Generic : Q: Is the CAT admit card released?
CAT Preparation 2025: Last Month’s Guide with Pattern, Syllabus, Strategy, Free Mock Exam, Topper Tips, Difficulty Level
CAT 2025 Exam will be held in just a few weeks on November 30, 2025. Getting the last month CAT preparation strategy right is very important. According to CAT Toppers, you should focus on revision, and not start new topics in last 30 days. You should also leverage Mock CAT Tests to finetune your test-taking strategy. CAT toppers also recommend to manage stress and avoid burnout in last few weeks to CAT Exam.
CAT 2025 Toppers: List, Interview, Percentile, Preparation; Past Toppers’ Interviews
CAT Toppers 2025: CAT 2025 was held on November 30, 2025. Around 2.58 lakh candidates appeared for the exam out of 2.95 lakh registered eligible candidates. CAT 2025 Result is expected to be released on December 19, 2025.
Master of Business Administration
LM Thapar School of Management (LMTSM) is part of the prestigious Thapar Institute of Engineering & Technology. LM Thapar is ranked by NIRF in Top 50 B-schools in India, and has also earned AACSB accreditation. LM Thapar School of Management Director and Dean is Dr DP Goyal, who is the former Director of IIM Shillong. LM Thapar School of Management MBA admissions 2026 is open. Read more details about LM Thapar MBA program including curriculum, placements, admissions and other highlights in the following sections.
The MBA program at LM Thapar School of Management (LMTSM) is a transformative two-year full-time course. LM Thapar School of Management MBA course combines foundational management lessons with experiential learning components such as consulting projects, industry internships, and live case studies. Students engage with core management disciplines, choose electives aligned with their career goals, and also earn a certification in Artificial Intelligence.
LM Thapar School of Management MBA is based on carefully designed structure that balances theory and application. Over four semesters, students complete 70 credits including core courses, electives, and a mandatory summer internship. Core subjects in LM Thapar MBA curriculum cover areas like finance, marketing, operations, analytics, and strategy, while electives allow students to specialize in their chosen domain.
The LMTSM MBA offers five key specializations in Business Analytics and Information Systems, Finance, Operations, Human Resource Management, and Marketing. Each MBA specialization is prepared to align with emerging industry trends and equips students with domain-specific skills. For instance, the Business Analytics and Information Systems track prepares students to leverage data and technology for decision-making, using tools such as Tableau, big data platforms, and risk analytics.
LM Thapar School of Management MBA Admission Process
Admission to the MBA at LM Thapar School of Management is based on a comprehensive assessment of the intent and ability of the applicant to pursue a quality MBA program. Candidates will be shortlisted based on the details in the application form, and will be invited for personal interview, as per the following:
A. Professional Readiness
It comprises two parts:
- Video Statement of Purpose (A short video)
- Interview with admissions panel, where the applicant is assessed for overall fit
B. Academic Readiness
It is measured based on the applicant’s performance in CAT / XAT / GMAT. Applicants who have not taken any of these tests are required to take Thapar Management Aptitude Test (TMAT) on the day of the interview.
C. Academic History
It comprises three parts:
- Class 10th Performance
- Class 12th Performance
- Graduation Performance (Penultimate Year)
LM Thapar MBA curriculum balances both theory and application. Over four semesters, students complete 72 credits including core courses, electives, and a mandatory summer internship. Core subjects in LM Thapar MBA curriculum cover areas like finance, marketing, operations, analytics, and strategy, while electives allow students to specialize in their chosen domain.
The LMTSM MBA offers five key specializations in Business Analytics and Information Systems, Finance, Operations, Human Resource Management, and Marketing. Each MBA specialization is prepared to align with emerging industry trends and equips students with domain-specific skills.
For instance, the Business Analytics and Information Systems track prepares students to leverage data and technology for decision-making, using tools such as Tableau, big data platforms, and risk analytics.
LM Thapar MBA curriculum integrates Artificial Intelligence and Analytics in all courses to prepare AI-proficient MBA aspirants.
Candidates need to apply online for MBA admission on this official LM Thapar MBA Application Form.
Candidates need to register, fill application form and pay the application fees to complete their MBA application.
LM Thapar MBA Admission 2026 is open. Apply Now.
- Graduate Degree in any discipline with at least 50% aggregate marks or equivalent CGPA or corresponding grade secured from a recognized University/Institute, OR,
- Post Graduate degree in any discipline with at least 50% aggregate marks or equivalent CGPA or corresponding grade from a recognized University/Institute, OR,
- Graduate with a professional qualification scoring a minimum percentage of 50% in all parts/sections of the Intermediate examination of CA/ CS/ ICWA/ Institute of Actuaries of India, OR,
- Candidates appearing for the final year of Bachelor’s degree/equivalent qualification examination and those who have completed degree requirements and are awaiting results can also apply.
