Exam Mastery & Practice Hub

CAT (Common Admission Test) for IIM MBA/PGP admissions

Section blueprint, Do-or-Die topic matrix, quick-revision cards and timed VARC, DILR and QA practice for the IIM entrance, on one page.

Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs), with one IIM convening each year by rotation24 practice MCQs with solutionsMarking: +3 / -1 / 0

Sections: VARC 24, DILR 22, QA 22 questions (68 in all, as in CAT 2024 and 2025)
Duration: 120 minutes, computer-based; 40 minutes per section
Sectional time limit: Each section locks after its 40 minutes; you cannot go back or switch sections
Question types: MCQs plus TITA (type in the answer); CAT 2025 Slot 1 had 45 MCQ and 23 TITA
Total marks: 204 (3 marks per question)
CAT 2026 date: Sunday 29 Nov 2026, three sessions; registration ran 3 Aug to mid-Sep 2026
Eligibility: Bachelor's degree with 50% (45% for SC/ST/PwBD); final-year students can apply; no age limit

+3 for every correct answer in all three sections. A wrong MCQ costs 1 mark. TITA (type in the answer) questions carry no negative marking, so a wrong TITA answer scores 0. Unattempted questions score 0. The section-wise split of MCQ and TITA changes slot to slot, so the instruction screen on exam day is final.

How to Crack: Strategic Blueprint

Pick where you are. Each plan is built around past papers, a formula diary and honest mock analysis.

Build reading speed and arithmetic basics first; CAT rewards accuracy under a hard 40-minute clock.

1Take one full mock in the first week only to find your baseline; do not worry about the score.
2Read one long-form article (opinion, science, philosophy, economics) daily and write its main idea in one line.
3Finish Arithmetic, then Algebra, then Geometry and Number System, each with 30 to 50 topic questions.
4Solve two DILR sets a day from August onward, timing each set at about 12 to 15 minutes.
5From September, write one full mock a week in your exam slot timing and spend longer analysing it than writing it.

Topper-grade short notes

RC error log by question type

After every RC, tag each wrong answer as main idea, inference, detail, tone or vocab-in-context and write why the right option was right. After 30 passages your weak question type is obvious.

DILR set diary

For every set, note its type (arrangement, tournament, distribution, Venn, table), how long you took to decide to attempt it, and whether that choice was right. Set selection is half the DILR score.

QA one-page shortcut sheet

One page per topic family: formulas, standard results and two typical CAT traps. Revise these pages before every mock, not the textbook.

Mock analysis in three columns

For each mock list: questions you got wrong, questions you skipped but could solve, and questions you should have skipped. Fixing the second and third columns raises percentile fastest.

Ideal self-study day

6:30 - 7:15Long-form reading: one article, one-line summary and 3 new words
7:15 - 8:00Two RC passages, timed at about 7 minutes each
8:00 - 9:00Breakfast and commute or college
9:00 - 13:00College or work
14:00 - 15:00QA concept: today's topic plus 15 questions
15:00 - 15:30VA practice: 2 para summaries, 2 jumbles, 1 odd sentence
18:00 - 19:00Two DILR sets, timed, then check solutions
19:00 - 19:30Error log: write down and re-solve today's mistakes
20:30 - 21:30QA mixed practice or a 40-minute sectional test (alternate days)
21:30 - 22:00Plan tomorrow; sleep by 22:30

Topic Weightage & Do-or-Die Matrix

Estimates from section-wise analyses of CAT 2023-2025 papers by IMS (CAT 2025 Slot 1: 4 RC passages of 4 questions plus 8 VA) and Careers360; the IIMs do not publish weightage

Where your marks come from (estimate)

Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension72 marks

~55

~14

Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning66 marks

~46

~15

Quantitative Ability66 marks

~39

~22

Must-DoMediumLow priority

Must-do topics carry roughly 140 of 204 marks. Master the must-do topics with high accuracy and a strong percentile is realistic, because CAT rewards accuracy more than attempts.

The IIMs publish no syllabus or topic weightage; these are estimates from analyses of CAT 2023-2025 papers and change slot to slot.

🔴 Must-Do · High weightage

Reading Comprehension (4 passages)16 QsAbout two-thirds of VARC in 2023-2025; 4 passages of 4 questions each in recent slots.
RC: inference and main idea questions8-10 Qs (within RC)Most RC questions ask what the author implies or what the passage argues.

🟡 Medium · Scoring

Para Summary2-3 QsAsked in every recent year; about 12% of VARC in 2023 and 2024.
Para Completion and sentence placement1-2 QsTwo questions in 2025 Slot 1; usually MCQ.
Para Jumbles0-2 QsUsually TITA, so no negative marking; came back in 2025 Slot 1.
Odd Sentence Out1-2 QsUsually TITA; appeared in 2024 and 2025.

