An image symbolizing determination and success in CAT 2024 Exam Preparation

Whether you have just stepped into the arena of CAT Prep for the 2024 cycle or you are a practised participant, the CAT 2024 race is just about to begin. As soon as CAT 2023 is underway, there will be an onslaught of panic, indecision, nervousness and an overall sense of urgency about the next CAT exam. Understandably so. 

The CAT 2024 Exam preparation is no laughing matter. In the midst of CAT, XAT, SNAP, IIFT and other similar centralised tests, it is easy to get caught up in the frenzy. Not only does it seem like there is a LOT to do, it also feels like YOU have to do all of it and what’s more, do all of it YOURSELF. It is unsurprising then that aspirants feel relentlessly pushed into the chase without direction and without too much guidance. 

Read ahead if you are starting to feel this way yourself. In this short essay, we will discuss the ways to approach this massive undertaking in a reasonable and organised way, and share some ideas on minimising the pressure that can get automatically created on you. 

One way to lessen the load that the CAT chatter can put on your shoulders is to ask yourself some realistic questions 

1. Who are you? 

Are you a student or a working professional? For students, the big challenge will be to manage time between college classes, their projects and the coaching classes they might enrol for. For people who are working, the bigger challenge will be to find the energy to study. People often confuse the two, thinking that time is the only element they have to manage. This is not so. Working professionals can still find the time to study, but if they are too tired, too stressed or too burned out from working, then even the best long weekend will be nothing but a blur, and not a study marathon as one might dream to have. 

2. Where are you? 

Physically, being in a spot where you can create a space to just study (and not work and study) makes a big difference. Clearing up space on your bed, dining table, coffee table or work table can serve the purpose, but it will do little in terms of motivating you or giving you the right physical ambience to study for long. Investing in an ergonomically designed chair and table set (it doesn’t need to be high-end, just comfortable) that is purely for study will help you have that one piece of furniture in that one corner of your house, which is only for study. This positive association will bear long term fruits because every time you see it, you will think of studying and every time you study on it, that association will deepen. 

3. What will you do? 

Very often, aspirants forget to create a realistic long term plan. You might think about your professional and academic aspirations when filling out admission forms for universities (or even preparing your résumé for doing so later), and that’s a good thing to have on hand. But, think also about plans going awry. Things can come up, plans change, preparation goes off-track, health can take a hit – any number of things can happen, altering your plans. You also must keep the possibility of not scoring enough to meet your goals in mind. If any of this happens, what is your immediate plan B? Quitting? Deferring? Post-poning? Repeating another year? Taking a break and resuming? Whatever it is, it needs to be present from day one. 

After you answer some or all of the above for yourself, it’s time to start planning. Once again, for students and for working people, these will look different 

For students

  • Isolate the weeks or months that your classes, exams and projects will be in full-swing. Try to find CAT preparation online courses that give you the flexibility or the windows to study in between these. Takshzila CAT online classes give you the freedom to self-study when you want, and to buy bundles of Live courses as well as mock tests when you feel you need more guidance. 
  • Also keep track of festivals, fêtes, holidays and family events which may derail your study plans. Instead of becoming a social recluse, or on the other hand, overcorrecting by indulging too much (out of frustration of studying all the time), accept that life is like this and everything needs to happen in moderation. You cannot cancel living in society. Instead, inform your near and dear ones that your studies will come first but that every so often you would love to hang out with them on special occasions and big holidays. You’ll be surprised at how welcoming people are when approaching with honesty and earnestness. 
  • Pace your material gathering in a way that benefits you. Instead of scrambling to buy/download/borrow all the tests, books, online resources and question banks, building a shadow library and never touching any of it, train yourself to take up small chunks of study materials and only get the next chunk once you exhaust the current one. At Takshzila, you get graded tests and question series that can help you build this habit from scratch. This applies to reading too. 
  • We cannot stress this enough but before you do anything else, take a diagnostic test. Check where you are before you decide where you want to go. Knowing what you started with will be the first building block in the journey of acing the CAT, preferably with Takshzila. 

For working professionals

  • Juggling two major projects (work and study) can be difficult and stressful. The first thing we advise is to look into taking a study leave, a paid leave (if you have the option) or a career break for 6-9 months (if it is financially feasible). If you can manage this, then you can refer to the points for students above, and adapt those suggestions to suit your needs. 
  • However, taking a break from work is not an option for everyone, and so we carry on. For those aspirants for whom work is demanding, you must first check in with your manager, team leader or other senior personnel and see if there is any way to lessen the load or to redistribute your working hours to give you a better day to day routine. If your work does now allow this sort of flexibility, consider taking a longer time to prepare than the average person would. This, of course, will also depend on the sort of student you are. Some study well under pressure and some find it better to study at an easier pace. This is also something you want to figure out for yourself before making commitments. 
  • Typically, there are days of the week when you know you will have more work, and days when you will not. Make a schedule that can be adjusted based on your work. On the day you anticipate too many meetings, calls, or other work, don’t study. Give yourself the grace of space. On other days when you have a lighter workload, get done faster if you can and save 1-2 hours of the day to study. You would do far better study in those two hours than in 3 hours split into 12 and 17 minutes stolen between a busy and stressful work day. 
  • Just as we have said before, find pockets of study time before you start the work day. This may also involve starting your day earlier or delaying your reporting time by an hour if possible. The same goes for weekends. Keep some time from the weekend for study and definitely some time for yourself. No work, no study. Over-exertion for long periods of time will spell burnout and you don’t want that closer to the date of the tests. 
  • Keep a check on your progress with regular tests. Takshzila has custom-tailored bundles for all the sections of CAT, plus graded mock test series to help you along as you prepare. Taking mocks at regular intervals is the best way to assess which way you’re going. 

Of course, everyone is different and no one piece of advice will work for everyone. But we hope that there is something useful in here for all of you. For more such essays, stay tuned to takshzila.com. To prepare for CAT 2024, and to check our courses and other bundles, visit our website or simply write to us at hello@takshzila.com. We are also present on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and LinkedIn, so come say hi.