DECODING CAT EXAM 2024: Overview, Eligibility, Timeline, Forms details, Syllabus, Materials, Preparation Strategy.

Common Admission Test(CAT) 2024, the most prestigious entrance exam for MBA, about more than 2.5 lakh candidates sit for this competitive exam. It’s the most popular exam to get into top B-schools in India to do MBA. It is known to be the toughest exam which is conducted by the top IIMs on a rotational basis, the previous year CAT 2023 was conducted by IIM Lucknow, this year it is expected to be conducted by IIM Calcutta. Every year it is held on the 3rd week of November. The official announcement of CAT 2024 with full details will be seasoned in July 2024.

OVERVIEW

PARTICULARS	DETAILS
CAT full form	Common admission test
Exam mode	Computer-based test
Duration of exam	2 hours (120 minutes), each section 40 minutes each
Conducting IIM for 2024	IIM Calcutta (to be expected)
Exam Level	National
Exam frequency	Once a year
Number of test cities	155
Exam fees	General category- INR 2,400 Reserved category- INR 1,200
CAT Exam website	https://iimcat.ac.in

ELIGIBILITY

• Candidates must have an aggregate of a minimum of 50% of the semester at the time of admission (45% for reserved category candidates).
• Candidates must have a graduation degree of a minimum of 3 years from a recognised body.
• No upper age limit is defined.
• Candidates with professional degrees like CA/CS and others are also eligible for CAT 2024, with a minimum acceptable percentage.

DECODING CAT EXAM 2024, HOW IT IS CONDUCTED

CAT 2024 is expected to be conducted by IIM Calcutta. Six IIMs who conduct CAT on a rotational basis, are IIM Ahmedabad, IIM Bangalore, IIM Calcutta, IIM  Lucknow, IIM Kozhikode, CAT 2023 is conducted by IIM Lucknow.

It’s a computer-based test with multiple-choice questions and some TITA questions. The question paper language will be in English only. It is divided into three main sections: Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension(VARC), Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning (DTLR) and Quantitative Ability (QA). There are a total of 66 questions, each section is allotted 40 minutes. For every correct answer, the mark allotted is 3 points and for every wrong answer 1 mark is deducted (negative marking). NOTE: only MCQ-based questions have negative markings, TITA questions and unattempted questions do not have negative markings.

CAT 2024 TIMELINE:

CAT EXAM EVENTS	CAT EXAM TIMELINE 2024 ( Tentative)
CAT 2024 notification release	30 July 2024
CAT 2024 Registration date	03 August 2024 – 15 September 2024
CAT 2024 form correction	Last week of September 2024
CAT 2024 admit card	25 October 2024
CAT 2024 exam date	24 November 2024 (tentative)
CAT 2024 answer key	The first week of December 2024
CAT 2024 result	Last week of December 2024 or first week of January 2025.

Disclaimer: These dates are tentative and will change after the official announcement.

FORM DETAILS:

CAT exam registration date is expected to be between 3 August 2024 to 15 September 2024. It requires a three-step process to register for the CAT exam 2024. The stages include online registration, filling up the details of CAT form and payment of fees.

STEP 1: Online registration

• Go to the official website iimcat.ac.in
• On the ‘New Candidate Registration’, Click on the ‘Register’ tab
• Enter name, date of birth, email ID, phone number and nationality
• Click on ‘Generate OTP’
• After successful registration, an OTP will be sent to the registered mobile number
• Verify it by entering the OTP.

STEP 2: filling the Application form

Once the verification is done, the candidates will receive their user ID and password on the registered email ID and given mobile number.

After login with the given user ID and password. CAT 2024 registration window will be open where candidates need to fill in the asked details.

• Personal details including candidate name, their guardian name etc
• Academic details include date of birth, category, gender, nationality, etc
• Work experience consists of the name of the company, duration of employment etc
• Programmes section includes a list of IIM institutes and the MBA programs candidates want to go to or pursue respectively.
• Test city, candidates can select six cities in order of their test city preference
• Payment method is selected in this section, candidates can pay using a credit/debit card. Internet banking or mobile wallets.

STEP-3: Application fee

The last step in the CAT exam 2024 is paying the fee for the application form. After inserting all the required details click on ‘save and continue’ to land on the payment window.

CAT 2024 SYLLABUS

CAT 2024 Syllabus is divided into three sections: VARC, DILR and QA.

VARC syllabus:

Fill in the blanks	Para completion and inference	Verbal logic	Phrases modifiers
Verbal reasoning	Subject-verb agreement	Different usage of same word	Preposition
Sentence completion	Reading comprehension	Idioms	Errors in tenses
Grammar	Sentence correction	Antonyms	para jumbles
Syllogisms	Analogies	One word substitution	Types of clauses
Jumbled paragraphs	Foreign language words used in English	Parts of speech	Articles usage

DILR syllabus:

Blood Relations	Proposition	Puzzles	Bars & Line Graphs
Clocks and Calendars	Data Arrangement	Family Tree	Sets & Caselets
Syllogism	Data Structures	Direction Sense	Seating Arrangement
Series	Data Sufficiency	Tables	Venn Diagram
Statements	Assumptions	Binary Logic	Coding-Decoding

QUANTITATIVE syllabus:

