Participating Institutes in CAT 2012

The number of IIMs is going up. The current number of IIMs is 13. To the list of IIM Ahmedabad, IIM Bangalore, IIM Lucknow, IIM Calcutta, IIM Kozhikode, IIM Shillong, IIM Indore, the ones which started functioning since last year, IIM Ranchi, IIM Rohtak and IIM Raipur have been added. IIM Trichy, IIM Kashipur and IIM Udaipur have also started to function this year.

Although the total number of B-schools that will consider CAT 2011 scores is 136, which is less than the number of B-schools which accepted CAT 2010 scores, which was 147, the encouraging sign this year has been the entry of new institutions who have enlisted themselves for considering CAT 2011 scores.

Mudra Institute of Communication Ahmedabad (MICA), which did not accept the scores of CAT exam since 2009, will accept the score this year onwards. Xavier Institute of Management Bhubaneswar (XIMB), the prominent B-School in Eastern India which is known for accepting XAT scores is also there in the list of institutes accepting CAT 2011 scores.

The other national institutes that have joined CAT this year are: Vinod Gupta School of Management, IIT Kharagpur; Department of Management Studies, School of Management, Pondicherry University; Faculty of Management Studies, Banaras Hindu University; National Institute of Technology, Tiruchirappalli; Indian Institute of Forest Management, Bhopal; National Institute of Technology, Calicut; National Institute of Technology Karnataka, Surathkal; University of Hyderabad, School of Management Studies.

Various national universities will accept CAT 2011 scores for their department of management studies. Some of the prominent names are Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi ; University School of Management, Kurukshetra University; The Business School, University of Jammu; University Business School, Punjab University; University of Lucknow, Institute of Management Science and University of Calcutta, Department of Commerce, West Bengal.

The prominent private B-schools which will accept CAT 2011 scores are: International Management Institute (IMI), New Delhi & Kolkata; Management Development Institute (MDI), Gurgaon; T A Pai Management Institute (TAPMI), Manipal; IFIM Business School, Bangalore; Welingkar Institute of Management Development & Research, Mumbai & Bangalore; K J Somaiya Institute of Management Studies & Research, Mumbai; S P Jain Institute of Management Research (SPJIMR), Mumbai; Xavier Institute of Management (XIM) Bhubaneswar; Bharathidasan Institute of Management (BIM), Tiruchirappalli; Birla Institute of Management Technology (BIMTECH), Greater Noida; Indian Institute of Social Welfare & Business Management (IISWBM), Kolkata etc.

CAT 2012: How 100 percentiler Deepak Mehta got through IIM A

If you have scored a whopping 100 percentile in CAT exam, and have performed decently in the GD, PI and Essay Writing rounds, a seat in the apex B-School of the country is reserved for you.  Here we are talking about CAT 2010 topper Deepak Mehta, who scored 100 percentile in the exam and secured calls for GD, PI and Essay Writing from IIM Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Calcutta, Lucknow, Kozhikode and FMS. After receiving the final admission call from IIM Ahmedabad and IIM Calcutta, Deepak has decided to join IIM Ahmedabad.

Deepak has done his graduation in Computer Engineering from BITS Pilani Goa campus. He has graduated in the year 2011.

Excerpts from the interview:

Q: Apart from CAT 2010 what are the other MBA entrance you had taken and what are your scores?
A:   Apart from CAT, I also appeared for XAT and FMS. I got 99.89 percentile in XAT and around 480 marks in FMS.

Q: How many GD&PI rounds have you had? Please share your experience in detail.
A: I have had six GD PI rounds, one each for IIM Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Calcutta, Lucknow, Kozhikode and FMS. Most of the IIMs have scraped the GD part and included an essay in its place. And FMS has an extempore round in addition to GD and PI.

The topics for the GDs/ Essays were diverse, but mostly related to general awareness. It was not too specific. So even if you don't know anything, you can always come with enough points to write a decent one.
The PIs were also varied. Some institutes asked a lot of technical questions related to my stream (Computer Science) whereas some were purely HR in nature.

Q: Which are the institutes offered you final admission? Which institute have you decided to take admission in?
A: I got final calls from IIM Ahmedabad and IIM Calcutta.  I will be joining IIM Ahmedabad. The decision comes after a lot of discussion with my mentors, my friends and my seniors in IIM Ahmedabad and Calcutta alike.

