CAT 2022 Percentiles:
Verbal 94.58, DILR 99.33, QA 99.00, OA 99.47
Q1: Tell us about your background – education
(engg/non-engg, academic record), any work-ex?
I am an engineer. I did chemical engineering at Rajiv Gandhi
Institute of Petroleum Technology and I have been working since June 2021, I
switched in the month of Feb 2022 and have been working in the same start-up
from then.
Q2: When did you start preparing for CAT?
I started my preparation around 3 months before the exam.
Q3: Did you take any coaching/tuition for CAT? How was your
experience?
I took coaching and the experience was excellent as it helped
me maintain a timetable throughout the day. But in the end, it all comes down
to self, how much sincerity you put in.
Q4: What other self-study resources did you find useful for
your preparation?
The best resource for self-study is the previous years'
papers, try to do them as many times as possible, there's no alternative to
them.
Q5: How did you pace your CAT preparation, i.e. how did the
daily time spent on preparation change over the course of your journey?
I have mostly learned from the mocks I gave so initially I
used to give 1 mock every weekend and tried to work on the questions which I
couldn't solve or which went wrong in the upcoming week and questions from
those topics/areas, later on I started giving two mocks with same strategy and
then I was attempting mocks every alternate day.
Q6: What were your strong areas/subjects, and how did you
prepare for those (time devoted, specific resources used etc.)?
I believe I have had trouble with all the 3 sections at one
point in time, so I used to change my strategies rather than trying to figure
out my strengths and weaknesses. I figured out my strengths and weakness later
on when I was sure about which strategy is working for me.
Q7: What topics/subjects were challenging for you, and how
did you prepare for those (time devoted, specific resources used etc.)?
As I said, I faced difficulty with every section, what I used
to do was try to solve questions once again before looking at the answers and
without time bound so I could figure out if I could ever attempt those
questions or if they are a lost case Also I used to attempt the weaker section
the next day with a fresh mind.
Q8: How easy/difficult was it to keep yourself focused and
avoid distractions through your journey?
It was difficult to avoid distractions cause this generation
is of mobiles and the internet but you have to remember what you are really
working for, if you are serious enough you will automatically give up on major
distractions, little ones are okay.
Q9: Were there occasions (during preparation or the exam)
when you felt stressed or dejected, and how did you manage it?
There were lot of moments where I felt stressed or felt like
giving up, but I used to take a walk alone, talk to myself and made me remember
why I am doing this, that used to help me relieving some stress but there is no
alternative to stress actually, at the end you need to learn how to live with
stress.
Q10: Are there any good habits/lifestyle choices that helped
you succeed and you’d recommend others to follow?
Stop complaining about things you can’t change, work on things you can.
Focus on your health, your career, your family, and your loved ones - rest is
not important. Remember you will get where you belong sooner or later.