER REALLY IMPORTANT TO SOLVE RC
philipthomas : Both grammar and vocabulary are important to get a high percentile in the CAT.

gowthaman : SINCE VARC IS MOSTLY BASED ON ACCURACY SO WE CAN SOLVE 24/24 QUESTION, WITHOUT RE- READING AND REVISITING QUESTIONS. IN PROBABILITY I SCORE AROUND 80 PERCENTILE IN VARC IS IT GOOD STRATEGY?
philipthomas : Instead of doing all the questions, select and answer only those questions about which you are sure to get the correct answer.

vasu : WHAT SHOULD BE THE STRATEGY TO ATTEMPT QUANT SECTION? HOW MANY QS TO ATTEMPT AND HOW MANY RIGHTS REQUIRED FOR 99.5%ILE?
supratim : Attempt in AIMCATs are nothing but reflection of your knowledge and preparation. To attempt more and to get them right you need to practise more. Practise methodically. Solve at least 20 questions/day. Start writing online sectional tests and do experiments in those sectional tests.

pooja : SHOULD I USE QUESTION BANK LIKE ARIHANT OR OSWAL FOR REVISION?
supratim : No need. Revise from SM booklets and write online sectional tests.

sairipally : SIR I AM WEAK AT GRAMMER, HOW CAN I IMPROVE IT APART FROM ATTENDING CLASSES AND READING TIME MATERIAL FOR GRAMMER
lakshmymenon : If you attend all our grammar sessions and solve the questions in all the chapters of the grammar SM, you will get adequate preparation and be thorough with the concepts. When you read any article, try to spend a little time on understanding the grammatical structure, tense etc. of the sentences.

gowthaman : HELLO SIR! KINDLY ANSWER MY QUESTION. I MENTIONED ABOUT MY PERFORMANCE IN AIMCAT 2519.
supratim : Replied.