Decoding the changes to the CAT 2020 examination

Lokesh Agarwal

Every year more than 2 lakh students across various disciplines write the CAT exam to get into IIMs and various other prestigious B-schools in the country. Conducted on a yearly rotational basis in the IIMs, this year it will be conducted on November 29, 2020 in three sessions by IIM Indore across 156 test cities in the country.

 Exam Details 2020

Since 2012, the CAT exam details and exam structure has remained the same. However, keeping the pandemic in mind CAT 2020 has brought many changes in the test slots, time duration, number of questions and sectional time limit. These are:

 ● Additional sessions: CAT 2020 will be conducted in three sessions under three sections in the question paper, namely: verbal ability and reading comprehension, data interpretation and logical reasoning, and quantitative ability. An extra session is added this year to accommodate social distancing norms.

● Shorter exam time: CAT 2020 is a computer delivered test of 120 minutes. Additionally candidates will be given only 40 minutes for answering questions in each section. Switching from one section to another while answering questions in a section will not be allowed. The reduced time limit will definitely demand change in the preparation strategy of the candidates

● Lesser questions: Earlier CAT used to have 100 questions divided in three sections, however this year CAT is expected to have 66 to 75 questions.

●  25% no negative marking questions: Around 25% questions will be TITA questions and will have no negative marking.

Impact of pattern changes:

● The number of questions will drop by 25-33%. However, candidates are advised to be prepared for anything between 66-75 questions in the test.

● The cutoff in each section therefore will change accordingly.

● Ratio of MCQs and Non-MCQs will also change.

● Paper composition & difficulty level will be more or less the same.

● The candidates will be required to develop and familiarize themselves to a new test-taking strategy

 How to prepare for changed CAT pattern

While aspirants across the country have appeared in mock tests according to the three hour duration and formalised a strategy based on their performance, the last minute changes brought in by IIM-I have left candidates preparing for more. It may appear as a significant change for a lot of candidates who have already spent considerable time in preparing. Nevertheless, here are key points to note:

●   Not much change is needed in core preparation strategy, except mocks. New CAT 2020 will test the same skills as were tested in the older one

●  At the end of the day, percentiles matter – the number of questions and time limit will change for all aspirants. The core skills & strategy won’t change much

●  Candidates must take mocks according to the new pattern. This will help familiarise them to the new CAT pattern

● Familiarise yourself with the complete syllabus and new exam pattern

● Assemble all the relevant study material at one place

● Make a study schedule and stick to it

● Make notes of important points so that in the last week you can just revise those notes

● Take at least 20 mock tests based on the new pattern

● Analyse every mock thoroughly and identify your mistakes and work on them

● Identify the scope for improvement

● Don’t let the change bother you too much

● Don’t let the negativity take over you, always be confident

● Speed may play a very important role in this year’s CAT. Work on both speed and accuracy

● Do not waste much time on a particular question

CAT 2020 cutoff will be used to shortlist candidates for the further selection process. The selection process will have Group Discussion (GD), Written Ability Test (WAT) and Personal Interview (PI).

New IIMs will conduct a Common Admission Process (CAP) to shortlist candidates for WAT/GD and PI rounds after the CAT result 2020 is declared. Candidates are advised to watch and work on the tutorials that will help them understand the format of the test which is available on the CAT website from October 2020.

These changes to CAT 2020 can be used to the advantage of the candidates if one spends enough time brushing up on their preparation and solving as many mock tests based on the new pattern.

The writer is an Educator at Unacademy