Live One-to-One Online CAT Classes by IIM Alu

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CAT Strategy Second/ Repeat Attempt

Second/ Repeat Attempt to CAT is important to most students as

it might be the last attempt. Also another failed attempt on the CAT will result in the loss of one more year CAT and other similar exams like XAT,FMS etc are known for changing patterns and differing levels of difficulty every year. CAT Preparation requires hard work, meticulous planning and systematic implementation A correct mix of theory and concepts, practice, simulated testing and detailed analysis Two Sins while CAT Preparation
A lot of people jump straight into problem solving and finding

shortcuts to do commonly occurring problems. Jump into exercise based preparation without getting the fundamentals right

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Before starting preparations for writing CAT for the nth time,

What I Did Wrong?

I Did not read any philosophy books, novels for Reading

Comprehension practice.
I Did not prepare any dictionary / list for vocabulary.

I Did not try any method for speed-reading.

Had totally bogus Moc - CAT scores 6, 9 etc, never did post-analysis of

questions and later stopped giving them altogether, as they were wasting my time and hurting my confidence.
Skipped trigonometry, coordinate geometry, games and tournaments

and any topic that I couldnt grasp on the first two tries or anything that would not go in my long term memory.
Did not do much arithmetic series and logarithm. Because most of them

would require the application of some special magic-move, which wont go my long term memory.
Skipped most of quant/LR threads & discussions on online forums (Well

most of their sums go above my head anyways.)

Cant do much speed-maths or mental calculation of percentages for

DI/Quant.
Dont know squares upto 50.

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Count your Sins

Low Mental ability Brain has lost that ability to

grasp, analyze or calculate things quickly without calculator Weak Fundamentals Brain has lost hold of basic fundamentals used in CAT Verbal & Quant Sections; it is accustomed to analyze complex problems Time Management Solving questions within the time limit to get maximum percentile. Practice Not able to do much practice on sample Questions Especially student is not able to practice on & score at highest level of difficulty within 3 min. Screening of errors - Understanding why the answer choice was wrong, making list of all the errors & doing www.spanedea.com practice so that this errors are not repeated again

Few Questions to ask

Do I have mental stamina to work efficiency during

strenuous 140 mins (2.5 hours)?

Do I have approach/strategy for solving any type of

question in less than 2 min (whatever the level of difficulty)?

Are math fundamentals, grammar basics &

vocabulary list up to the mark to score 99+percentile in CAT?

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The Secret Key

The challenge is not to master all concepts, or to do

all problems rightly; the challenge is to maximize the score Most important - knowing when to let go. You have to quit and move if you are not able to answer a question within the upper time limit. Remember to take each question by itself. Don't worry about the grand scheme, just one question at a time Do not give up: CAT is a very logical exam and if you are good with logic you should be able to do reasonably well. Focus on the basics if you are not improving. Define www.spanedea.com your weak areas and work on them.

For an average IQ student , the path is not easy, but who said anything is impossible - it just takes that little much longer.

MAD over CAT

The CAT is a tough test. The CAT will humble you and bring you

down to your knees. With enough practice and right guidance, you can beat it! The key to success is training your mind to think differently and act differently Get acquainted with both the content and the length of the test. CAT is not rocket science, it just requires a lot of discipline There are no shortcuts Identify your weaknesses and then reviewing materials/doing practice problems to fill those gaps Focus on the problem types you're having issues with TRUST YOURSELF. You are smarter than you think. All of the knowledge is inside of you. You just need to discover www.spanedea.com how to pull it out and apply it on test day!

7 Point Strategy
Mental Ability Improve mental ability, improve mental

responses, practice mental exercises and calculations daily. Clear Basic fundamentals Through understanding of principles through different books Time Management Solving Practice problems with timer, not more than 3 min for any question regardless of difficulty level ( 4 questions 12 mins) SWOT Analysis Know different type of questions in & do SWOT on those types. More practice on weak areas. Error Log - Error log will help you to know weak areas. Strategy to solve each type of question within 3 min Process of Elimination Understand & Practice Process of Elimination on different question types Practice No alternative to practice. it is very important to practice higher difficulty level questions for time management; try www.spanedea.com to solve every question within 3 min

Start Fresh @ CAT

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Analyze, Understand & Plan the preparation

Preparing for the exam 3 levels of preparation required to crack the CAT.
Knowledge
Exam Strategy Confidence and Performance under pressure

3 Steps to ACE CAT

Step-1 Learn all about CAT Step-2 Do Self Analysis for CAT Step-3 Execution: Mastering your strengths and improving on your

Weaknesses
Study Plan
Never Prioritize topics study all What is prepared & what needs to be learned Time Management Set accomplishable goals Stick to your plan

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8 important steps for CAT Prep

Identify where you stand

Build the Foundation - build the basics |

Revise the fundamentals Study Plan and Time Management Sectional Tests and Exercises Start acing mocks Evaluation and analysis Know your strengths, work on your weaknesses Accuracy and speed: the perfect mixture www.spanedea.com Shortcuts and strategies

Identify where you stand

Where to start?

