CAT 2021 Analysis by CATKing: Slot 1, 2 and 3

Check out in-depth CAT 2021 exam analysis by CATKing for slot 1, slot 2 and slot 3. Also know the total number of good attempts, slot wise difficulty levels and expected cut offs in CAT analysis 2021.

By Sumit Singh Gandhi (CATKing)

CAT 2021 exam was held today in three slots. Analysis of the first slot of CAT exam is now available on Shiksha. According to the analysis by students CAT 2021 question paper was of moderate difficulty level. Read below in-depth CAT 2021 analysis by CATKing expert, which includes section-wise distribution of topics, difficulty levels, number of good attempts, sectional cut off and expected scoring pattern.

Overall the exam was not very tough as compared to 2020 but DILR was a little time consuming and lengthy. VARC was more inference-based. Overall, it had 66 questions.

CAT exam tested students on Speed, Logic and Analytical skills, a sincere student with well rounded preparation of concepts and a good practice of mocks would make their way to the IIMs. CAT tested students on their actual knowledge instead of mere guesswork. The reduction in questions from CAT 2020 helped students have a better time allocation and not have a crisis.

As per the CAT analysis by CATKing expert, it was an exam with no twist. Well prepared students should be able to perform well. Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning section was a little difficult and time consuming. We saw changes in Reading comprehension passages with dominance of inference based questions. But, this wouldn't affect the overall criteria for a student selection in IIMs.

CAT 2021 Exam Analysis Highlights

CAT 2021 first cut analysis is out here. This year we saw 66 total questions which is a 10 questions reduction from CAT 2020 and that provided a good time for the students to give a better performance.

Section	No. of Questions
VARC	24 Questions
DILR	20 Questions
QA	22 Questions
Total	66 Questions

CAT 2021 Analysis Slot 1

Negative marking existed for the Multiple Choice questions; 1/3^rd ie 0.33 negative marks. Type in The answer Questions didn’t have any negative marking similar to the CAT 2020. The exam was not very difficult, it was manageable provided your concepts were clear. CAT has always been an ardent lover of concepts and logic than calculations, speed and time when compared to other competitive exams.

Also Read:

• CAT cut offs
• CAT answer key
• CAT result

CAT 2021 Analysis Slot 1: VARC

Overall Difficulty: Moderate

24 Questions

Reading comprehension dominated this section. There were four passages with four questions each. More inference based questions and not factual, there were close options too so it needed little focus while solving.

According CAT 2021 analysis by CATKing expert, TITA questions in Verbal Ability were overall easy. There were three questions on Parajumbles, three questions on Parasummary, two questions on Odd one Out which were tough as always

Summary of Questions

• Reading Comprehension: 16 Questions
• Verbal Ability: 8 Questions
• The Reading Comprehension passages were based on the following themes:
  • Passage 1: Marshmallow theory
  • Passage 2: Chinese Tea history
  • Passage 3: Mayan personality
  • Passage 4: Utopia and dystopia

Ideal attempts in VARC Section: 18 questions

CAT 2021 Analysis Slot 1: DILR

24 Questions

According CAT 2021 analysis by CATKing expert, LR/DI was tough, lengthy and time consuming with a variation with two Sets coming with six questions each and two sets with four questions each. Here the success mantra was the set selection as 14 Questions set & 16 Questions set were the toughest and time consuming, so the students should first wrap up the easy ones and grab a good base and then move to the trickier ones.

Summary of Questions

• DILR Sets with 6 Questions: 2 Sets = 12 Questions (LR Sets)
• DILR Sets with 4 Questions: 2 Sets=8 Questions (DI Sets)

Ideal attempts in DILR Section: 13 Questions

CAT 2021 Analysis Slot 1: Quantitative Aptitude

22 Questions: (TITA 8)

According CAT 2021 analysis by CATKing expert, Quants was the easiest out of the three sections with direct formula application and concept based questions dominated by Arithmetic and little Geometry and Algebra. There was no need for having a lot of shortcuts and tricks, your solving speed and your temperament to understand what the question is asking was the main focus. The questions based on the Venn Diagram were tough. Arithmetic dominated the paper then Algebra and numbers, Geometry saw a lesser visibility with just three to four questions and Modern Maths was negligent in the paper.

Keeping the new pattern in focus an attempt of 45+ with 90% accuracy will be ideal for 99%ile says CATKing expert.

CAT 2021 Analysis Slot 2

Overall, the exam was doable and not very tough when compared to 2020. VARC was more inference based, but had Reading Comprehension passages all from the predicted topics. DILR was moderate in difficulty terms but felt a little time consuming and lengthy.