🟢 Low priority · Lengthy

Vocabulary in context (within RC)0-2 QsA new vocab-application RC question type appeared in 2025; worth one quick practice round.

Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension Quick-Revision Cards

Quick on-screen revision cards for the must-do topics. Copy them into your own revision notebook.

RC question types

Main ideaCovers the WHOLE passage; reject options true for one paragraph only.
InferenceMust follow from the text without extra assumptions.
DetailFind the line; reject options true in real life but not stated.
TonePick moderate words (critical, cautious) over extreme ones (scornful, ecstatic).

💡 In CAT, the wrong options are often half-right; one wrong word makes the whole option wrong.

RC reading method

Read paragraph 1 slowly: it sets the topic and the author's position.
Per paragraph, note its job in 3-4 words (example, objection, conclusion).
Watch signpost words: however, yet, but → the author's real view follows.
Answer from the passage, not from what you know about the topic.

💡 Budget about 6-7 minutes per passage including its 4 questions.

Para Summary rules

Best summary = main point + its key qualification.
Reject options that add new information or opinions.
Reject options that only repeat an example.
Reject options that are stronger (all, always, never) than the paragraph.

💡 Write the gist in your own 8-10 words before reading the options.

Para Jumble clues

OpenerIntroduces a topic; does not begin with this, such, however, also.
PairsPronoun or 'this idea' → links to the sentence naming it.
SequenceCause → effect; first/then/finally; general claim → example.
CloserConclusion, result or 'thus'.

💡 Find one sure pair first; most CAT jumbles fall into place from one pair.

Odd Sentence Out

Find the common topic AND the common angle of the paragraph.
The odd one is usually on the same topic but a different angle.
Check that the remaining sentences form a logical order.

💡 The odd sentence often shares keywords with the others: do not match by keywords alone.

Para Completion

The missing line must continue the LAST idea and fit the paragraph's direction.
Reject options that open a new topic or contradict the tone.
For a mid-paragraph gap, the line must link both neighbours.

💡 Read the last two sentences again just before choosing.

Tone and attitude words

Positivelaudatory, appreciative, optimistic, reverent
Negativesardonic, cynical, scathing, disparaging
Neutralobjective, analytical, dispassionate, didactic
Mixedambivalent, sceptical, guarded, nuanced

💡 Most CAT authors are analytical or critical; extreme tones are rarely right.

Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension MCQ Practice Arena

Tap an option: it locks, turns green or red, and the full solution opens. Your attempts stay on this device.

Attempted 0/8✓ 0✗ 0Score 0

Q1 / 8Reading ComprehensionEasyPYQ-style (concept asked repeatedly in CAT)

Read the passage and answer. City planners often treat trees as decoration, something to add once roads and buildings are finished. Yet a mature tree shades the ground beneath it and releases water vapour through its leaves, cooling the air around it. Measurements of street temperature regularly find shaded pavements much cooler than exposed ones on summer afternoons. The benefit, however, depends on placement. A single row of saplings along a wide highway does little; a continuous canopy over footpaths where people walk does much more. The real question, then, is not how many trees a city plants, but where it lets them grow old. The passage is mainly concerned with arguing that

Exam Day Hacks & Reasoning

MCQ guessing maths: +3 / -1

A blind guess among 4 options averages (1/4 × 3) − (3/4 × 1) = 0 marks, so it neither helps nor hurts on average but adds risk. After removing 2 wrong options, a 50-50 guess averages (1/2 × 3) − (1/2 × 1) = +1 mark. Guess on an MCQ only when you have eliminated at least one option.

Never leave a TITA blank

TITA questions carry no negative marking, so a wrong answer scores 0, the same as leaving it. If time is running out in a section, type your best estimate into every TITA you opened.

Work with the fixed section order

Sections come in the order VARC, DILR, QA, each locked to 40 minutes. You cannot carry time over or return later, so set a target attempt count for each section and stop chasing one hard question when the clock is low.

VARC time split

A workable split: about 26 to 28 minutes for the four RC passages and 12 to 14 minutes for the VA questions. Do the RC with the easiest topic first; leave a dense passage for last.

DILR: choose before you solve

Spend the first 4 to 5 minutes reading every set's opening lines and pick the 2 or 3 that look cleanest. Fully solving two sets usually beats half-solving four.

Use the on-screen calculator sparingly

CAT gives a basic on-screen calculator. It is slower than mental maths for simple steps, so use it for DI percentages and long multiplications only.