Q: What are the differences among the exams you had taken? How did you prepare for each of them? Please share in detail.
A: There was no substantial difference in the three exams. The ‘syllabus’ for all three was essentially the same. The only difference was that the number of questions in FMS was very high. (200 questions compared to 60 of CAT). So ‘speed’ was an important factor during the FMS exam as the questions were relatively easy.

Q: What was your strategy for GD, PI & Essay Writing preparation?
A: I just updated myself on the current happenings and also brushed through my technical courses.

Q: What were your strategies for Quantitative Ability, Verbal Ability and Data Interpretation preparation? Please share in detail.
A: Quantitative Ability & Data Interpretation was relatively easy as I am from engineering background. And so was LR. As for Verbal Ability, I read a lot of books. I had already read around 60 to 70 before I decided to go for CAT. Apart from that, the only thing I did was go through the material given to me by the Career Launcher faculty and focus on the test series.

Q: What was your experience on taking the computer based CAT?
A: The experience was ok. I was accustomed to the pattern as my BITSAT test was also online. And I had also given a lot of (around 25) mock tests before the actual one.

Q: What is your advice to the CAT 2012 candidates for preparing for the computer based CAT?
A: Nothing to worry about. A couple of mock tests and you should be comfortable with the format.

Q: What should be the overall strategy for CAT 2012 preparation in regards to time management?
A: Try and complete the sections in advance and revise properly. As per the new format, you won't be able to go back to the first section of Quantitative Ability & Data Interpretation one the stipulated time is over. Then go back and ensure that you have attempted enough questions in each section so as to clear the sectional cut-offs.

Q: Any other message you would like to convey to the CAT 2012 aspirants?
A: Just focus on you preparations. Never compare yourself with some other or get scared if someone is scoring more than you. Don't get disheartened if you get low marks in some particular mock test.

Stay tuned to MBAUniverse.com for more on Topper Mantras.

Can you crack CAT 2012 without coaching? Know from the toppers

MBAUniverse.com did an exclusive article saying that the enrollments have gone up in the MBA coaching institutes which can be an indicator of the rising number of CAT 2012 takers. But are the CAT aspirants who go for coaching the only representatives of the CAT takers? No. If you reach out, you will find several aspirants, who are preparing for CAT all by themselves! They are a bunch of confident and dedicated people who have enough faith in themselves to fulfill the dream of cracking CAT exam, which is dreaded by many, even by them, who go for MBA coaching.

Are you amongst them, who have not joined any MBA coaching institute and are preparing by themselves? Are you feeling a bit jittery about your approach? Do you want to know what the steps are which you need to take for moving in the right way? This article of MBAUniverse.com will tell you the steps or the paths which you need to move successfully towards your aim of cracking CAT 2012. 

Make a time table

Since discipline is the keyword here, you need to be honest to yourself and prepare a proper time table which you feel can be maintained by you. First identify your daily activities. If you are a student, then most of the day must be spent by you in college or graduation studies and other activities. So you have to take out a time which you feel is comfortable for your CAT exam studies.  Then find out the right time to study when you can prepare with full concentration. You should give equal stress to all the sections so that no particular section is hampered. Also, you should not ignore your weak sections. “I strictly stuck to equal allotment to all sections and it always helped me in getting balanced sectionals,” says Yawar Khan, who obtained 91 percentile in CAT 2010 and converted NMIMS Mumbai.

Regarding the time to utilize for studying, Kedar Baxi, a 92 percentiler in CAT 2010 suggests, “Give at least two to three hours a day of sincere effort. This time would then increase for the last month. And in the last week or so just revise what you have learned so far, the types of questions and the variations in them.”

Get the right books and preparation material

Since you are studying on your own, you need to get the right books and materials which can help you to prepare for the tough MBA exam like the CAT Exam.

The CAT preparation books which are invariably mentioned by the experts are as follows:

Verbal Book: Build your basic first

Author : S.k.Agarwal

This book is about to prepare for verbal ability from the basics. In this book the simplest language is written that a weak student can also understand and learn in a well manner. To crack CAT the basic knowledge of verbal is very necessary that basic knowledge of verbal ability a aspirant can grasp from this book name-BUILD YOUR BACICS FIRST,by S.K.Agarwal, His abilities to teach students in the simplest form complementing his rich experience has been his mantra to infuse energy in the students and boost their morale and confidence level.