The ideal way to start preparing for any exam is

by taking a diagnostic test Diagnostic test should ideally be of similar type as the previous CAT exam. You may take the test online/offline. Detailed analysis on the results

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Build the Foundation - Revise the fundamentals

Understand and Develop basic concepts tested in

the CAT Understand different types of questions asked in each section Gauge your understanding by solving questions for each Concept Attempt extra practice problems on each concept to go to Pro Level. Finally, move on to actual past CAT questions to develop the CAT mindset
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Study Plan and Time Management

Time is precious, while everyone has the same

amount of time, only those who manage it well crack the CAT. Budget your time Create a study plan to manage the time effectively and efficiently. Give plenty of time for each task and concept Use a calendar to set specific deadlines. Dont get nervous over deadlines; stay calm and keep on track.

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Sectional Tests and exercises

Start taking sectional tests and time based

exercises. At least 2-3 concept or sectional tests a week See where you stand and measure improvement. Analyze the tests in detail to check:
Where have you gone wrong? Why have you gone wrong?

Solutions to questions that you did not attempt to

identify the ones that you could have attempted.

Analyze your performance after every test you

take.

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Start acing mocks

Start taking mocks once every week to frame a

full proof strategy. Gauge your performance weakness and strengths Mock scores will also help you identify your aim and strategy for the last few months before CAT Start your mocks even if you have not completed the chapters

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Evaluation and analysis

All the tests taken must be evaluated properly

and analysed. Have a record on a spreadsheet of all the tests that you take Track your performance section wise and concept wise Create a flowchart which will help you know where you stand and how much improvement you need in every section. Analysis should include your attempted, nonattempted questions. Silly mistakes and guess work attempts. www.spanedea.com

Know your strengths, work on your weaknesses

Discover the areas, where you are strong and where there is a room for

improvement
Capitalize on your strengths and get rid of your weaknesses.
Challenge yourself by re-practicing problems in weak areas Make stronger area into the strongest and work towards improving the

weaker sections.
Always keep yourself motivated; do not stress yourself, by studying all

the time.
Over dosage often, as they say kills. How to find your strength & weaknesses Simply pickup a past years

CAT exam papers

1.
2. 3. 4. 5.

Attempt as many questions as you can without putting the time limit in one Attempt which ever you are confident of, don't make any blind guess for any of the questions and make calculated guess Check your answers and attempts. Write down your overall score, along with sectional score www.spanedea.com Repeat step 1-4 for 4 more past year CAT paper

Accuracy and speed: the perfect mixture

CAT is not about solving 60 questions in 140

minutes. It is about solving 40 to 45 questions with 85 to 90 percent accuracy. Attempting all the questions is not the mark of your achievement in CAT Accuracy is a distinguishing factor among 99+ percentile Focusing on accuracy may lead to spending more than average time on the questions Spending more time on one problem could cause panic towards the end of the exam. www.spanedea.com An optimum mix of both accuracy and speed is

Shortcuts and strategies

Try to find strategies and shortcuts for different

sections and concepts. Increase your speed, improve your accuracy and reduce time per question. Collective studies with your friends and exchange ideas and shortcuts with each other. A common pitfall is learning the tricks without understanding them. Best solution is to derive and develop tricks yourself from the basic principles.
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FACT -double the time given to a candidate in exams, most of the candidates will score 90%+ marks.

Time Management during exam

Practice the element of TIME in problem solving Most problems in management institute exams do not require

knowledge of rocket science. These exams are about Skill and knowledge Ability to manage time in the most efficient manner. How to solve problems in minimum time Focus on 2 more questions and get proficient in them -: a) How much time will it take me to solve this problem? b) Compared to the problems that I have seen what level of difficulty do I think this problem lies in? Important for candidate to decide Which questions to attempt and which questions to leave In which order - which might very well end up being the most www.spanedea.com important thing esp. in exams where time is the crunch.