- Candidate must have valid CAT/ XAT/ GMAT/ TMAT (Thapar Management Aptitude Test) scores.
LM Thapar School of Management MBA Selection Process gives due weightages to Professional Readiness, Academic Readiness, and Academic History of a candidate. Merit score for LM Thapar MBA selection process is calculated as follows:
COMPUTATION OF MERIT SCORE:
1. The weights given to the components A, B and C are 45%, 40% and 15% respectively. A, B, and C are the applicant’s scores in Professional Readiness, Academic Readiness,
and Academic History, respectively.
2. Diversity factor is considered in the component A.
3. Final merit is prepared based on the Net Score, calculated using the following
formula: Net Score = (0.45*A) + (0.4*B) + (0.15*C)
LM Thapar MBA scholarships are offered to applicants who have achieved excellence in their prior academic studies. There are 90 merit scholarships available, divided into three slabs:
- 50% tuition fee waiver
- 30% tuition fee waiver
- 20% tuition fee waiver
Awards are granted based on the applicant’s ranking in the admission evaluation process.
Generic : Q: How to get admission in top MBA colleges in India?
Generic : Q: When to apply for MBA 2026?
Chandanbala
I scored 98.28 overall percentile in CAT 2019; 97.18 percentile in VARC section; 95.52 in DILR Section and 97.32 percentile in Quantitative Ability section.
CAT Topper Interview: How Chandanbala Cracked CAT 2019 with 97.18% to Join IIM Udaipur
CAT 2020 exam date is Sunday, November 29, 2020. To help the aspirants preparing for CAT 2020, MBAUniverse.com has published a series of articles on CAT preparation plan & strategy adopted by CAT toppers studying at IIM Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Calcutta, Lucknow, MDI Gurgaon among others. Below are shared the interview excerpts with CAT preparation tips by CAT Topper Chandanbala Shyamsunder Dhanawat, and IIM Udaipur student of 2020-22 batch. A graduate in Commerce, Chandanbala Shyamsunder Dhanawat from Surat, (Gujarat) cracked CAT 2019 with 98.28 percentile and has converted number of top B-schools including IIM Udaipur, IIM Raipur, IIM Rohtak , IMT Ghaziabad , IMI Delhi, XIM Bhubaneswar among others. However, she has opted for IIM Udaipur. Chandanbala is a B.Com. She has proved that high percentage of marks in graduation is not necessary to get MBA admission in one of the top B-schools. She scored 51% in her B.Com. While preparing for CAT exam, she earned 2½ years of working experience as Sales Executive at Saraf Furniture.
With a firm confidence and planned preparation strategy, Chandanbala was confident to crack CAT 2019 with high score and get into her dream IIM. She did not appear in any other MBA entrance test apart from CAT. Chandanbala is very particular on her fitness and is doing Yoga for almost 11 years. Her hobbies include Canvas & grass drawing, sketching.
MBAUniverse.com invited Chandanbala to share her preparation and exam taking strategy, GD-PI experience. Read on for her views and success mantras.
We hope you found this CAT topper interview both insightful and inspiring. Read more CAT Topper Interviews. Also read all about CAT 2025 Exam, CAT Registration, CAT Preparation 2025, CAT Syllabus, CAT Pattern and take CAT Mock Tests.
The first thing you prepare for is getting to know the exam pattern and syllabus of CAT in detail. There is ample study material available online even for those who do not take coaching for CAT and me being an IMS student, I had the best study material to solve. Online Mock Tests which starts from April and goes till November are of great help. Study Group for GD/PI preparations are important. During your CAT PL preparation internet in the best buddy you can have. Lastly Confidence and Motivation are the two things which will help you finish the journey.
I scored 98.28 overall percentile in CAT 2019; 97.18 percentile in VARC section; 95.52 in DILR Section and 97.32 percentile in Quantitative Ability section.
I did not appear in any other exam as I focused on CAT only.
I converted IIM Udaipur , IIM Raipur , IIM Rohtak , IMT Ghaziabad , IMI Delhi ,XIM Bhubaneswar , FORE School of Management Delhi , KJ Somaiya Mumbai , NIRMA University Ahmedabad. I finally decided to join IIM Udaipur
I am a B. Com with 51% marks and scored 81.4% in Class 12 and 76% in class 10. I have 30 months of work experience as Sales Executive in Saraf Furniture.
To prepare for VARC the best way, is to start reading novels and articles. Mocks and sample tests could do wonders in verbal Ability preparation if taken seriously. I personally find ready books and articles boring but they helped me improve my vocabulary and help me score good in my CAT. The Norman Lewis book will be of great help to work on vocabulary.
