CAT 2007: The best strategy is a flexible one

Strategy in itself seems to be a very loaded word, especially for aspirants preparing for CAT. But it is not, if one understands what is being demanded and in what context. For example, as far as CAT is concerned, a particular strategy means how to handle a given paper, given that one has to score evenly well in all sections to get an interview call. This becomes all the more important because of the following additional reasons:

• The number of aspirants giving CAT per year is around 2 lakhs, which has been increasing at a steady pace.
• Out of these, in all roughly 5,000 aspirants get interview calls from all IIMs (including multiple calls), and this number comes out to be around 2.5 per cent of the initial number, which is pretty low considering the vast number of initial aspirants.
• The exam is pegged to be Asia's toughest -- has tough time limits to counter.
• Share your CAT experiences!
• If one does a little bit of mathematics, an aspirant has even less than a minute to score a single additional mark (48 seconds to be precise, assuming a 150 marks exam).
• Considering all the above factors, it becomes essential to have a particular way of going about the paper, in order to save even a single second per question (in that way an additional 2.5 number of extra questions can be attempted, which could be a killer in CAT parlance). It should also be realised that this strategy is and should be by no means fixed, simply because one never knows what kind of pattern CAT throws up at one's face every year.

The basic aim should be to try to score evenly well in all sections. There can be numerous ways to go about it -- some try to attempt maximum in their favorite section(s), some try to hop around sections searching for questions they can attempt, some even try to get rid of the section they fear most (mostly quantitative ability) by attempting it first.

One thing that remains fundamental to all these strategies is to score well in all sections. One should always try to start by attempting the section(s) one feels comfortable in. This not only increases confidence while the clock ticks, but also calms the mind because one feels the backing of marks as one goes along attempting the subsequent sections.

• CAT 2007: What NOT to do in the last week

Next should be the section in which one feels somewhat less confident, and last should be the least confident section. Some aspirants even try to go exactly the opposite way, starting from least to most confident. What they don't realise is if by any chance they couldn't do well in their least confident section, it may have a substantial effect on the rest of the paper.

Attempting the section you are most confident in first reduces the chances of not doing well in that section even if the section is tough. Remember, it is all about staying calm in the exam which helps the most. The best way to ensure this is to spend first 2 minutes of the exam scanning each of the sections. This way one knows in advance what to expect in any section one wants to start with, and then he/she should formulate the order of her attempt.

The time spent in this way can easily be recovered as one goes on, because one would spend less time on time-consuming questions, since it would always be at the back of his/her mind that other sections have questions (which he/she already had a glimpse of) waiting to be attempted.

One should also keep in mind the fact that RC should be attempted as early as possible. This is because the kind of RC that is coming these days, it requires a lot of concentration, which one can get full use of only if attempted in start. After that as time goes on, the mind may get fatigued (due to doing calculations) which may have deleterious consequences on RC if attempted last.

Also, the English section can be considered to be the best in scoring marks under a given time constraint, simply because of lack of calculations (which can go haywire under severe time constraints). Keep in mind also the fact that just clearing cutoff in section(s) one dreads the most, and scoring heavily in section(s) one loves, is the ideal strategy. One way to ensure this is to give 5-7 minutes less per section (than stipulated one third on the total time), so that one has around 15-17 minutes left in the end. This time can either be used to attempt more questions in the section one feels they haven't done well in (to make sure one clears cutoffs in that), or to attempt more in one's favourite section thereby jacking up the overall score. Also, have at least 3-4 sharpened pencils for the exam -- it saves time when one pencil becomes blunt.

All this may sound heavy to remember, but it is not if one tries to formulate a basic way of going about solving the paper. After all, this is CAT, and so one has to be dead sure they perform well on the final day. All aspirants should be very well aware of the fact that there is no hard and fast rule or strategy for attempting the exam. All the ways listed above are just my thoughts about areas one should be aware of while giving the exam, because even if one isn't aware, your competitor will certainly be.

• CAT 2007 checklist

The best thing above all, to be kept in mind, is that every strategy should be flexible, so that in case any turn-around event occurs (like any section being very tough), things could be turned to your advantage. This is where scanning through all sections in first 2 minutes of the exam comes handy. By doing this, one knows what kind of paper to expect in the next 2 hours and 38 minutes, and how to go about it.

Always keep in mind the above listed points, but never think that you can't budge from them. Giving regular mock tests also prepares one well for the final exam, as all the above tricks can be tried and tested, and after some mock tests one can judge how well a payoff is any trick giving her.

A strategy is of no use if one cannot reap any benefits from it, so it is best to decide at the exam point how to go about the paper. At that point one has an additional advantage of having the next two-and-half-hour exam paper in hand, and so should reap the best out of it. Thus, the best strategy in such an exam is to keep any strategy flexible.