Tips & Tricks for "Quant for Cat"
To get into one of the prestigious Indian Institutes of Management (IIM) schools you must first achieve an exemplary score in the Common Admission Test (CAT). Quantitative aptitude, or quant, is just one of the sections in these Indian tests. While success in these tests will require high intelligence and hard work, there are a few tips and tricks that can garner a few extra marks.
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Accuracy Over Speed
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CAT is not a normal exam, as it is not imperative that you finish an entire test. The more questions you can answer, the more chance you will have of making the second stage of admission, but this does not come before accuracy. If you are struggling, slow your pace and focus on answering the questions correctly. A good rule of thumb is to attempt at least half of the questions, answering a minimum of 80 percent of these correctly. Though you should strive toward much higher goals, as these are extremely competitive tests
Select Your Own Order
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Since the test will never be completed there is no reason to answer questions in the order they are numbered for you. Select questions you know you can answer first, leaving the difficult ones until later. Studying mock exams will help you identify the types of questions that are suited to your strengths.
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Answering Technique
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When answering questions, it is helpful to eliminate the options you are certain are not correct. As speed is still important, it would be wise to only read the question once and ensure you take everything in. If a question is especially difficult, read the question in between reading each answer. It is only good to be fast if you are also right.
Speed up Answering Time
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Simply trying to understand the question will take up about 80 percent of your time in the quant test. You can improve this by analyzing mock questions until you feel you can decipher a question in less time. The other 20 percent is spent calculating the answer, and this, too, can be practiced. Spend at least 15 minutes per day practicing simple mathematics, such as subtraction, division and multiplication. Ensure that times tables, square numbers and even cubed numbers come natural to you when dealing with numbers below 30. Drill these into your head with daily revision. This may sound basic, but if it can knock some time off from the answering speed then it may be a secret weapon at gaining entry to an IIM.
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