Common Admission Test 2025 ( CAT )
Exam On - 30 Nov '25
In an exclusive interview with Shiksha, Dixit Gupta shares his preparation strategy and tips for future CAT aspirants. Read further to know more about CAT 2022 topper Dixit Gupta.
CAT 2022 Topper Interview: Dixit Gupta, 99.55%iler
CAT Topper Interview: Dixit Gupta, a Commerce graduate from G G D S D College, currently Master in Economics Degree from DAV College, Chandigarh cracked India's biggest MBA entrance exam, CAT 2022 with 99.55 percentile. IIM Bangalore declared CAT 2022 result two weeks earlier than usual, i.e. on December 21. CAT 2022 exam was held on November 27. Excited to pave his way into the management field, Dixit is aiming for some top IIMs such as IIM-A, IIM-B, IIM-C, etc. In an exclusive interview with Shiksha, Dixit Gupta shares his preparation strategy and tips for future CAT aspirants. Read further to know more about CAT 2022 topper Dixit Gupta.
Overall Percentile: 99.55%
VARC - 90.36%
DILR - 99.98%
QA - 96.77%
Dixit: Thank you! I am quite satisfied with the results I got and the range I was expecting was 99.30 - 99.60. So yeah, it was kinda relieving to see my efforts making results.
Dixit: Yes.
Dixit: I started this journey by the end of January this year. My strategy was to not only focus on my weak areas (VARC) but also to devote my time to my strongest areas as well (QA). It helped me to polish my LRDI set's logic, numerical logic, and reasoning skills as well. People usually skip their strongest part for the sake of improvement in their weak areas, I am glad that I didn't commit this mistake.
No, one can't join IIM without CAT. Candidates seeking admission to the IIM Ahmedabad MBA course must appear for CAT and secure 90 percentile. The Institute considers Writing Ability Test (WAT) and Personal Interview (PI) rounds for final admission to IIM Ahmedabad along with CAT results. Students must meet both, the overall CAT cutoff percentile and the sectional cutoffs.The Institute does not release CAT cutoffs in the public domain and are exclusively accessible only via account login to candidates who have appeared for the exam.
The table given below mentions IIM Calcutta sectional and overall cutoff 2024 across all sections and categories:
| Category | Section - 1 (VARC) | Section – II (DILR) | Section – III (QA) | Overall Percentile |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OPEN | ≥80 | ≥80 | ≥75 | ≥85 |
| EWS | ≥70 | ≥65 | ≥65 | ≥75 |
| NC-OBC | ≥70 | ≥65 | ≥65 | ≥75 |
| SC | ≥65 | ≥60 | ≥60 | ≥70 |
| ST | ≥55 | ≥55 | ≥55 | ≥65 |
| PwD | ≥45 | ≥45 | ≥45 | ≥55 |
Dixit: •VARC being my weakest section, I knew reading was the most important part which I had to do in order to get myself up. I happen to be not in the habit of reading books so, reading newspaper editorials, daily news articles from websites like WSJ, NY Times, aeon was my only savior. Apart from that, I used to solve 4-6 RCs daily from July to September and 6-8 RCs daily from October to November. I am blessed to have Amit Sir from EduCorp by my side all this time.
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Dixit: I only solved concept books & some high level books provided by my coaching institute.
Dixit: Mock Tests are game changers. They are not only for practice (like most of the people think) but also to know your strengths and weaknesses. I solved around 25-26 mocks before CAT and their proper analysis helped me form my strategy better.
Dixit: Yes. For me, guidance has always been synonymous with Educorp and it really helped me a lot. I used to trust Amit Sir & Sumit Sir blindly and that is what led me to a position of giving this interview. If you are lucky enough to have teachers as I had, you would have a clear vision & goal in your entire journey. They'll help you wherever you are stuck, guide you in times of need and often crack PJs in times of need to cheer you up.
The answer to this question of whether an average student can get into IIM can be both yes and no depending on the definition of an average student.
Based on the above factors, it can be considered that while getting into top Management institutes, such as IIM is extremely tough, the past performance, CAT performance, student category and a lot of factors can be the reasons for a student to receive that final call.
No, IIM Bangalore or any other IIMs do not offer reservation of seats to the students. However, the qualifying criteria for General and reserved categories are comparatively different. Please find below the category-wise qualifying cutoff required by all candidates.
Category | Section-1 VARC | Section-2 DILR | Section-3 QUANT | CAT 2023 Overall percentile |
|---|---|---|---|---|
General | 80 | 75 | 75 | 85 |
NC-OBC | 70 | 65 | 65 | 75 |
EWS | 70 | 65 | 65 | 75 |
SC | 65 | 60 | 60 | 70 |
ST | 55 | 55 | 55 | 65 |
PWD | 50 | 50 | 50 | 60 |
There is a good chance of receiving an interview call from IIM Ahmedabad, however, admission isn’t guaranteed even at 100 percentile. The overall criteria includes academic profile, that is your Class 12, Class 10 and graduation marks. The college also gives a score for work experience, hence, candidates must have 2-3 years of experience to get maximum points. Additional focus is also given to gender and academic diversity. Considering all these factors and candidates’ CAT score, IIM Ahmedabad prepares a composite score through which decides whether to finalise a student or not. IIM Ahmedabad or any other IIM, for that matter, doesn’t give direct admission only on the basis of CAT percentile, the first phase of admission process is giving the CAT exam. Students must clear the sectional and the minimum final cut-off to be eligible and considered for the call. After that, they must get shortlisted for the interviews and group discussion process. After all these rounds, a final list of shortlisted candidates is prepared.
Dixit: I went cool-minded, having faith in myself that I have worked hard and I'll get it right. I never let any negative thoughts cross my mind until the clock on the screen started.
Dixit: IIM BLACI (IIM Bangalore, IIM Ahmedabad, IIM Lucknow, IIM Calcutta, IIM Indore)
Dixit: I am a Commerce graduate from G.G.D.S.D.College Sector 32 Chandigarh and currently pursuing my Master in Economics Degree from DAV College, Chandigarh Sector 10. I live in HMT Township pinjore and my papa is retired from government services, my mother is a housewife and my sister is serving as PGT in a reputed institution. I like to solve sudoku in my free time and I love reading about business.
Dixit: I'd say, luck is not with you until you are with yourselves. There'll be tough times and you just need to stay strong and work hard as much as you can without bothering about the consequences. CAT is not an end, it is the beginning and whether you get it right or not, there are surely beautiful things on your way ahead.
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