Get ready for the CAT scan Students eyeing management careers have begun gearing up for the most important entrance examination in India

Get ready for the CAT scan

Students eyeing management careers have begun gearing up for the most important entrance examination in India

Each year, the beginning of the monsoon season in India also heralds the calm before a different kind of storm. Management aspirants from across the country wait anxiously for the official CAT notification (get the details for voucher sales, registration, test dates and results below on this page), which will help them take the first step towards their desired careers. The process for prospective candidates would begin with buying a scratch-voucher from the designated bank branches, and, then, registering online for CAT 2012. Instructions on access to online registration will be given in the voucher, and, detailed registration instructions will be on the CAT website www.catiim.in. The Common Admission Test or CAT as it is better known is considered to be one of the most competitive exams held for those aiming to pursue a career in the field of business administration. The significance of CAT for students can be gauged by the fact that in addition to the IIMs, a substantial number of B-Schools in India (over a hundred) have registered for it and many more would also rely on the CAT score for their admission process. In fact, gearing up for CAT is something most students begin to do right after Class XII itself. The idea is to put in sustained efforts over a three-year period instead of leaving it to the last minute. There are also those who believe in just making one big concerted effort for five to six months before CAT, opining that it is the better option. Whatever the preferred route, it is clear that CAT requires students to put their best foot forward. The CAT score can make or break management career aspirations, so one should not make the mistake of taking the examination or the preparation that it entails lightly. Moreover, ever since the format was computerized, there has been some amount of confusion among students about what it entails; the process to be followed and so on. What management aspirants need to clearly understand is that CAT is a computer-based test (CBT) and not an Internet-based test (IBT). You cannot answer it online or at your home. The format of the test is more or less the same. The only thing that has changed is that instead of reading the questions in a paper booklet and darkening the ovals on the answer-sheet, a candidate will read the questions on a computer terminal and choose an answer by clicking on the correct option. Candidates will have to test on a pre-assigned workstation in the testing venue. There will be two separately timed sections in the test, the first being Quantitative Ability and Data Interpretation, followed by Verbal Ability and Logical Reasoning. There will be 30 questions in each section. Each of the sections will be 1 hour and 10 minutes (i.e. 70 minutes). Including a 15-minute tutorial before the start of the test which candidates are advised to go through, the total duration of the test will be 2 hours and 35 minutes. There will be an on-screen timer counting down from 70 minutes once a section begins. When the time is up, that section will end and candidates will not be able to go back to it. The second section will then begin and the on-screen timer will start counting down from 1 hour 10 minutes again. Once the second section ends, the test will end. Considering there are just a few months in hand (less than three in fact) management aspirants need to understand the parameters of evaluation and have an action plan in place. Plus, after appearing for CAT, one has to prepare for the other entrance test processes like the group discussion/ personal interview (usually referred to by the acronym GD/PI), personality tests, essay writing, etc. The emphasis is on evaluating the following skills of the management candidate; the ability to generate ideas, take an initiative whenever the opportunity presents, lateral thinking, communication skills, clarity of thought, group dynamics, presentation skills and awareness of key issues. Experts point out that the overall focus is on personality traits and an ability to strike the right balance between individual excellence and group performance. Management programs are preferred career facilitators as they offer a lucrative option to fresh graduates. Attractive pay packets and placements in the reputed corporate being offered at college-level itself is the primary attraction of an MBA degree. Management education is seen as an investment that can pay rich dividends in future. Possessing a MBA degree can make all the difference between being a boss or a subordinate a few years down the line.