There’s no strategy to prepare for DILR. It totally depends on how your mind works and how broad you imagination is. Practice can help you get through it.
Most important part of quant is to build your basics strong. I figured out what my strengths are. Then I Worked on shortcut techniques to solve the questions fast. Getting the formulas right was my next step for the topics which could be solved by it. Practice and practice and only practice can help you achieve good score or percentile in CAT. Utmost important thing is to understand the Question properly and then solve.
Quant was a weak section for me. At times I realised the questions were never too hard to hard to solve it was just in my mind that I could not solve it. So the technique I adopted was to solve the questions which were there on my online IMS portal, starting form easy to moderate to hard and eventually I succeeded and scored good in quant section.
Mocks played an equally important role as the study material. Mocks were the eye openers of how much I genuinely know and where do I stand. Around 20 to 25 mocks I attempted before actual CAT exam which included take-home and SimCATs. I even solved previous 2 years CAT papers also as a mock. Mocks tell you what the actual scenario is and how much hard work you still have to put into. Analysis of mocks is very important to rectify your mistake for next time.
I attended a coaching centre named IMS because it has very good mentors and are of constant support to the students having queries and problem with preparations. The method which they use to teach is really good and the SimCATs are very useful and the online material is all what you need. The best what a student can expect from a coaching classes is IMS (best for each and every thing).
Revise all the concepts and go to bed with a clear and confident mind. Sleep well the night before. To be able to stay alert during the CAT exam, it is important to sleep well a night before. Sleep for at least eight hours before the CAT 2019 exam day for a calm and relaxed mind during the exam.
Kept myself Updated with the latest happenings. In the GD/WAT, any topic related to current happening can be allocated to test your general awareness. Remember that GD is not about how much you know about an issue/current happening; but it is about how you put forward your views and opinion about that issue. PI is usually about the HR questions which your coaching institutes provide you with.
Give your 100 percent and do the hard work, don’t leave any stone unturned. The last words from my side will be “your lack of dedication is an insult for those you believe in you ". This was my mantra for CAT and I hope this help the CAT 2020 aspirants also.
Tanuj Ruia
I scored 99.69 overall percentile in CAT 2019;99.39 percentile in VARC section; 98.13 in DILR Section and 99.08 percentile in Quantitative Ability section.
CAT Topper Interview: How Tanuj Ruia Cracked CAT 2019 with 99.69% to Join IIM Bangalore
To help the aspirants preparing for CAT, MBAUniverse.com is publishing a series of Videos with CAT toppers and interview Articles on their CAT preparation plan and strategy adopted by them. Next in the series, is a Video and Text Article with CAT topper Tanuj Ruia who is an IIM Bangalore student of 2020-22 batch. A Chartered Accountant and Fresher Tanuj Ruia from Surat, (Gujarat) cracked CAT 2019 with 99.69 percentile and converted IIM Bangalore and Calcutta. However, he has opted to pursue MBA 2020-22 from IIM Bangalore. In his interaction with MBAUniverse.com, Tanuj shared that he took 30+ Mocks before the exam and invested close to seven hours to analyse each of them. Tanuj had appeared in CAT earlier also in the year 2017. Tanuj has done B.Com from VNSGU, Surat and has no work experience to get bonus marks as defined by IIMs in their admission process.Tanuj has great interest in Playing Cricket, football, Table Tennis, Badminton. He says his hobby of Reading Books gave him an edge in cracking CAT.
MBAUniverse.com invited Tanuj to share his preparation and exam taking strategy, GD-PI experience. Watch the Video and also read the Text Interview. Remember, contents of Video and Interview are different... So, check out both the Video and the interview for ultimate learning experience!
We hope you found this CAT topper interview both insightful and inspiring. Read more CAT Topper Interviews. Also read all about CAT 2025 Exam, CAT Registration, CAT Preparation 2025, CAT Syllabus, CAT Pattern and take CAT Mock Tests.
CAT is one of the most competitive exams in the country. If you manage your 180 minutes of the exam, belling the CAT becomes a lot easier. So my main focus this year was to practise as many mocks I can before the D-Day. After clearing my fundamentals and the basics, I enrolled for the mock series. It helped me in analysing my current level of preparation, my weaknesses and my rank amongst a pool of serious aspirants. I used to attempt the mocks as if I was actually giving CAT. I gave close to 30 mocks. After the mocks, I made it a point to analyse each and every question. Initially, I invested close to 7 hours in analysing each mock test to analyse my mistakes and to understand if I was missing out the sitters.
I scored 99.69 overall percentile in CAT 2019;99.39 percentile in VARC section; 98.13 in DILR Section and 99.08 percentile in Quantitative Ability section.
Apart from CAT 2019, I appeared in XAT 2020 and scored 98.8 percentile
Among the top B-schools that I convertedinclude IIM Bangalore and IIM Calcutta. I finally decided to join IIM Bangalore.
