Is CAT Exam Tough? Key Points IIM Aspirants Must Know

Is the CAT exam tough to crack? This is among the most common questions asked by management aspirants and students who look to step into the field of management studies.

CAT or the Common Admission Test is undoubtedly one of the top competitive exams in India. It is conducted as an entrance exam for management graduation at IIM. Every year, nearly 2 to 3 lac candidates apply for this exam for a handful of seats. For instance, for the CAT 2021 exam, there are over 2.3 lac applications. The number of seats remains limited.

But if you are wondering whether the CAT exam is tough, the answer is that it is not. It becomes challenging to crack the exam, especially because of the high competition to get admission into IIM colleges in India. But most of the aspirants take too much load, thinking that it is almost impossible for them to crack it.

Those who have appeared for the exam multiple times and those who have cracked it say that scoring excellent marks in CAT is mostly about your patience and playing things smartly. It is because the Common Aptitude Test is not about a syllabus-based exam. Instead, it is completely based on aptitude and tests candidates for their time management, problem-solving, comprehension, and aptitude skills. Those who crack it are the ones who are aware of some smart tactics, shortcuts, and applications of concepts in an intelligent manner.

Difficulty level of CAT

While it is crucial for every aspirant to put in his hard work into studies, the methodologies and tactics applied for solving the questions also play a big role. Enrolling in the best coaching for CAT, choosing the right books and study material, solving mock tests regularly, preparing according to a strategy, etc., are some important points that matter if you want to crack the CAT exam.

Among the list of candidates appearing for the CAT exam, there are plenty of them from engineering colleges, who once appeared for the IIT JEE exams. IIT JEE is considered the most difficult exam in India because it includes subjects like Physics, Chemistry, and Maths. But for those who like these subjects, the exam wouldn’t feel too tough.

The same goes with CAT. If you have good analytical skills, logical skills, and reading comprehension skills, then you can prepare for it and not find it very tough.

The main thing worth noting is that you need to trust yourself and prepare strategically to ace the exam. Don’t take any leaves throughout your CAT online preparation; keep yourself focused on it, and always meet your everyday goals.

Let’s understand this with an example. During school, you might have participated in or seen the 100-meter race. Was it tough to win for you? The answer will be different for everyone. Some might say YES because they were not used to running, were lazy or fat. On the other hand, some will say NO because they enjoyed playing sports, running, and doing outdoor activities.

Crucial Aspects of CAT Exam

Below are some crucial points to know about CAT which makes it look tough:

Questions Attempt Rate

You might have heard from many that the time given in the CAT exam is not sufficient to answer all questions. But the fact is that CAT is not about answering all questions. Instead, it is created to test the aptitude skills, the ability and thinking of students to identify the right questions to answer strategically, what to avoid, how to optimize accuracy rate, and reduce the negative marking.

Speed

Since you will feel a lack of time during the exam, you need to find a set of questions that you can answer quickly and save more time for some difficult questions. In addition, you need to work on your reading and comprehension speed, especially for the Reading Comprehension and Verbal Ability section.

Accuracy Rate

Since the exam has a rule for negative marking, it is important for the candidates to have a high accuracy rate. One wouldn’t like to attempt the questions that they can’t answer correctly. Therefore, it is about finding the questions that can be attempted with at least 85% accuracy.

Wrapping Up:

The CAT exam is undoubtedly tough and difficult to crack because of high competition. But if you have the will to study management from an IIM college, you must put in your efforts, enroll in the best CAT online course, follow a smart strategy, work on your weaknesses, and pave the path to achieving your goals.