Cat-2009

CAT 2009 is the Entrance test for gaining admission into top B-schools of India.

Those who are preparing to study in any of the reputed MBA institutes in India, they are well aware of the Common Admission Test, better known as CAT.  CAT is a test held annually for the admission to the Post-graduate diploma and Fellow Programs in management courses of several top management institutes in India. The USP for CAT is the IIMS. CAT is a written examination organized by the Indian Institutes of Management (IIM) and it is on the basis of CAT result that the eligible candidates are short listed and called for a Group Discussion and Personal Interview.

CAT is considered to be a major requirement for a candidate seeking admission to the prestigious management institutes of India. The percentile secured in CAT is assessed by the B-Schools in India for short-listing candidates for admissions to their various MBA Programs.

CAT has become one of the most competitive exams to judge the potential of the candidates willing to pursue their career in business administration.

CAT 2009 Eligibility Criteria:

For applying to the CAT 2009, a candidate must hold a Bachelor’s Degree, with at least 50% marks or equivalent CGPA [45% in case of candidates belonging to SC/ ST or Persons with Disability], of any of the Universities or Institutes recognized by the UGC or the Ministry of HRD, Government of India. The Bachelor’s Degree or equivalent qualification obtained by the candidate must be of minimum three years duration after completing Higher Secondary schooling (10+2) or equivalent. Candidates in their final year of graduation/ equivalent qualification and those who have completed the exams and are awaiting results are also eligible for the CAT 2009. They must produce a certificate from the Principal / Head of the Department/ Registrar/ Director of the University / Institution certifying that he / she is currently in the final year awaiting final results.

Obtaning the CAT 2009 Application Form:
The Common Admission Test application form and the bulletin can be obtained from the selected branches of Axis Bank on payment of Rs. 1300/- (Rs. 650/- for SC/ST candidates). Under exceptional circumstances, CAT 2009 application form and bulletin can also be obtained from any of the IIMs by sending a crossed demand draft of Rs. 1300/- (Rs. 650/- for SC/ST candidates) drawn in favor of the respective IIM. Request for the bulletin should be accompanied by a cloth lined self-addressed unstamped envelope of 12” x 10”. Please note that the prices are indicative and might differ from that mentioned in the CAT 2009 notification.

CAT 2009 Results:

CAT 2009 results would be available from somewhere around January 2010. CAT 2009 results can be accessed on www.catiim.in and also by using sms facility or by sending a mail. SMS should be sent to 57333 after inserting ‘CAT test registration number date of birth (dd mm yy)’ or ‘CAT test registration number application number”. For getting CAT 2008 results by e-mail, candidates should register themselves between October 17, 2008 and November 30, 2008 by sending an SMS to 57333 with the following text: ‘CAT test registration number date of birth (dd mm yy) email identification.

CAT Preparation MBA Learning Centers

The MBA learning centers groom the students by providing them with the necessary study materials and making them aware of the mistakes to be avoided during the CAT exam. They also take Mock Tests to evaluate the potential of the students and give them the feedback. Some of these learning centers are -

SHARPMINDS
T.I.M.E
Career Launcher
Top Careers and You
Prime Tutor
Bulls Eye IGNOU Tutor
Planetetutors

CAT Papers Pattern

The CAT question paper usually has four different segments, namely, Verbal Ability, Reading Comprehension, Problem Solving and Data Interpretation. These multiple choices questions and are required to be answered only with a HB pencil on a computer coded OMR answer sheet (CAT 2009 might not be Online!!!). For each incorrect answer you get negative marks. Every year, the IIMs are known to change the question pattern to prevent predictability for the CAT exam. Prospective students should therefore have a deeper understanding of concepts and their applications to succeed in the CAT. It is to be noted that you have to perform well in all the three sections of the CAT as the test evaluates the overall aptitude of the student.

The number of candidates appearing for CAT every year seems to be growing steadily and the online method would prove to be successful in terms of the vast number of IIM aspirants appearing every year. The year 2007 saw about 2,30,000 students writing the CAT test and in 2008 the more than 3,00,000 (source: business standard) aspirants appeared for the CAT. It is believed that the IIM is planning to outsource the project to an IT firm specializing in education and training services though the IIMs hold complete control of setting the question papers. If everything workd out well then the CAT may go online in 2009.

