Taking the CAT for non-math grads.

I took the Common Admission Test in 2021, and made it to IIM Ahmedabad, where I presently study as a PGP2. Here is a documentation of what I generally tell aspirants of the exam over the phone.

My mother’s Whatsapp status for the day reminded me that today marks four years since my board examination results. Here is a summary to give you an approximate description of my academic trajectory thus far. I completed high school for the ISC Board with core subjects Physics, Chemistry and Math. Then I went to the University of Delhi for a degree in Political Science with a minor in History, after which I started my MBA at IIM Ahmedabad. I have only appeared for one competitive examination in this process, which is the CAT.

My actual favourite Cat, for reference.

In this essay, I aim to document the process of taking the CAT, mostly to send this link to everybody who messages me on social media asking for my “strategy”. I will begin with the disclaimer that 1) I did not have a strategy, 2) everybody has varying degrees of comfort and hold over different subjects, and 3) there is no one strategy that would apply to everybody.

Taking the CAT after a pure humanities degree is unconventional, which is why most of the queries I receive have unmotivated arts graduates dreading the idea of studying mathematics and already counting themselves out of the race. Please don’t do that. I am the poster child for taking academics easy and the CAT is not a difficult exam.

I was not content with my board exam score because I wanted to make it to a good DU college. I settled for a second-tier college, which was still an eye-opening experience, and I met lovely people along the way. However, most of my undergraduate degree was spent online due to the Great Pandemic of 2020-22. I would be a very different person than I am today if not for that, and it is highly likely that I would not be doing an MBA if the pandemic had not occurred.

I initially started with a degree in Political Science to go the UPSC route (as most people do) but soon realized that I don’t have the kind of persistence in me that is required to appear for multiple attempts at the Civil Service examination. I am glad I had this realization early enough to change course without losing time. I switched gears to the opposite option of stability – trying to work in corporate. MBA fit my criteria and I fit the eligibility for the CAT, which begat a year of quiet preparation on my own.

I started preparing for the CAT in March of 2021, in my second year of BA while the lockdown was still going on. I did not need to attend classes for my undergraduate daily, which was a great assistance in allowing me to follow my own schedule. I would spend the first two months of every semester covering the syllabus and making extensive notes for exams, after which I was free to spend the next three months on CAT. I had a total of six months until CAT 2021.

Another disclaimer: I expected CAT 2021 to be a trial run to gauge whether I could get into a halfway-decent college. I did not take any coaching or test preparation material for this attempt. I did my best with self-preparation, mostly because even my parents were not aware that I was planning to take this test.

My CAT Scorecard, again, for reference.

Here is a section-wise breakdown of my “strategy” (if you can call it that) in hindsight:

Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension (VARC): I have been a regular reader and expected this section to be a cakewalk for me, which was a major mistake. I scored the lowest in VARC. A few more marks would have really boosted my overall percentile (not that it matters now).

Quantitative Ability (Mathematics): I expected this to be my true challenge, the bridge to a successful attempt. I spent the most time on this section, going through the syllabus three times total, starting from the basic to go on to cover the more difficult questions. From the point of view of a humanities student, it is essential to understand what you don’t know from this section even after multiple tries. Avoid those topics completely, stick to what you know. I was good with arithmetic, and I only attempted those questions, steering clear of geometry and algebra, because I was not perfect with those. Maximize your score by minimizing the negative marks (basic math).

Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning (DILR): I was not too confident with this section, but this is what got me through. The key is selection of sets. It is intuitive and different for everyone, but you will have fun with it.

Overall, I think it is important to focus on choosing which questions to attempt. CAT is not about attempting the entire paper. Do what you know for sure. Minimize losing out what you have scored to negative marks.

Also, I see a lot of discourse (read: whining) on Twitter and LinkedIn about someone with 99+%ile not getting into an IIM A, B, C, and that is because CAT is not the only thing looked at while colleges give out interview calls, there are a multitude of other criteria that are given equal or more weightage. A B-school is looking at your entire personality, and if your whole personality is getting 99.99%ile in a small exam like CAT, maybe work on that.

Of course, the next step to getting into a top B-School is the interview round, which I will write about another time. I hope this helps my fellow Humanities nieces and nephews.