Toppers Tips for CAT 2024: Check How Toppers Prepare for CAT, Strategy & Study Tips to Score 99 Percentile

Topper Tips for CAT 2024 are an important aspect that must be followed by aspirants to ace the exam. The CAT exam is conducted every year for admission to IIMs and other top B-schools in India. The difficulty level of the exam is moderate but the competition and time pressure make it one of the most difficult MBA entrance exams in India. Even the brightest students find it difficult to score well in the CAT exam.

Some of the most common tips by CAT toppers include practicing as many CAT Mock Tests and CAT Previous Years' Question Papers as you can. The CAT 2024 exam will be conducted by IIM Calcutta on November 24, 2024, in three slots across 170 test cities in India. If you are preparing for the exam, check the topper tips for CAT 2024 provided in this article.

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How do Toppers Prepare for CAT?

You should plan a proper preparation schedule for CAT in order to get a decent score in CAT 2024 Besides this, time management skills and shortcut techniques for solving quant problems are some important factors that create a difference between the 100 percentiler and 98 percentiler. Thus, you are advised to focus on improving your time management and problem-solving skills in order to score well in the exam. 

Rishi Mittal, who scored 100 percentile in CAT 2019 said that he started CAT preparation one year before the exam. He focused on solving a maximum number of mock test papers. He also stated that he planned his CAT preparation according to his strengths and weaknesses. He worked on converting his strengths into weaknesses by practicing a maximum number of questions from his weak areas. 

Rahul Manglik and Somansh Chordia, both students in their final year of Mechanical Engineering said that they prepared for CAT alongside their 12th preparation. They solved more than 30 mock test papers and analyzed their scores in order to identify their strong and weak areas. 

As we can see from both the cases provided above, solving CAT mock test 2024  and regular practice is the key to cracking the CAT exam. You should also analyze your mock test scores in order to check your preparation level.

How do CAT Toppers Work on their Weak Areas?

Every student has his strengths and weaknesses but the one who is able to tackle his weaknesses will be the one to win the race of getting admission in B-Schools of India. Many experts and toppers of the CAT examination said that they prepared a preparation schedule in such a way that they devote enough time to the sections in which they are not so confident.

Lakshay Kumar said that QA was his weak section. He started devoting around 4-5 hours daily to Quant preparation in order to tackle his weakness. He also said that understanding the exam pattern is an important factor while preparing for the exam. 

The CAT exam pattern 2024 allows the students to know the marking scheme as well as the type of problems they can face in the exam. Besides this, the exam pattern of the exam also allows the students to know the sectional breakdown of the exam. Around 100 questions are asked in the exam. These questions are divided into three sections with each section having a sectional time limit. The sectional time limit of the CAT exam was 60 minutes until 2019 but it has changed to 40 minutes for CAT 2020. The sectional time limit for CAT 2024 will also remain the same i.e. 40 minutes. 

How Toppers Manage Time on CAT Exam Day?

Since the time limit for each section of CAT 2021 is 40 minutes, it becomes important that the candidates complete the exam within the allotted time. As per the experts and toppers, you should first solve the questions in which you are confident. You can skip the questions that are time-consuming. Solving mock test papers and CAT 2024 sample papers will help you get an idea about the total time you should allocate for each type of question in the exam.

For the verbal ability section, you can allot 20-25 minutes for reading comprehension and the rest of the time for TITA questions. There is no negative marking for TITA questions so you can answer all the questions without any risk of negative marking. Besides this, for DILR and QA, you can start solving easy and moderate difficulty-level questions first and then you can proceed to the hard ones.

Do Toppers Prefer Self Study or Coaching Institutes for CAT?

Should I join a coaching institute for CAT preparation is a common question among CAT aspirants. Most of the aspirants are not sure whether they should join an institute or not. The coaching institutes guide the candidates in the preparation and allow them to understand the CAT exam pattern. They also conduct mock tests and sectional tests at regular intervals so that aspirants can get familiar with the exam structure. However, it is not necessary to join an institute for CAT preparation.

You can crack the exam with self-preparation. Many toppers believe that a good preparation strategy and a decent level of practice are enough to score well in the exam. You can buy the best books for CAT that are suggested by toppers. Apart from this, you can buy the test series provided by various coaching institutes in order to practice more types of questions. Those who are looking to crack the CAT exam without joining a coaching institute may check the article provided below.

Importance of CAT Mock Tests for Toppers

The mock test papers and CAT previous years papers allow the candidates to get familiar with the exam pattern. Besides this, they also help the candidates in understand the marking scheme as well as the type of questions that will be asked in the exam. Solving sample papers will also help in boosting confidence. All the CAT aspirants should solve at least 30-40 mock test papers. Check the article provided below to learn more advantages of solving CAT mock test papers. 

CAT Toppers' Strategy & Last-Minute Tips for the CAT 2024 Exam

Arun Sharma, a 19-time CAT qualifier (CAT 2018 99.99 percentile), gave last-minute advice and dos and don'ts for aspiring CAT 2024 candidates to help them prepare for the exam.

• Understand Your Limitations: Instead of trying to extend your wings in all directions, strengthen the areas in which you have invested the most time and effort. Better to increase your speed and accuracy and practise on topics you have prepared well for.
• Avoid the Unknown: Considering the limited time available, learning something new won't be of any use. For the challenging topics, there is no time to clear your concepts. It is better to concentrate on your CAT test-taking strategy now.
• Create Your Own Strategy and Keep a Mistakes Index
• Knowing how prepared you are for the CAT 2024 exam.
• Keep yourself composed, calm, and goal-focused.
• To reduce stress, modify your mock-taking strategy and turn off your phone.
• Sleep well the night before CAT 2024 exam day.
• Avoid being negative.
• Maintain momentum.
• Don't let the mock exam scores affect you.
• Decide on the Correct Set of Questions.
• Analyze the formulas.
• Construct a plan according to the time slot.
• Put Your Best Effort Into It.
• Treat CAT Like Another Mock.
• If problematic, omit the question.

CAT Previous Years’ Toppers 

Check the previous years' toppers list of CAT provided below.

CAT Best Coaching Institutes

Candidates must prepare for the CAT 2024 exam at the following coaching institutes.

Preparation Tips for CAT 2024

You are advised to prepare notes alongside your preparation so that you can revise it on the exam day. Additionally, you are also advised to note all the important topics provided in CAT syllabus 2024 and start solving 30-40 questions from each topic mentioned in the CAT syllabus. You can check the articles provided below to learn more about the preparation tips for CAT exam.

All the aspirants are advised to answer the questions in the CAT exam confidently. They are also advised to go through all the instructions provided on the CAT admit card 2024 as well as important exam day instructions before going to the exam centre. You can check the CAT 2024 Dress Code to know what should you wear on the exam day. The CAT 2024 Percentile Predictor & calculator will give you an idea of the percentile you will score and you can use the CAT College Predictor 2024 to know the colleges in which you might be offered admission. 

If you have any questions regarding CAT, you can ask them in the Collegedekho QnA zone. If you need admission related assistance, you can fill out our Common Application Form. We wish you All the Best for CAT 2024!