How to approach CAT 2024 question paper should be known by all MBA aspirants who wish to ace the exam successfully and get into IIMs. There are various strategies that can be employed to tackle the CAT question paper and its different sections. Aspirants must consider all factors like overall difficulty level, section-wise topic weightage, sectional time limit, etc. before choosing a particular approach. The most common and effective approach to answer the CAT question paper is to answer only those questions that a candidate is intimately familiar with to ensure they do not run out of time and also avoid negative marking.

The CAT exam will be conducted on November 24, 2024, across 170 test cities in India. Even small tweaks in how you attempt the CAT question paper have the potential to make big differences in your overall performance. This is a skill that should be honed while following CAT 2024 preparation tips but it is also important to give it special focus during the final stages of preparation. Now, let's have a closer look at some important points to help you understand how to approach the CAT 2024 question paper.

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How to Approach DILR Section in CAT 2024 Question Paper?

Here are some of the best tips to consider when attempting the Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning section in the CAT 2024 question paper.

1. Keep Track of Time: It is very easy to lose track of time when solving a reasoning question. Keep an eye on the clock and make sure you are not spending more time than required on any question.

2. Identify the Sets You Can Easily Solve: Before you start attempting this section, take some time to identify the sets that you can easily solve and the sets that might give you some trouble. Solving mock tests and question papers from previous years for CAT will help you make this distinction.

3. Keep Calculations to a Minimum: DILR is one section where you can use multiple tricks to minimize the number of calculations needed to solve the questions. Make sure you are trained to use calculations only when a) it is absolutely necessary or b) the calculation is very easy to do.

4. Use Your Options: Reading the answer choices along with the questions is effective when attempting the DILR section in CAT as it can help you eliminate some choices and reach a solution quicker.

Also Read: How to Prepare for CAT DILR 2024

How to Approach QA Section in CAT 2024 Question Paper?

Some of the ways to deal with the Quantitative Aptitude section in the CAT 2024 exam are given below.

1. Target the Easy Questions First: The most important thing while attempting the QA section in CAT 2024 is to solve the easy questions first. This not only boosts your confidence but also ensures that you don’t miss the easy questions because you were trying to solve the difficult ones first.

2. Leave the Toughest Questions: If after reading a question you think it is too difficult to solve or will take a lot of time then it is better to leave that question unattempted as negative marks are awarded for every incorrect question in CAT.

3. Go through the Entire QA Section: A rough reading of the questions is very important to pick the questions that belong to your area of interest or topics that are your strengths. Target all the questions that can be solved in less than 90 seconds.

4. Mark the Difficult Questions: While you are reading and solving on your way through the QA section, don’t forget to mark the difficult questions so that you can go back and attempt them once you are done with the easy questions.

5. Go for the Toughest Questions Only if Time Is Left: If you are done with the easy and moderate difficulty level questions and there is still time left, then attempt the toughest questions that you were otherwise going to skip.

Also Read: How to Prepare for CAT Quantitative Ability (QA) 2024

How to Approach VARC Section in CAT 2024 Question Paper?

Take a look at how to handle the Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension section of CAT 2024 below.

1. Attempt the Short Questions First: You must always be ready to approach the paper in the right order. Targeting the short questions first in the order of vocabulary, sentence completion, grammar, deductive logic, para jumbles, critical reasoning, para completion, and then summary questions. This ensures that you attempt most of the questions in the VARC section of the CAT exam.

2. Glance through the Reading Comprehension Passages: Make sure that you scan through all the passages to understand the topics and figure out the passages that you will attempt and the ones that you will leave.

3. Complete the Familiar Questions First: Make sure that you follow the chronological order mentioned above and attempt the easy passages after that. You should aim to finish these questions within the deadline. If you have spare time after completing these questions, then you can attempt the passage that you were planning to leave.

4. When in Doubt, Leave the Question: If you are not sure about the answer choice that you must mark, it is better to leave the question and move forward, especially in critical reasoning questions.

Also Read: How to Prepare for CAT VARC

Important Strategies to Approach CAT 2024 Question Paper

Candidates appearing for the CAT 2024 exam must follow the following strategies to ace the exam:

• Stay calm and avoid thinking of the results too much. It is not crucial to join any coaching institute. Attempt a good number of mock tests, especially from IMS and TIME to gain insight into the type of questions asked on the CAT exam. Attempt one mock daily during the last month of your preparation. Also, make it a habit to evaluate your performance in the mock tests, identify your strengths and weaknesses, and strive more to improve your weak areas.

• Avoid spending more than two minutes on any question. If you know how to solve a particular question, come back to it later. You must try to avoid questions that involve time-taking and exhaustive calculations.

• It is important to be familiar with the CAT 2024 exam window. Do not forget to click- SAVE AND NEXT after every question. Do not skip any easy questions by mistake. Stay calm and focused while solving the CAT 2024 question paper.

• Speed and accuracy are the real game-changers when solving the CAT exam questions. It is by attempting a huge number of mock tests and sample papers that candidates will be able to solve a greater number of questions rapidly and with higher accuracy.

• If your VARC section is weaker, look for easier RC passages that will help you score more. It is not advisable to rush through the RC passage. Carefully read the content of the RC passage to extract the meaning from it. 

• Learn effective time management. Approach the easy questions first and then move on to the difficult ones after gaining accuracy and speed. 

• Revise all the formulae for quant on the last day and go through sets of DILR that you think are more difficult.

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CAT 2024 Exam Day Tips from CAT Toppers

Planning a strategy for the CAT exam 2024 is one of the most crucial steps toward a successful performance. Without a proper strategy, aspirants can be faced with numerous hurdles when answering the CAT 2024 question paper. Thus, it is vital to learn how to attempt the CAT question paper in the most effective and time-efficient manner. With that being said, here are some useful tips from CAT toppers of the last few years to help you prepare for CAT 2024.

CAT 2022 Topper: Risshi Agrawal (99.99 Percentile)

Risshi Agrawal who scores 99.99 percentile in CAT 2022 said, "I started my preparation with VARC subject by identifying 2 out of 4 RCs which are easiest to solve (24 min to solve). Rest focus on the VA aspect. In DILR, start by doing the DI question (often easiest of all) and then focus on 2 of the remaining 3 puzzles. In QA, start filtering the questions as per your strength and attempt them first. For VARC, I read newspapers on a daily basis."

CAT 2021 Topper: Chirag Gupta (100 Percentile)

Chirag Gupta, who secured 100 percentile in CAT 2021 shares that one of the key things to follow while solving the CAT question paper is to stay calm and not panic about the results. He also mentioned that he did not join any coaching institute and his primary method of preparation was solving mock test series from IMS and TIME.

CAT 2020: Kshitiz Singhal (99.99 percentile)

Kshitiz Singhal, who scored 99.99 percentile in CAT 2020 mentioned that although the exam pattern changed in 2020, it did not have a considerable effect on his performance. He also mentioned that speed and accuracy are essential for the CAT exam and since he possessed such qualities, he was able to adapt to the new test pattern comfortably.

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