I am a Chartered Accountant and a B.Com from VNSGU, Surat. I am a fresher as per the CAT form and have no regular work experience as defined by IIMs.
This is the most unpredictable section of CAT. It generally has 24 questions of Reading Comprehension and 10 questions of Verbal Ability (Parajumbles, odd one out and fill ups). I divided my 1 hour in 2 parts- 45 minutes for RC and 15 minutes for VA. I gave a lot of sectional tests for VARC to get a good practise. Question types like “Central idea” and “Context of a particular para” can only be mastered through practise. Also, try to maximize attempts in this section. I used to read a RC, if the topic of the RC is such that I was interested in (e.g. Economics, Finance) or have read earlier, go for it. Else, I kept that RC for the last in the chronology. Since I was scoring better in RC then VA, I used to attempt all the RC questions first.
This section will test your time management skills. It generally consists of 8 sets having 4 questions each. I would spend 3-4 minutes initially during the beginning of this section in mocks and actual CAT to scan through all the sets and rank them in order of difficulty. I made sure that I completed all the easy sets and grabbed the marks which boosted my confidence while doing the tougher ones. I never aimed at solving all sets. Instead, pick and choose was my mantra. Initially, I worked on the basic question types of graphs, linear arrangement, circular arrangement, matches and games, etc. These questions helped me in solving most of the sets. Remember not to miss out any easy sets. It can make or break your score. Also while solving, don’t get stuck on a single set and take that set on your ego. I had set a time limit 12-15 minutes. If I was not able to think of a method, I used to leave that set.
Being from commerce background, I made sure not to miss questions based on Profit & Loss, Interest, Allegations and Mixtures and Partnerships in QA. I prepared thoroughly for other topics such as Modern Math, Algebra, Time Speed Distance, Work and Time and Geometry. Initially, I read and understood the formulas and then started focussing on my speed. For complex calculations, I preferred online calculator. But, I also improved my mental maths which ended up saving me a lot of time. I divided the entire section in 3 rounds. 1st round consisted of such questions which could be solved within a minute or two. So, in 30 odd minutes (if the paper is easy or difficult, time will vary), I solved all such questions by going from Q1 to Q 34. In the next round, I again visited the questions which were of medium difficulty. And, if the time permitted, I went for another round of tough questions. In this manner, I was able to solve easy questions which were scattered throughout the question paper instead of not going through them if I would have attempted questions as per the serial number.
Since I had Mathematics till my 10th grade, I was not very comfortable with some of the topics in QA. So I attended lectures, practised questions from various materials and gave a lot of sectional tests. I analysed the mocks and found that I was not scoring well especially in Geometry and Modern Math. So I cleared my fundamentals in these topics and improved my accuracy. Hence, I could see my scores improve in the areas in which I was not scoring well.
Mocks are undoubtedly the most important part of CAT preparation. High quality mocks having resemblance to the actual CAT exam are a must for any serious aspirant. By analysing mocks, I could identify my standing amongst a pool of serious candidates, my weaknesses and my strong areas. I used to calculate the Score: Time ratio for various question types and tried to first attempt those questions in which my ratio was higher. In this way, I could get more marks in the limited time. I gave close to 30 mocks this season.
I took coaching classes for CAT 2017. I scored a 97.7%ile and had a final admission offer from one of the old IIMs. But I thought of completing my Chartered Accountancy first and then try getting into one if the Holy Trinity(IIM ABC). So this year, since I had my basics clear, I enrolled for the test series and GDPI sessions at IMS. The mock series at IMS is definitely among the best in the country.
On the CAT day, I made sure that I slept more than my daily average and had a heavy breakfast. Since my exam was in the afternoon slot, I thought of revising just the few basic Geometry formulas in the morning. I was pretty calm and composed. As I had given a lot of mocks earlier, I was pretty relaxed. So there was no such pressure.
WAT is generally based on current affairs or information which is provided in the paragraph itself. So, I read newspapers regularly (including a financial newspaper). Also, I read various fortnightly magazines which had some interesting articles (like India Today, Business Today). For PI, I revised all my major subjects which I had studied in my graduation and CA (like Finance, Costing, Accounts and Economics). There are some common HR based questions like “Why MBA", “Why this institute" etc. So I prepared a crisp answer for all these questions. For people having experience, questions about your current role and responsibility are bound to be asked. Also, do some research about the companies for which you have worked or are currently working. WAT Topics: IIM Ahmedabad: “Spending money on Statue Unity resulted in wastage of resources. Instead, it could have been spent on other things like infrastructure in a developing country like India. Your views on the same.” IIM Bangalore:“ Aadhar has been a game changer as it has enrolled more than 100 crore people in India. However, a lot of people are worried about the privacy and protection of their data. What are your views on the same" IIM Calcutta: Social media has given the freedom of speech to the masses. However, it has led to a lot of false information being spread resulting into incidents of violence and riots. What are your views on the same? PI Experience: My IIM B interview panel had 2 interviewers, both of themare professors at IIM Bangalore. The interview lasted around 25 minutes. I was asked to substantiate my stand on the WAT topic, Why MBA, discussion about my hobbies and was asked questions from Finance. For IIM B, an SOP (Statement of Purpose) has to be submitted before the interviews. So many questions were based on the SOP. One of the interviewers gave me a hard time by constantly disagreeing with whatever I said. It was a stress interview. Every statement which I made was countered by her. But I kept calm and eventually made it to my dream B-School.