Plan your answering strategy

These are few points you must plan out before taking

the CAT-:
What is your time allocation strategy? How much time do you plan to spend on each of the

sections? In particular, do you plan to devote equal time to each section or slightly more time to the section that you are the strongest at? How will you respond to a differential marking scheme if that is specified? For example, if there are 2 mark and 1mark questions, do you plan to attempt the 2 mark questions first? Do you plan to spend some time at the completion of the exam, cross-checking or verifying some of the answers, www.spanedea.com especially of those questions that you are not really sure

Find your strategy - Experiment:

Till you have found a rhythm/strategy keep

changing things The target number of questions you want to attempt, The time you spend on each section etc. This kind of experimentation will prepare you for any surprise that you may find on D-Day Perfect the optimum CAT-solving strategy Strikes the right balance between speed and accuracy, www.spanedea.com Ensure that you clear all cut-offs and as well

Attention : Interviews and GD/WAT

Start preparing for the interviews and GDs from beginning Candidate needs to show that he/she has a well rounded

personality in complete admission process Start orienting on this aspect six months before even applying to the b-schools. Know and Understand different question asked in interviews Pick up a hobby, Project something to be your hobby in an interview, Good understanding of history, personal association, ground details, rules, current news items related to it and finally your views on its future etc For GD/WAT preparation, Keep updated on General Knowledge/ General Affairs Get a taste of the real thing www.spanedea.com Preparing in groups of friends for GD/Essays is a good idea

Current Affairs General Knowledge

Interview/GD/WAT Essays requires that you

be aware of your surrounding and current affairs. Read at least one good newspaper daily and a weekly magazine on current affairs (and 1 business magazine preferably) regularly. Most publications from same media houses would be a bit biased in some respect A variety of views from different media houses would strengthen your knowledge of the subject and help you especially in GD/WAT www.spanedea.com Essay

Train Your brain

Entire CAT evaluation (including GD/WAT/PI) is designed for

people who can work for longer periods of time without breaks Train your brain for working effectively and efficiently for longer periods of time Build Mental stamina Mental fatigue is real and it tends to snowball At end of a exam, mental fatigue will cause him/her to think more slowly, it will force you to re-read or re-calculate, Spending longer on each question will only serve to fatigue you even more. Mental stamina is required to perform efficiently and to get a good score If you need to warm-up for an hour before beginning to be able to concentrate and study productively, now is the time to break that habit. www.spanedea.com You need to be able to start concentrating almost immediately,

Work life balance

Keep yourselves distressed

Balance your work/study with preparation.

Be genuine to yourself and spend time every day

regularly in a systematic manner Take it slow and do not garble all the information. Work your way through different types of problems and keep track of your performance in every possible area Its about You and you know better about yourself; device a strategy that works for you Keep fine tuning the strategy, until you get better www.spanedea.com results

Final Words
CAT is a tough exam and you need to train your brain

for it. The key to success is training your mind to think differently.
Get acquainted with both the content and the length of

the test. CAT is not rocket science; it just requires a lot of discipline.
CAT is a very logical exam and if you are good with

logic you should be able to do reasonably well. The challenge is not to master all concepts, or to do all problems rightly; the challenge is to maximize the score www.spanedea.com

About SPANEDEA
Every learner is unique, and so is every learning situation!
SPANEDEA is an interactive learning platform through live

video and audio and a virtual blackboard Founded in 2011 by IIM Bangalore 1998 batch alumni Sanjay Bhadra, Nitin Bansal and Rajat Sharma Based in Mumbai, India Get more information at: http://www.spanedea.com/CAT

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Why Learn Online

Customized learning from the convenience of their location.
Sessions/course customized to particular students need

Convenience - Convenient timing Comfort - At the comfort of your place, Spend less time on

traveling and more time to learn

Teachers personalized teaching -1on1 live teaching through

internet,
Modular course content ebooks, interactive and customized

content/ courses
Quality best quality teachers Availability qualified teacher available all the time
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Benefits to students
Choice chose teachers, select courses, Precision exactly what is required, instead of needless 'full' Personalization my weaknesses at my pace, customize your

own course
Doubt clearing interactive discussion required for doubt

clearing
Tutor provides comfort provides the invaluable hand-

holding
Sufficient practice pre and post session quizzes, full exams More focus on concepts concept building

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www.spanedea.com For more information on CAT - http://www.spanedea.com/CAT Openedex India Pvt. Ltd., 703, C-Wing, Mangalya, Andheri (E), Mumbai-400059, India

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