IIM Calcutta is definitely the dream business school of the CAT aspirants. Only a handful of students land at IIM Calcutta as it has a very less conversion rate. Therefore, the number clearly states the cut throat competition. So as a CAT aspirant with no work experience and a GEM profile you must be thinking whether you can convert this college or not? Well, we have a CAT topper’s journey to answer this. Souradeep a fresher and GEM profile converted IIM Calcutta in his first attempt. Check his CAT topper strategy. In this blog, we will be talking about how Souradeep Banerjee converted IIM Calcutta in his first attempt with 99.95%ile.
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Who is CAT Topper Souradeep Banerjee?
CAT topper Souradeep Banerjee has converted premiere institute that is IIM Calcutta. Talking about the background, he has done engineering and later started preparing for CAT exam to pursue master’s degree from top IIMs (Indian Institutes of Management). With his dedication, consistency and rigorous preparation of CAT exam helped him crack the IIM Calcutta in his first attempt with 99.95%ile. Let’s discuss his strategy and how much time he have taken to prepare for the CAT exam?
Where did the idea of doing an MBA come from?
Coming from an Engineering background he always knew that he have to do an MBA for growth and better career opportunities. He believe the options as well as the success rate increases for an Engineer after doing an MBA. In the third year of his graduation, he got an internship program which was an eye opener for him. There he got to know about the business side of things that were happening in the organization like the leadership things and the business related decisions that the management would make. So, this was something that attracted him more towards MBA and then finally he decided to go for an MBA and prepare for the CAT exam.
CAT Topper Converted IIM Calcutta with 99.95%ile !
He understand that work experience does matter but it also depends on the profile that you have. Talking about his background, Souradeep is a General Engineering Male (GEM) and from the school time only he was good in academics and have a good academic record till date. So, he knew that he don’t have work experience but he have a good profile so possibilities are there that he can get a call. So, you need to have a belief in yourself while preparing for the CAT exam and should concentrate on getting a high percentile. So, what he believe is that a high CAT percentile and a good academic profile can easily get you calls from these top IIMs even if you don’t have any experience.
CAT Topper Strategy across VARC, DILR & QA
He has started from the month of April but it was not in a proper way. So, in full fledged, the preparation started from the month of June. In the starting he took some books and used to solve questions from that and then he came across iQuanta’s IIM ABC batch. From the books, he was not able to solve questions from all the sections on a daily basis, but the iQuanta IIM ABC batch gave him that liberty. In that batch, he got questions from all the 3 sections on a daily basis and that was something unique. He was getting to prepare all the 3 sections simultaneously so this was something which he thought was much better from any other coaching or crash course. Apart from this, there was that 24/7 doubt solving thing in the iQuanta batch that really helped him a lot because whenever there was any doubt or question posted in the group, he would get it solved in a few minutes only. Because of this feature he was not only able to learn from my mistakes but was able to learn from other’s mistakes as well. From the month of June till last the CAT exam he religiously dedicated my time into giving more and more mock tests and iQuanta mocks were the only mocks that he gave. The IIM ABC batch and the iCAT mocks were the two things that he concentrated on.
In Quant, his strategy was that he will prepare for Algebra and Arithmetic first and then later in the last months he will prepare Modern Mathematics and Geometry but the IIM ABC batch of iQuanta give me more geometry questions in the middle months and that really helped him because in the CAT exam he was able to solve some tough geometry questions with ease.
Talking about the LRDI section, he was strong in Arrangements but not that strong in the Venn diagram. So, he did not focus much on the DI part and decided to give more focus on the LR and luckily in the CAT exam, there were mostly the LR questions only. There was a DILR 70 series that helped him a lot and in the Quant section also, there was QA 250 series that helped a lot in getting a variety of questions to prepare.
As far as VARC goes, he was always strong in the RC part because he come from an I.C.S.E board school but in the VA part he faced some issues in the Para jumbles part and in the CAT exam also he did not perform well in Para jumbles. But, he kept on practicing as in the ABC batch only he used to get many Para jumbles questions. Here, he would like to give a lot of credit to the ABC batch of iQuanta because for every section, there was a variety of questions which would give me challenges each and every day but it was into my benefit only as because of it he was able to prepare very well for the CAT exam.
How CAT Topper Souradeep Banerjee (99.95%iler) Tackle Distractions During CAT Preparation?
There were some distractions in the beginning, he used to roam around with his friends and chill in the initial days of his preparation but later on when the exam was approaching he ignored everything as he knew in his mind that he have to be serious towards this exam and this is what he have to do. His friends also understood his situation and never forced him to come with them and also his family was there to support him and pushed him in a good way to achieve goals.
How iQuanta’s CAT Mocks Helped Souradeep Banerjee in His CAT Preparation?
In the starting of his preparation, he gave 1 mock just to see the pattern of the paper and what all things are there in the mocks and then later on in July and August he gave 2-3 mocks along with the preparation from the IIM ABC batch. But then as the preparation came to an end, from late September till November he gave mocks frequently and in the last 14 days he gave 1 mock every day.
Coming to the analysis part, in the initial mocks as the score was not good, he used to sit and see where he went wrong and would work on them and for LRDI, the more mocks you give, more the practice you will have and for that you don’t need any analysis you just have to see the solution and work on it. In VARC, sometimes you think that the answers are correct so you do not need to do anything but after the mocks you have to analyze how the answers came so that you can apply the same approach in the other exam and on the exam day as well.
CAT Topper Daily Targets and Strategy During CAT Preparation?
It was the support of his family first, his father and mother supported him a lot. Whenever he used to feel low he would make a phone call to his mom and then she would motivate him. His father used to say that even if you do not get a good percentile, just give your best. Even his friends were also very supportive, they were always there to lift him up and give him motivation whenever he needed it. Apart from that, sometimes he used to go to temples and do some meditation too.
Talking about daily targets, he used to set a number that he have to solve a set number of questions in a day of each section and that too within a set time period so that on the exam day, he would not only give the correct answers to the questions but also attempt more and more questions within the given time.
How Engineering Background Helped CAT Topper in His MBA?
First thing that he learned here in his graduation is the workload management as there were a lot of things going on here simultaneously. There are fests along with the college lectures and then this CAT preparation of course and he was able to manage it well. So, this is something that will help him in his MBA too.
Second thing that he learned here was team management as he get a lot of projects and have to do that in a team where they have to help each other and take on challenges together as a team.
Finally the third thing is time management and this is the most important thing that he learned there. You just have to complete your work in the given time no matter what the circumstances are. You have to manage your time well in order to complete the tasks that are given to you.
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CAT Topper’s Advice to Other Aspirants
First, do not get demotivated at all. There will be days where you will feel demotivated when you will get stuck on any question or topic and you will feel like giving up, but you have to keep going because bad days do come in every aspirant’s journey.
Second, be ready to take on the challenges. There will be circumstances where things will become hard and new kinds of problems will arise while solving the questions but you have to be ready for that and take it as a challenge.
Third, you don’t have to hesitate in asking something from others. It is very important to ask and seek advice from others in order to succeed in life.
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