The 5 tips I would like to share for the candidates preparing for CAT: 1. If you spoil one of the sections, forget about it and brace yourself for what's coming next. 2. If the questions are hard for you, it will be hard for the other test takers and hence you should always focus on maximizing your marks 3. Practise by giving as many mocks as you can 4. Analyse your mistakes and avoid doing the same mistakes again 5. If you are not able to crack the CAT in the first go, don't get disheartened. Try again and quit only when the happiness and the desire of belling CAT < Fear of Failing
Anushree Naik
I scored 98.20 overall percentile in CAT 2019; 96.88 percentile in VARC section; 95.89 in DILR Section and 97.11 percentile in Quantitative Ability section.
How CA Anushree Naik juggled her finance job in Mumbai, and yet cracked CAT 2019 to get into IIMA! MBAUniverse.com Interview
CAT 2020 exam date is Sunday, November 29, 2020. To help the aspirants preparing for CAT 2020, MBAUniverse.com has published a series of articles on CAT preparation plan & strategy adopted by CAT toppers studying at IIM Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Calcutta, Lucknow, MDI Gurgaon among others. Below are shared the interview excerpts with CAT preparation tips by CAT Topper Anushree Naik, and IIM Ahmedabad student of 2020-22 batch. It is not easy to juggle a full-time finance job, travel in Mumbai trains for 4 hours every day, and yet crack CAT, one of the toughest exams in India, in your first attempt! But that’s what Anushree Naik, a CA and working professional from Mumbai, managed to do – and with ease. Anushree scored 98.20 percentile in CAT 2019, got interview call from IIMA, IIMB, IIMC and almost all other IIMs, and converted IIM Ahmedabad, a dream of every MBA aspirant! Of course, her journey wasn’t a cakewalk. It required persistence, focus and ability to effectively juggle multiple roles.
MBAUniverse.com spoke to Anushree to understand her CAT preparation plans, how she cracked IIM Ahmedabad interview and more. We were delighted to know that Anushree was an avid reader on MBAUniverse.com for her GDPI preparation. First a little about Anushree so that you know her well. Coming from the family of Chartered Accountants in Mumbai, Anushree is not only a Chartered Accountant, but is also a Graphologist, Painter and Traveller. She worked in the Internal Control and Risk Management under Corporate Finance for one year with Blue Star Limited. Anushree Naik was a classroom student at IMS Learning, Thane. She converted number of top B-schools including IIM Ahmedabad, IIM Bangalore, IIM Kozhikode, IIM Indore, IIM Shillong, SPJIMR Mumbai among others. However, she has chosen IIM Ahmedabad over all others.
We hope you found this CAT topper interview both insightful and inspiring. Read more CAT Topper Interviews. Also read all about CAT 2025 Exam, CAT Registration, CAT Preparation 2025, CAT Syllabus, CAT Pattern and take CAT Mock Tests.
I started by joining IMS, a coaching institute in my city. I took a mock test in the very beginning to understand my strengths and weaknesses and decided to focus on conceptual understanding for the Quantitative Aptitude (QA) section. I studied for about 3 hours on week days by solving QA sectional tests, practicing a lot of data interpretation and logical reasoning (DILR) sets and utilised my travel time to work in reading books, building a vocabulary and solving math quizzes on my phone. My weekends were dedicated to attending classes, covering major chunk of the portion, solving mock tests and analysing my strengths and weaknesses through them.
I scored 98.20 overall percentile in CAT 2019; 96.88 percentile in VARC section; 95.89 in DILR Section and 97.11 percentile in Quantitative Ability section.
I did not appear in any other exam as I focused on CAT only.
I converted IIM Ahmedabad, IIM Bangalore, IIM Kozhikode, IIM Indore, IIM Shillong, all baby and new IIMs and SPJIMR Mumbai.
