Strategies for CBT CAT Prep - Things to do before and after attempting iCATS

The following points need to be kept in mind when attempting an iCAT (or Mock CAT)

1.       Be serious. Give every iCAT as seriously as you are giving the actual CAT.

2.       Scan the question paper for easy/difficult questions. Practice the same with a series of 30 iCATs.

3.       Identify EASY questions. Solve them fast and accurately. Accuracy level required : 70-80%.

4.       Identify DIFFICULT questions. Leave them judiciously to improve your attempts.

5.       Mark the questions you have attempted on the booklet.

 The following points need to be kept in mind after attempting an iCAT (or Mock CAT)

1.       Budget 6-8 hours for thorough analysis of the Mock CAT given. Giving an iCAT without analysis is like eating without digestion.

2.       After the iCAT is over, don’t rush to check your marks. Instead freshen up, relax a bit and mentally prepare yourself for a grueling marathon session.

3.       The MARATHON SESSION begins. Proceed as follows:

a)      Stage 1: Suppose the iCAT duration is 2 hours. You have solved 60 questions (40%) out of a possible 150 questions (100%). So Remaining questions = 90. Time yourself and solve these un-attempted 90 questions. 60 questions were solved in 2 hrs. So 90 questions would require 3 hrs. Now these questions must be the tougher bunch. So add 20-30 minutes more to the allocated time.

b)      Stage 2: After Stage 1, there might still be left-over questions. Now, solve them without timing yourself. Some of the questions might still be left unanswered.

c)       Stage 3: Check your answers against the key. Note down the number of correct and incorrect answers. Don’t look at the solutions right away. Re-attempt the incorrect ones without looking at the solutions.

d)      Stage 4: Now, view all the answers from the solution booklet. Check if the approach in the solution booklet is the same/longer/shorter than yours. Check the solutions to the questions you couldn’t answer at all. If you can’t understand any of the methods, take help from reliable sources.

e)      Stage 5: Classify the questions into EASY (can be solved in less than 60 seconds, less or no calculations), MODERATE (takes 60-90 seconds for solving, more calculations) and DIFFICULT (takes more than 90 seconds to solve, long calculations, close options etc.) depending on your perception. Tabulate the questions attempted/left correctly/incorrectly in Stage 1 & 2.

4.       Summary and Analysis

a)      Depending on the above tabulations, understand your strengths and weaknesses.

                  

b)      Go back to the weak areas and gain necessary knowledge. Try to increase the number of attempts the next time. But don’t sacrifice accuracy. Be thorough with Tables, conversion of fractions into percentages & vice-versa, square & cubes, etc. Better Reading skills are a necessity for long questions and passages. Ego Management is of prime importance. Don’t hold onto a question for too long thinking that you can crack it.

c)       Ability to Identify Easy Questions(IEQ):

Measure: IEQ = 100 x (No. of easy questions attempted / Total no. of easy questions in the test)

Aim for IEQ= 80%+.

d)      Accuracy(Ac): Check your accuracy at each stage and try to identify the reasons for making mistakes. Reasons for Less Accuracy: Carelessness in Calculation, Application of wrong formulae, Missing out some critical data, Hastiness arising out of desire to attempt more questions, etc.

Measure: Ac = 100 X (No. of questions attempted & right / No. of questions attempted)

Aim for Ac = 80%+.

e)      Ability to Avoid Difficult Questions (ADS):

Measure: D = 100 x (No. of difficult questions attempted/Total no. of difficult questions in the test)

Aim for ADS =less than 10%

5.       Additional Analysis

a)      Discrepancy between your estimated score and the score reported on the website:

If you find a difference of more than 2 in your attempts, right or wrong answers, between the estimated marks and the website marks, it is possible that darkening of ovals done by you on the OMR sheet is improper. Don’t lose unnecessary marks.

b)      The iCAT Feedback: It will help you place yourself nationally. You will get a review of your performance and a report of what is expected of you to get through.

c)       Target Setting: Know that the ABSOLUTE SCORE might not increase with successive iCATs. This is due to the fact that all iCATs are not of the same difficulty level.

All the best for CBT CAT.