Quant Book: Quant E-Book

 

Author : Ravi Handa

 

The e-book is a unique 60 page reading material which consists of all the formulas & tips which students’ often requires while preparing for management exams like CAT, XAT and others. This book will be a comprehensive guide for the students who now need not hunt for their 10th and 12th standard books for formulas and in addition will help them learn the tricks and trades to solve lengthy problems in less than half-the-time spent earlier while practicing numerical at home.

Some other books are also useful to cat 2012 preparation

‘High School English Grammar and Composition’ by Wren and Martin, ‘Quantitative Aptitude for MBA Entrance Examinations’ by Abhijit Guha, How to prepare for the Data Interpretation for CAT’ by TATA-McGraw Hill publications, ‘The Pearson Guide to Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning for the CAT’ by Nishit K Sinha, ‘Business English and Communication’ by Clark Grade C, ‘Biz World – The Complete Business Awareness Guide’ by Ravi Handa & Avinash Maurya and many more.

Enroll into a test series

While you study hard and prepare for CAT 2012, it is also very important to know the status of your preparation. In coaching institutes you get experts and mentors, who constantly guide you. But while you are doing self preparation for CAT 2012, it is your responsibility to check your preparation status. For that, the best idea is to join a test series of a good MBA coaching institute.

You can avail the test series by either enrolling for the test series from the top MBA coaching institutes. Or you can also take tests from the CAT coaching websites. For e.g. IMS Learning provides ‘Test Packs’ for CAT Preparation and the Simulated Tests for the Correspondence students. Websites like Test Funda, TCYonline.com, MBAUniverse.com etc. also provides practice tests for CAT Preparation through which you can not only judge your preparation, but can also learn the correct method to solve as they provide explanatory answers as well.

Deepak Mehta, a 100 percentiler in CAT 2010 and a first year student of IIM Ahmedabad tells the importance of taking mock tests. “A couple of mock tests should be enough to make you feel comfortable with the format. Three months before the test take mock tests at regular intervals. After every test, go through the analysis and try and figure out your strengths and weaknesses and try to work on them.” He also suggests on the strategy on taking the test, “Try and complete one round of the entire paper in 1.5 hours or less. Then go back and ensure that you have attempted enough questions in each section so as to clear the sectional cut-offs.”

Make a study group and be at par with peers

Studying in a group always helps. There is information sharing and you can always know where you stand in comparison of your peers as far as MBA preparation is concerned. If you stand a better position than them, you can help them and hence check how good you have understood the concepts. Or if you see your peers ahead of you, don’t hesitate to take their help as well. “MBA aspirants who are doing self preparation for MBA Exam can learn lots of new things among their study groups. For e.g. somebody who is good in Quantitative Ability can give some tips for solving quant problems and someone good in English can offer some advice for solving Verbal Ability questions,” says Amit Tandon, an IIM Ahmedabad alumnus.

Keep in touch with the current affairs

You need to constantly update your general knowledge as it is an integral part of your entire CAT 2012 preparation. You need to read newspapers, magazines as well as listen or watch one TV and radio bulletin everyday so that you can keep yourself updated on the general knowledge and current affairs quotient.

Apart from current affairs which you can utilize in the Group Discussion and Personal Interview round, you can also boost up your Reading Comprehension, Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning sections for MBA Exam.

Keep the motivation level high

To tread the path towards your goal is of extremely tough and you need to maintain the motivation level. Don’t let any question on your ability creep in your mind. Let us hear what the yester year’s CAT toppers have to say on keeping your motivation level high.

Deepak Mehta says, “Just focus on you preparations. Never compare yourself with some other or get scared if someone is scoring more than you. Don't get disheartened if you get low marks in some particular mock test.”

Kumar Anubhav, 99.15 percentiler in CAT 2010 and an IIM Rohtak student says, “Keep competing and above all like what you are doing and enjoy it because unless you do so, you may never be able to give your 100 per cent. Do your best and leave the rest to God. Best of Luck to everybody appearing for CAT 2012.”