Cracking the CAT 2009 – Strategy

1. The accuracy or strike rate
While each correct answer was awarded 4 positive mark, each incorrect question carried a penalty of 1 mark. Hence, it is important to get a strike rate of over 85% – that is reduce the number of negatives. Though speed is important, in a paper like CAT 2006 paucity of time was not one of the primary factors that determimed success. Most students found the time provided to be adequate. What set the winners apart was the accuracy.

2. Smart Selection
As it is clear that you will not be generally able to attempt all 300 marks question, and you skip between 25 to 30 questions, the key to success lies in selecting questions properly. Hence, it is important to remember that there are no kudos, nobel prizes or awards waiting for attempting the tough questions. Be smart in choosing, the easiest of the questions and the ones that you have practised a lot and get them right. Do not venture into unsafe territories. Essentially, do not try any question about which you only have a vague idea.

CAT and entrance tests of other top B Schools are a unique breed of entrance exams. They focus on testing some of the basic qualities essential for managers – the grit to work hard, smartness to choose the best alternative, quick thinking and above all perseverance.

Exams like IIT JEE test the depth of your knowledge, while the Civil Services exams test your width of knowledge. CAT evaluates your presence of mind and the ability to perform under pressure. You cannot prepare for CAT during the last 10 days, as one generally does for college semester exams. A minimum of 3 to 9 months of regular preparation is recommended however there have been cases where aspirants have cleared the CAT with excellent percentiles without any formal preparation.

This is an indicative information. For the exact information Candidates and Students will have to wait for the formal announcement for CAT 2009 by the organising institute.

[Source:-http://www.mbapursuit.com]

CAT 2008 Analysis – Consistent with the tradition of surprise

Well, Well. Well!! The big event is over and I must say it did not disappoint any of us, at least our expectation that it would throw at least some surprise, some twist, the CAT kept up with its habit.

The mega event, Common Admission Test (CAT) – 2008 was held successfully at more than 160 centers across the country on Sunday the 16th of November. Over 260,000 candidates appeared for the test to grab one of the 1,800-odd seats available in the seven IIMs.

As for the surprise, sure it was there, it surprised students and teachers alike as it followed some old trends which the pre-1998 papers had followed. The first surprise for the students was the number of questions. There were total of 90 questions distributed across three sections – Quantitative Aptitude, Data Interpretation, English Usage and Reading Comprehension, in contrast to 75 questions last year and year before that.

The second shocker was the higher weightage for Verbal Section. In fact the 15 additional questions were all in Verbal Ability section, which had 40 questions instead of 25, the other sections maintained status quo in terms of number of questions i.e. Quantitative Aptitude and Logical & Data Interpretation sections had 25 questions each.

If we talk about the difficulty level, most of us agree that the overall toughness of the paper was at best “Moderate”. The Quantitative Aptitude section was of a higher level of difficulty than the previous year. The LR questions were rather easier as compared to the DI questions. In Verbal Ability section questions were of Easy to Moderate level of difficulty.

Section wise Analysis:-

Quantitative Aptitude

The QA had total of 25 questions that covered topics viz. Numbers, Time, Speed and Distance, Ratio and Proportion, Quadratic Equations, Progressions, Functions, Permutation and Combination, Plane Geometry and Mensuration. There were two Data Sufficiency (5 Options-Standard) based questions two LR based questions.

Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning

The DI and LR section had 12 questions from Logical Reasoning and 13 questions from Data Interpretation. The LR questions were on Data Arrangement and Mathematical Reasoning. While the questions related to Bar Chart, Scatter Diagram, Table and Logic based DI constituted the DI part of this section. The LR questions were easier compared to the DI questions.

Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension

The section had total 40 questions i.e. 20 questions on RC and 20 questions on English Usage and Verbal Ability. Most of the questions in this section were based on grammar, usage and vocabulary concepts. Complete the paragraph questions were rather confusing.

The VA had usual questions like Fill in the Blanks, correct usage etc. There were more grammar-based questions which involved identifying punctuation, spelling and logical errors etc. Similarly, the toughness of RC questions was moderate to tough. It had four passages: on Sociology, Language, History and Art respectively, all with 5 questions each. Overall the section was easy to tackle and it gave more chances to students to maximize their score.

Scheme of CAT’08

Total Number of Questions – 90
Total Time – 150 minutes
The Marking Scheme – +4 for each correct answer; -1 mark for each incorrect answer
Total Marks – 360
Numbers of Choices – 5
Number of sets Available – 4
Sectional Time Limit – There were four sections and there was no sectional time constraint