I am a Chartered Accountant with a B. Com from R.A. Podar College of Commerce & Economics, Mumbai and M.Com from V.G. Vaze College of Arts, Commerce & Science, Mumbai. I have one year of work experience in Internal Control and Risk Management under Corporate Finance with Blue Star Limited from March 2019 to March 2020. I was born and brought up in Mumbai in an upper middle class family. My father is a practicing Chartered Accountant and a professor, and my mother is a homemaker and an artist. My elder sister is a Surgeon. I stay with my parents and grandparents.
I had a very simple strategy for solving RC section. I tried to understand what I read in the very first reading and tried not to return to the passage while solving questions unless required. I always read the entire passage first and then moved to the questions. I attempted the easiest 4 passages first, then moved to the Verbal Ability questions and finally returned to that one last difficult RC. I am not a reader so I resorted to solving 6 RCs every day. I set a timer for myself and tried to solve 6 RCs in one hour. Always time yourself while solving RC questions. On the day of the CAT I solved 4 and a half out of 5 RCs and attempted 8 out of 10 verbal ability questions.
I usually practiced solving DI and LR sets early in the morning as it was the time when I was very attentive. I analysed my mocks well and found out ways to solve the sets faster. I really enjoyed solving LR sets hence I also used my travel time to solve them. For the DI sets I practiced mental maths like tables and important formulae to increase the speed of calculations.
I used the following study material for QA: • Tutorials Study Material (IMS- Classwork and Homework) • Arun Sharma QA Book (I used it for some chapters but if you can finish the entire book, nothing like it) • Sectional Tests (IMS, TIME) • CAT 100 Percentile Blog After taking a lot of mock tests and practicing various types of strategies I boiled down onto mine for QA. My strategy was to attempt the easiest QA sums first and only mark the answer when I was more than a 75% sure of the answer. I realised that this method helped me maintain my calm throughout and solve questions with better accuracy, thus increasing my total score. I practiced to solve the entire QA section in one round itself, of course while not wasting much time on a single question. One of the most important steps in this process is to have the courage to leave a particular question if you are not able to crack it in about 2 minutes. Taking enough number of mock tests, in different environments, at different locations and at different hours of the day helped me immensely to get over the fatigue that accompanies the QA section. Another technique I adopted to ensure myself that there would be no way I would get mentally exhausted at the end of 3 hours is by solving 2 three hour mock tests in a day. I don’t recommend this to be done for all the mock tests that you take. But I did this about once a month in the last 3 months and about thrice in the last one month. This definitely boosted my confidence and I had absolutely no reason to worry about any fatigue during the examination. I discussed methods to solve a particular sum with my friends, mentors and seniors. It helped me to know various methods of solving one particular sum. I used to solve my friends’ QA doubts. I remember pouncing on every question that popped up in our Whatsapp groups. Solving a lot of mixed questions trained my mind to expect surprises. Moreover I always enjoyed attempting questions that someone else brought up. It helped me to build confidence and also instilled a lot of positive competitive spirit in me. I asked my teacher to allow me to witness him solve a 3 hour test live. That helped me build up a strategy around which question to be picked up for solving and which ones to be avoided.
No doubt it was tough as time was short for me but I utilised the travelling time in trains by reading and decoding more RC passages. While moving on the platform, climbing and coming down the stairs at station, I revised the calculation process and formulae for Quant and DI. This helped me to speed up my CAT preparation.
On a clear analysis of my mock tests, I realised that I struggled in the QA section where as I was naturally and relatively better at solving the DILR sets. Hence, I spent most of my preparation time on steadily increasing the number of attempts and maximising my accuracy in Quantitative Aptitude (QA) section. I maintained a formula book and tried to do most of the calculations mentally by practicing tables, squares, cubes and prime numbers every day. I also tried to maintain a balance among all the three sections and started practicing 4-5 Reading Comprehensions every single day.
I took about 35-40 mock tests before the CAT day. In my opinion, attempting mock tests is the most important part of the preparation. It helped me understand my weaknesses and the areas that needed more practice. It also helped me compare my speed with others’. A regular check on the scores and aiming at better scores in upcoming tests kept my motivation high till the very end.
I enrolled myself in the classroom sessions batch of IMS in their Thane centre. I wanted to have a strong hold over the Quantitative Aptitude section by learning the concepts of Mathematics in depth hence I thought a coaching centre would be beneficial. I alos took mock tests of IMS and TIME which were highly useful and gave me enough practice till the day of the CAT.
I tried a lot of different approaches, strategies and tactics during your mock tests and finally decide on the one that suited my strengths the best for D-Day. But at the same time I made a mental note of the fact that I will also have to remain very flexible during the 3 hours of the test as CAT is popular for giving surprises. I decided to not carry the burden of a difficult section on the next section. I decided that I would start a section with a fresh mind without worrying much of the previous section and not lose hope at any point during those 3 hours. I relaxed two days prior to CAT and slept very well a night before D-Day. It is important for your brain to be active, fresh and most productive during the entire 3 hours of the exam.
