My strategy was simple: practice, and nothing more. I kept practising until I started getting the scores.
CAT 2025 Topper Interview: How Harsh Khudania Went from 98.83 to 99.93 Percentile with Consistent Practice
Harsh Khudania, an electrical engineering graduate from NIT Surat, scored 99.93 percentile in CAT 2025, up from 98.83 percentile in CAT 2024. His sectional percentiles were 99.93 in Quantitative Aptitude, 99.86 in DILR and 96.82 in VARC.
Hailing from Rajasthan, Harsh has worked with Deloitte Consulting as a Software Developer and wants to work with top consulting firms such as McKinsey, BCG and Bain after his MBA. He is a big Virat Kohli fan, loves watching and playing cricket, and has completed a few Himalayan treks. In this interview, Harsh explains how regular practice, careful error analysis and last-minute revision helped him join the CAT toppers list.
CAT 2025 Topper Profile: Harsh Khudania
| Detail | Harsh Khudania |
|---|---|
| College | NIT Surat (BTech, Electrical Engineering) |
| Work experience | Software Developer, Deloitte Consulting |
| CAT attempts | 2 (CAT 2024 and CAT 2025) |
| CAT 2024 percentile | 98.83 |
| CAT 2025 overall percentile | 99.93 |
| VARC | 96.82 |
| DILR | 99.86 |
| Quantitative Aptitude | 99.93 |
| Full-fledged preparation started | Mid-August |
| Mocks attempted | Around 40 full-length mocks |
| Coaching and books | iQuanta ABC batch; mocks from iQuanta and Cracku; Arun Sharma books for QA and DILR |
| Target institutes | IIM Ahmedabad, IIM Bangalore, IIM Calcutta, FMS Delhi |
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Harsh: Yes, I am happy with this score. Before appearing for CAT, I was targeting 99.9+ percentile, as that was what I needed to get calls from the top IIMs and other B-schools. Still, I feel I left 10 to 12 marks on the table, which could have taken me to 99.96 percentile or above.
Harsh: No, this was my second attempt. I also appeared for CAT 2024, where I scored 98.83 percentile.
Harsh: I started my full-fledged CAT preparation in mid-August.
Harsh: My strategy was simple: practice, and nothing more. I kept practising until I started getting the scores I wanted. I also analysed the topics where I was making mistakes and gave extra hours to those topics to remove the errors.
When it comes to handling different difficulty levels, the only way to score well is through practice. It is not that complicated. One more thing I would add is last-minute revision, which is very important.
Harsh: Yes, I used Arun Sharma's books for the Quantitative Aptitude and DILR sections.
Harsh: Yes, I attended iQuanta and Cracku classes.
Harsh: I took around 40 full-length CAT mock tests, and 20 mock tests in the last month of my preparation. Mock tests are the most important part of preparation if you want to score well in the exam.
Harsh: Try to complete the CAT syllabus two months before the exam date, and keep the last two months for mocks and revision. Keep taking mock tests regularly and practise consistently. Focus on one goal and trust the process. You may get low scores sometimes, which can be demotivating, but keep your focus intact. Analyse your weaknesses and work on them, and your marks will eventually start improving.