CAT-2014 might offer a sigh of relief but cut offs for B-Schools could go up!

If there’s something that you would really want to know about the upcoming CAT-2014 examinations then it is none other than but the sea changes that have been confirmed about the myriad fronts. Rest assure- there’s no change in syllabus or the content, which means you can carry on your preparations with the same swing but a lot of changes surely went noticeable this time. Now the question that hits the box right on the first go is that how fair it would be for the aspirants to score good percentiles. And also it airs the question about the minimum cut off percentile for the top B-Schools in nation. Surprisingly the changes that have been incorporated are not a trivial one’s but it seems that they have altogether set a brand new scale for evaluations.

Changes are sometimes daunting but sometimes they are equally rewarding too. Like if you talk about the latest changes that have been called in the Common Admission Test then it can be clearly seen that the duration of examination has been outstretched from one hundred forty minutes to one hundred seventy minutes. Now this is surely a cherry on the cake and we shall discuss the same in brief now in order to understand what exactly these changes means to an aspirant.

Unfolded time gap means time management goes easy!

People called it a clever call by CAT when the time duration was revised followed by increased number of questions. Now that you have 30 minutes extra with you- the time allowed per question was automatically axed down from 2.3 minutes to 1.7 minutes. However, this could open more possibility and all that matters is speed, undoubtedly. So surely, striking out maximum number of questions in 170 minutes won’t be a child’s play.

High pressure mounting up every second!

With extra 30 minutes of time for examinations, longer duration will certainly call for a little bit of more practice. Mock tests series have really been proved beneficial in this very regard but one has to be really specific about the appropriate timing and closing a particular question in a given time frame. Certainly, one cannot master the art without even being pushed through some practices. Thus, your first hand encounter with the mock sessions will keep you mentally ready for all the upcoming.

Limited sessions to ensure quick wind up!

Earlier where the CAT was supposed to take place in 40 sessions, the CAT-2014 examination has curbed the same in just 4 sessions stretching over 2 days only. There have been a lot of say in this very regard but if you are really serious about belling the CAT then this year might hold something really good for you.

CAT 2013 Examinations:

Total time allotted: 140 minutes.

Number of questions in each section: 30 each in 2 sections.

CAT 2014 Examinations what’s new

Total time allotted: 170 minutes.

Number of questions in each section: 50 each in 2 sections.

Less time per question, which might probably mean a slight reduction in the level of toughness.

So, a new tweak in the CAT-2014 Examinations seems to be pretty promising and one can surely score a decent percentile with sincere and uncompromised efforts over the time. Nonetheless, it was a dual sided blade that was thrown openly in the air when IIMs allowed a switch between the sections. However, you have to have a razor sharp decision making ability in order to hit the right chord at just the right point of time. And also try to avoid wasting time on one section and killing time when you have an option of opting for comparatively easier questions in other sections. It’s a fair deal and with consistent efforts- who knows that you’re next in the IIMs shortlisted candidates list.

 Author Bio: Shadman Alvi is professional writer. Blogging and writing for myriad of social media platform is what excites him. He believes that newness and novelty are the two driving force that can make anything black and white- colorful. He enjoys experimenting with various techniques and implementing the same on print and web alike. If you like his work, feel free to catch him on LinkedIn.