I started preparing for interviews just a little before the CAT results were out (as the profile based SPJIRM interview calls were already out). I started by reading current affairs regularly and discussing it with my parents and friends. I read a lot of news on the internet and also GDPI prep websites like MBAUniverse.com, Cracku and IMS. As advised by my seniors and mentors, I also concentrated on analysing my own strengths, goals, life experiences and weaknesses in order to be ready to answer any questions on my life journey (HR questions). I took about 20 mock interviews with different people ranging from my boss at work to my mentors, friends, ex-students, seniors, etc. I also practiced writing essays on various topics for increasing my writing ability, often tested in most of the IIM interviews. All my personal interview questions were a mix of work experience, academics, extra-curriculars and general awareness questions.
Unfortunately, I got introduced to MBAUniverse.com after my CAT. But, the website helped me a lot during my interview preparation. I read content on a lot of general awareness and current affairs topics on the MBAUniverse.com website that helped me form an opinion on those topics.
• Don’t give up till the very end. Your best performance could be on the day of CAT itself. • There is no substitute to hard work so always give your best. • You should not neglect mock tests. Missing out on analysing mock tests thoroughly could be really disadvantageous. • Don’t compare yourself with others. Everyone has their own strengths and weaknesses and thus a very unique journey. Always set targets for yourself and up your game. • Avoid believing in unnecessary assumptions and avoid having misconceptions. Don’t waste your precious time being pessimistic. Eg. Non-Engineers cannot ace the QA section, the verbal section is not scoring, it is not possible to attempt all 8 sets in the DILR section, etc are all misconceptions of the naysayers. • The interviewers want just one reason to select you. Give them that reason.
Nikita Agarwal
I scored 99.22 overall percentile in CAT 2019. My sectional score was 97.18 percentile in VARC section; 98.58 in DILR Section and 98.43 percentile in Quantitative Ability section.
CAT Topper Interview: How Nikita Agarwal Cracked CAT 2019 with 99.22% to Join MDI Gurgaon
CAT 2020 exam date is Sunday, November 29, 2020. To help the aspirants preparing for CAT 2020, MBAUniverse.com has published a series of articles on CAT preparation plan & strategy adopted by CAT toppers studying at IIM Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Calcutta, Lucknow, MDI Gurgaon among others. Below are shared the interview excerpts with CAT preparation tips by CAT Topper Nikita Agarwal, and MDI Gurgaon student of 2020-22 batch. Small towns have no dearth of talent and can take your career on high growth trajectory. The notion is proved correct by Nikita Agarwal who is from Surat in Gujarat and has cracked CAT 2019 with 99.22 percentile in her first attempt. She prepare for CAT exam at Surat without looking for big cities like Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai. Nikita has done BBA from SDJIC Surat and has taught at an NGO. She has converted number of top B-schools including New IIMs and MDI Gurgaon. Nikita belongs to a modest business class family. While preparing for CAT exam, she enjoyed her teaching at the NGO. In her view, there are two parts to CAT preparation - practice and mocks and both are equally important.
With a firm confidence and planned preparation strategy, Nikita was confident to crack CAT 2019 with high score and get into her dream B-school. Apart from CAT, she appeared in XAT 2020; SNAP 2020; NMAT 2020 and score 99+ percentile. Nikita likes reading books, especially crime fiction and thrillers; enjoys teaching which inspired her to teach at NGO. MBAUniverse.com invited Nikita to share her preparation and exam taking strategy, GD-PI experience. Read on for her views and success mantras.
We hope you found this CAT topper interview both insightful and inspiring. Read more CAT Topper Interviews. Also read all about CAT 2025 Exam, CAT Registration, CAT Preparation 2025, CAT Syllabus, CAT Pattern and take CAT Mock Tests.
So, there are two parts to CAT preparation, practice and mocks. I believe both are equally important, especially, if you’re preparing for the first time. I enrolled for the classroom program at IMS during the second year of my college, but my serious preparation started only in March 2019. I began by practicing IMS modules, which helped me in revising the basics.I started giving mocks in May, even though I was not done with a lot of portion. I used to give practice all the three sections consistently. I never skipped a particular section, say VARC, because I had to focus on Quants. Learning to strike a balance between three sections is really necessary.
I scored 99.22 overall percentile in CAT 2019. My sectional score was 97.18 percentile in VARC section; 98.58 in DILR Section and 98.43 percentile in Quantitative Ability section.
I appeared in XAT 2020, SNAP 2020 and NMAT 2020. My score was 99.5 percentile in XAT; 99.7 in SNAP and 219/360 in NMAT.
Apart from getting final admission offer from new IIMs, I converted MDI Gurgaon. I finally decided to join MDI Gurgaon.