Geometry	Profit and loss	Time-Speed-Distance	Number system
Trigonometry	Mean, median, mode	Geometric Progression	Binomial theorem
Algebra	Rations and Proportion	Inequalities	Percentages
Mensuration	In-equations Quadratic and linear equations	Work and Time	Probability
Partnership (accounts)	Surds and Indices	Logarithms	Simple and compound interest

CAT EXAM 2024 BOOKS AND MATERIALS: 

For QUANTS:

• How to Prepare for Quantitative Aptitude for CAT (8th Edition)- Arun Sharma
• Quantitative Aptitude Quantum CAT- Sarvesh Verma
• Quantitative Aptitude for CAT- Nishit Sinha
• Quantitative Aptitude- RS Aggarwal

For VARC:

• How to Prepare for Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension for CAT- Arun Sharma and Meenakshi Upadhyay/Arihant
• How to Prepare for Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension for the CAT- Sharma and Upadhyay
• PSC for VA for CAT- Nishit Sinha

For QA:

• NCERT Mathematics books (Class 9-10)- NCERT
• How to Prepare for Quantitative Aptitude for the CAT- Arun Sharma
• Quantitative Aptitude Quantum CAT- Sarvesh Verma
• Quantitative Aptitude- RS Aggarwal

CAT 2024 PREPARATION STRATEGY

CAT exam 2024 preparation is started by the CAT aspirant. The ideal time to crack the CAT exam 2024 starts in March to get the 9-month study time. It is the most crucial as well as the memorable time for the CAT aspirants. The CAT exam is the toughest exam for MBA in India. Aspirants look for top B- schools to get admission into MBA programs and  Over 2.5 lakh candidates sit for the CAT exam, making it more competitive. So for the most competitive exam, candidates need to strategies their study plan to get a good percentile in the CAT 2024 exam. The right plan never exists, you need to change your plan accordingly.

Here are some kickstart study tips for MBA aspirants:

• Understand the CAT syllabus: The first and foremost thing an aspirant should do is to know the syllabus of the exam after knowing what CAT 2024 is. The syllabus is vast for the CAT exam but it’s not rocket science. With better knowledge of the syllabus and with the right study plan anyone can get a good percentile.
• Understand the CAT exam pattern: candidates should know in advance what type of pattern comes in the CAT 2024 exam. There were three sections VARC, DILR and QA, with the equal number of time allotted to each section which is 40 minutes each. The number of questions as of CAT 2023 was 24, 22, and 20 for Quant, VARC and DILR respectively.
• Identify the colleges that accept CAT exam: candidates should know which colleges other than IIMs, accept CAT exam 2024. List their cutoffs and pinpoint their strategies according to the college they are targeting.
• Analysis of the difficulty of the previous year’s CAT exam: every year every section is ranked according to the level; easy, moderate and difficult. Aspirants should analyze the past 5 years’ papers, check their difficulty level and plan their strategies.
• See for the study materials or required resources: Look for better coaching and good study materials to start your study. Don’t look for every book or material, it will confuse you. Try looking for relevant and most-rated books and other aspirants used for their strategies.
• Learn the journey of the IIMs toppers: IIMs toppers were once the CAT aspirant and they got their dream to be called IIMs topper. They have also used strategies and worked hard to get this title. Making their stories your aspiration will not only motivate you but also give you a roadmap for the right strategy.
• Create a study plan: prepare a good timetable for your CAT preparation and be consistent about it.

VARC Preparations:

VARC is divided into two subparts: verbal ability and reading comprehension. The VARC section in 2024 had 24 questions within 40 minutes, where the correct answer had 3 points and the wrong answer had 1 point deduction (negative marking), no deduction for TITA questions. The section has total marks of 72 marks.

Preparing tips:

1. Read daily as much as you can, and be consistent about it
2. Read different topics to grasp the knowledge of all, so that you won’t find difficulty in reading during the exam in rc section.
3. Write down the key phrases you find that might help you.
4. Work on your vocabulary.
5. Practice, practice, and practice.

QA Preparations:

Now comes the most loved and the most hated part of the CAT exam 2024 quants.in 2023 for the CAT exam, there were 22 questions with total marks of 66. Candidates need to solve this section within 40 minutes only, which is quite possible with the right strategy.

Preparation tips:

1. Get done with your basics first
2. Find shortcuts to solve questions quickly
3. Learn Vedic math
4. Refine your questions, be selective, and do not rush for every questions
5. Prepare your time with each question.
6. Try mocks and previous year’s questions to see what questions are most repeated and try to master them in seconds.

DILR Preparations:

This section is a scoring section; you just need to be selective in the set(s). It assesses the candidates logical reasoning skills and decision making abilities. It is also decided into two subparts DI and LR.

Preparation tips:

1. Time management is the most important in this section. Don’t waste your time solving one question for hours.
2. Select a good set of questions to solve
3. Play with speed and accuracy
4. Familiarize yourself with different types of charts.
5. Regularly solve at least two DI sets and LR sets.

CONCLUSION:

CAT 2024 Exam official notification will be released on July 30, 2024. 6 months generally left for the exam. It will take a lot of hardwork from you, be ready for it , set realistic goals, have a good study plan and be consistent about it. Just trust the process, At last it will all work in favor of you guys and it will be the most precious memorable time of your life.