How to prepare for CAT 2018 in 2 months

How to prepare for CAT 2018 in 2 months – A directionless preparation can be as bad as no preparation. Forming a right preparation strategy is one of the most important aspects when it comes to cracking the CAT exam. The most popular and the most competitive management entrance exam is just two months away from now. All the MBA aspirants who are planning to appear for the exam on November 25 must know how to prepare for CAT 2018 in 2 months. Careers360 brings to you the list of dos and don’ts in the last two months before the exam. On the basis of the experience of previous years’ toppers, here is the best possible answer to the question - How to prepare for CAT in 2 months?

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How to prepare for CAT in 2 months - Strategy for October

As soon as the October begins, you would be standing barely two months away from CAT 2018 exam. You should know what exactly you need to do in the last two months to score a high percentile in the actual exam. Here is what you should be doing in the month of October 2018.

Do Not start a New Topic – Almost all the previous years’exam toppers and academic experts suggest not to start a new topic before two months of the exam. Instead of starting a new topic, practise the topics you already know and work on further strengthening your strong areas. It will improve your accuracy in the actual exam.

Start Solving Mock Tests – Solving mock test papers at least twice a week is highly recommended in the last two months of CAT preparation. Choose two days of the week as per your convenience to solve the mock tests. Solve one full-length mock test on each day and analyse it. On the rest of the days of the week, work on the areas you need to improve or solve sectional mocks.

There are aspirants who are afraid of scoring low in mock tests and do not practise as many mock tests as they should. Hitesh Lohani, one of the CAT 2017 toppers who scored 99.91 percentile in the exam last year says, “One thing I was doing consistently which most of the aspirants don’t do only to regret later- is giving mock tests. Most aspirants have this fear of scoring low in mock tests and hence skip them.”

He further adds, “Taking regular mock tests is the most important aspect of preparation because CAT is more of an attitude test than an aptitude test. It depends on how you maintain your calm during those three hours of D-day. Regularly taking mocks makes one ready to sit continuously for three hours without losing focus. Mocks should be given in proctored mode in the centres and not at home.”

Join a Professional Test Series / Coaching– If you have not enrolled into coaching, joining a test series or taking coaching with any MBA coaching institute is a good idea to get a professional assistance on your performance analysis. This way, you will have a professional to check your performance in the test papers who would let you know the exact topics or areas you need to work on to improve your score in the actual exam.

If you feel that your basics are not as clear as they should be for the CAT exam, you should take professional coaching. it would help you clear your basics which will eventually lead to a better score in the final exam.

How to prepare for CAT 2018 in 2 months - Strategy for November

At the beginning of November, you would be around three weeks away from CAT 2018. Although every second count from the moment you start preparing for CAT, the last month or days can actually make a difference if you execute your preparation plan properly. As per the most of CAT toppers, solving as many mock test papers as you can in the last month is the best strategy.

Solve Mock Tests every alternate day or every day – You can either choose to solve mock tests on every alternate day or every day as per your preparation level. Shishir Aggarwal, who scored 99.93 in CAT 2017 exam, says, “I took my first mock test in March and I was able to score only 140 marks. I practised 40 mock tests before giving the final exam. And the last mock I practised was one week before the exam and I scored 220.”

Analysing your performance in each mock is as important as anything else related to the preparation. Soumyajit Ghosh, one of the CAT 2017 toppers, says, “Every CAT aspirant must give sufficient mocks and analyse the output to score high in the final exam.”

CAT Preparation Strategy – One week before the exam

Revise basic formulae – It’s advisable to revise all the basic formulae related to all the topics/ subjects covered in the CAT exam. If the basic formulae is clear, you will be able to solve questions quickly which eventually will save your time and you can attempt more questions to increase your score.

Hitesh Lohani of FMS Delhi says, “In the last week before CAT, I stopped giving mocks altogether and just focussed on revising basic formulas.”

Prepare Exam day strategy – It’s very important to pre-plan how you are going to approach the test paper on the actual exam day. You can create your own strategy like how much time you should spend on a question, which type of questions you would attempt first in a particular section or any other strategy to maximise your score.

Relax your mind – Keeping your calm and not panicking when the exam is just around the corner is extremely important and possibly the best behavioural thing for the exam day. A relaxed mind performs much better than a panicked one.

Keep your self-confidence high and practise regularly for the final exam. CAT 2018 will be conducted by IIM Calcutta on Sunday, November 25, 2018, in two slots. The last date for CAT 2018 registration has been extended to September 26 till 5:00 PM.

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