I have done Bachelors of Business Administration from SDJ International College, Surat. My father is a Businessman and my mother is a Homemaker. I have two siblings and I am the eldest child. Apart from teaching at NGO, I have no other work experience.
I began by practicing 4-5 passages per day and moved to 8-9 passages over the time. My strategy for this section was to maximize my attempts, therefore, I always solved more than 28 question in this section. Since this section is a lot about your reading and grasping speed, I began reading newspapers and books, which helped me a lot. This section requires you to keep aside your prejudices and focus on what the author is trying to say. Since RCs were my strong area, I used to allocate 45-47 minutes for the same and remaining 13-15 minutes for VA.
This was the toughest section for me, personally. It took a lot of practice for me to get a hold of this section. I started by practicing the easier sets first and then moved on to difficult sets. Since there is not a lot of material available for this section, I solved the previous year mocks. I solved 4-5 sets per day. I began by solving without a time frame and slowly I started setting a time frame of say, 20 minutes to solve these sets.
Since I am from a non-engineering background, I want to talk about the same. Since a lot of concepts were new to me, it took 3-4 months of hard work to get myself familiarised with various topics. However, once I was done with basics its all same for an engineer and non-engineer. Now for preparation strategy, I solved the topics I was strong in first. Since I was also the part of classroom program at, I made it a point to read about the topic beforehand, this helped me during the class. After the class, I used to solve advanced level questions of the same topic on the very same day. This helped me get a grasp of topics easily without wasting much of my time.
The most challenging section for me was DILR. I was rarely able to solve more than 2 sets in the mocks. In order to overcome this, I began by solving the sets on my own during the practice, no matter how much time it took. Sometimes, I would spend 1-2 hours on just one set. I believed this helped me in development of intuitive ability for solving these sets. I also realised that this section is a lot about smart work. Selection of right sets is the key. There are always some easy questions, which can be solved in 3-5 minutes, without solving whole set. This guarantees you +3, without taking much of your time.
Mocks are integral part of CAT preparation. Practice is only fruitful, if you take mocks. I started giving mocks in May 2019. They helped me to identify my mistakes, weak areas and rectify the same. My first mock score was 62. It took me 4-5 mocks to achieve a score more than 100. Mocks helped me to improve my score gradually. I attempted around 45 mocks. Attempting more mocks helped me to develop an efficient strategy and helped me to get accustomed to the exam pattern of CAT.
I joined IMS during the second year of my college. Since, CAT required me to get familiarized with a lot of new concepts, joining a coaching was the most efficient solution for me. It also helped me to remain consistent in my CAT preparation.
The CAT day is the only thing that matters in the end. It is very important to have a calm mindset on D-day. Since I was in afternoon slot, I had this urge to get information online, from friends regarding the difficulty level of paper. But I realised that this is only going to affect my mindset, so I woke up, had a healthy breakfast, spent some time with family and left for the centre. I had stopped giving mocks a week ago before the CAT day. I only focused on revising the basics from the notes I had prepared, analysing my past mocks again and that’s it. On the D-day, the first section turned out to be a bit harder than expected. I was stuck on one RC for 15-17 minutes. This slowed me down and I panicked. I thought I couldn’t perform well in first section. DILR was already my weak section, but I knew I had to cover up for VARC, so I put all my efforts in this section. After solving 3 sets, I realised I couldn’t solve the whole another set, so I solved the questions without solving whole set. The last section was relatively very easy and well, it all worked out in the end. So yes, my strategy was to just do give my best without getting panicked if I mess up a particular section.
I joined the GDPI program at IMS. Mock PI and GDs were really helpful in my preparation. WAT Topics that I faced were: IIM Ahmedabad: Statue of Unity, whether the fund could be spent in better way or was it a good step? IIM Calcutta: Gen Z has been blaming the older generations for depletion of natural resources. Share your views on the same and also suggest the way how we can contribute to replenishment of natural resources of the earth. IIM Kozhikode: Should student groups be affiliated with political parties? IIM-CAP: Should the process of road constructions in a country be done by government or privatised? PI Questions: 1. Questions on academics like what is break-even point, net present value, mergers, acquisitions, etc. 2. Why do you want to do MBA? 3. As a fresher, you should get a work experience first and start your MBA later? 4. History of the city I am from, what is it famous for, etc. 5. Questions on current affairs, Chandrayan-2, cryptocurrency, bullet trains, etc. 6. How my favourite subject, Organisation Behaviour was relevant to the working of OYO rooms?
Learn to utilise your time efficiently. CAT is a lot about smart work, which will happen only if you remain consistent in your practice. My advice is to just work hard, give your best, get ready for all the ups and downs in form of mock scores and very high competition along the way and just have faith in yourself!