CAT 2021 Analysis Slot 2: VARC

Overall Difficulty: Moderate

24 Questions

Reading comprehension was dominated in the verbal section. There were 4 passages with 4 Questions each. More inference based questions and not factual, there were close options too so it needed little focus while solving.

Reading Comprehension 16 Questions

The Reading comprehension were based on the following themes:

• Passage 1: British Colonies - India’s Reaction (History Based)
• Passage 2: Truth and Power (Philosophy Based)
• Passage 3: Knowledge - How you perceive it
• Passage 4: Languages - Linguistic

Verbal Ability: 8 Questions

• 3 questions on Parajumbles - Easy
• 3 questions on Parasummary - Tougher than usual
• 2 questions on Odd one Out - Easy

Ideal attempts in VARC Section: 18 questions

CAT 2021 Analysis Slot 2: DILR

24 Questions

DILR Sets with 6 Questions: 2 Sets = 12 Questions (LR Sets)

DILR Sets with 4 Questions: 2 Sets=8 Questions (DI Sets)

DILR Sets	Area	Number of Questions
Set 1	Horizontal Stacked Column Graph (Product, Shipment Days)	4
Set 2	Games and Tournament Based ( 2 Players)	6
Set 3	Online Food Delivery Rating Parameters	6
Set 4	Graph Based	4

Ideal attempts in DILR Section: 13-14 Questions

CAT 2021 Analysis Slot 2: Quantitative Aptitude

Quants 22 Questions: (TITA 8)

QA Topics	Number of Questions
Arithmetic (Ratio, Time and Work, Profit & Loss, Time Speed Distance, Averages, Percentages)	10-11
Geometry	3-4
Numbers	2
Logs	2
Functions	2

Ideal attempts in Quantitative Aptitude section: 16-18 Questions

Keeping the new pattern in focus an attempt of 45+ with 90% accuracy will be ideal for 99%ile says CATKing expert.

CAT 2021 Analysis: Slot 3

According to CAT 2021 analysis by CATKing, VARC and DILR were doable but the right RCs and the DILR sets had to be selected. Quantitative Aptitude was tougher than Slot 1 and 2.

CAT 2021 Analysis Slot 3: VARC

Overall Difficulty: Moderate

24 Questions

Reading Comprehension: 16 questions

The Reading comprehension were based on the following themes:

• Passage 1: Science Based
• Passage 2: X Men Comic Book
• Passage 3: Time Management
• Passage 4: Languages – Linguistic

Verbal Ability: 8 questions

• 4 Questions Parajumbles Moderate, Easy
• 2 Questions Parasummary - Easy
• 2 Questions Odd one Out Moderate

Ideal attempts in VARC section: 18 questions

CAT 2021 Analysis Slot 3: DILR

Overall Difficulty: Moderate

24 Questions

Summary of Questions

DILR Sets with 6 Questions: 2 Sets = 12 Questions (LR Sets)

DILR Sets with 4 Questions: 2 Sets=8 Questions (DI Sets)

DILR Sets	Area	Number of Questions
Set 1	Horizontal Stacked Column Graph (4 People, 5 Projects, 9 months duration work (Work allocation %)	4
Set 2	Mathematical Reasoning (Pure liquid, impurities, machine testing)	4
Set 3	Games and Tournament (Javelin Throw)	6
Set 4	Condition Based Puzzle (3 people, Creating 30 questions and check)	6

Ideal attempts in DILR Section: 13-14 Questions

CAT 2021 Analysis Slot 3: Quantitative Aptitude

22 Questions: (TITA 8)

Quantitative Aptitude focused on the conceptual clarity and the application of the concepts, some may take time to solve but easy to score and attempt 16-18 questions.

Quantitative Aptitude Topics	Number of Questions
Arithmetic (Simple Compound Interest, Time and Work, Profit & Loss, Time Speed Distance, Averages, Percentages)	10 to 11
Logs	2
Functions	2
Series Based Questions	1
Geometry	2-3
Numbers	2

Ideal attempts in Quantitative Aptitude section: 16-18 questions

Overall, ideal attempts of 43+ should be good for targeting 99%ile in the third slot of CAT 2021.

Also Read:

• CAT score vs percentile and marks vs percentile
• Understanding CAT normalization process
• How Scaled CAT Score will be Calculated for Three Slots?

You may also be interested in:

CAT Cut-off	CAT Exam Syllabus
CAT Exam Pattern	CAT Mock Test
CAT Exam Preparation	CAT Exam Previous Year Paper

About the Author:

Sumit Singh Gandhi, CEO Director CATKing. He completed his MBA from SPJIMR and is a Master of Information Technology from Virginia Tech. He has also pursued SPNM from Havard Business School. Among numerous awards, he's been honoured with Digital Indian of the Year 2016 and Social Entrepreneur of the Year 2015.

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