CAT 2022 Topper Interview: “Mocks play a crucial role” says Risshi Agrawal, 99.99 percentiler
Common Admission Test 2026 ( CAT )
Registration - To be notified
Risshi Agrawal who bagged, 99.99 percentile in CAT 2022 shares his preparation strategy and important tips for aspirants. Check complete details here.
CAT 2022 Topper Interview
CAT 2022 Topper Interview: With the announcement of CAT 2022 results on December 21, 2022, out of 22 candidates, Risshi Agrawal scored 99.99 perecentile in CAT 2022 exam. With his sheer dedication and consistency CAT 2022 topper- Risshi Agrawal aims to make his way to top IIMs- Banglore, Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Calcutta, Kozhikode & Indore. Risshi Agrawal belongs from Mirzapur, UP and is a graduate in Prductions and Industrial Engineering from Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi. In his exclusive interview with Shiksha, Risshi shares his preparation strategy for CAT exam. Know more about the CAT 2022 topper Risshi Agrawal in this article.
Also Read:
Name and College: Risshi Agrawal - IIT, Delhi
CAT 2022 score
Overall: 99.99%
Sectional score
DILR: 99.99%
VA: 85.65%
QA: 100%
Shiksha: Congratulations! Are you satisfied with your CAT result? How much score were you expecting?
Risshi: Thanks, yes although I was expecting above 99%ile in the exam, the fact of getting in the top 30 odd students also surprised me.
Explore colleges based on CAT
Want better recommendations?
There is a 90% more chance of getting best college recommendations by sharing preferences.
- Chat with our counselor
- Get your personalised list of colleges & exams matching your preferences
Shiksha: Please tell about yourself
Risshi: I belong to Mirzapur - UP. I graduated from IITD in 2022 (Production and Industrial Engineering). I am currently working as an Associate Analyst at Putnam - A management consulting firm based out of healthcare.
Commonly asked questions
Yes, IIM Bangalore is one of the toughest business schools to get admission to, and every year, even CAT 99+ percentilers miss out on a call from the institute. IIM Bangalore uses multiple parameters, namely academic performance as well as candidates' scores in CAT/GMAT to select candidates for the PGP programme. IIMB adopts a two-phase selection process and accordingly, these selection criteria are applied in two phases. The first phase of the process is applied to all eligible candidates who appear for CAT to determine candidates to be called for a personal interview (PI). Candidates selected for the PI process will be additionally required to take a Writing Ability Test (WAT).
Sectional cut-off in the CAT exam refers to the section-wise percentiles required by the candidate to make it to the Personal Interview round of the IIMs or other top MBA colleges. The sectional cut-offs are lower than the overall cut-offs of any institute. To understand better, check the table below for sectional CAT cut-offs for IIM Ahmedabad:
Category | VARC percentile | DILR percentile | QA percentile | Overall percentile |
|---|---|---|---|---|
General | 70 | 70 | 70 | 80 |
NC-OBC-Transgender | 65 | 65 | 65 | 75 |
SC | 60 | 60 | 60 | 70 |
ST | 50 | 50 | 50 | 60 |
PwD (General, NC-OBC-cum-transgender, SC) | 60 | 60 | 60 | 70 |
PwD (ST) | 50 | 50 | 50 | 60 |
For sectional cut-offs of all IIMs, check this article – IIM shortlist and selection criteria
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.
Shiksha: Was this your first CAT attempt?
Risshi: No, this was my 2nd attempt. In 2021, I gave my 1st attempt.
Shiksha: When did you start preparing for the CAT exam? What was your overall preparation strategy?
Explore more MBA exams with upcoming dates
31 Oct '25 - 12 Apr '26
15 Apr '26
15 Apr '26
19 Apr '26
12 Apr '26
13 Apr '26
7 Apr '26 - 14 Apr '26
25 Apr '26
Risshi: I started preparing in the month of July. Since I had already taken the exam last year, I was familiar with the pattern. For the first two months I focused on revising the concepts while in the later stages I devoted my time towards solving mocks (average of 1 per day).
Shiksha: Please share with us your section-wise strategy.
Risshi: VARC: I read newspapers on a daily basis. I preferred reading topics which were of interest to me like sports and politics.
DILR: I tried to solve a variety of DILR puzzles. My focus was largely towards the LR section since I messed it up the last time.
QA: I didn't devote additional time towards it since I was pretty confident in this subject.
Shiksha: Which books did you refer to for CAT preparation? Did you join any coaching institute? How does a coaching institute help in CAT preparation?
Risshi: I referred to TIME coaching materials and CL mock test series. I found CL mock to be very close to what was asked in the exam
Shiksha: How many mock tests did you attempt and how important is a mock test series?
Risshi: Mocks play a crucial role while preparing for CAT. It helps you determine the strategy which suits you the best.
Also Read:
Shiksha: What was your exam day strategy?
Risshi: Start VARC subject by identifying 2 out of 4 RCs which are easiest to solve (24 min to solve). Rest focus on the VA aspect. In DILR, start by doing the DI question (often easiest of all) and then focus on 2 of the remaining 3 puzzles. In QA, start filtering the questions as per your strength and attempt them first.
Shiksha: Who is your role model?
Risshi: I looked up to my maternal uncle an IIT ISB graduate while my preparation
Shiksha: Any tips for future CAT aspirants?
Risshi: Keep yourself updated with the latest pattern and solve as many mocks as possible.
Shiksha: Which IIMs /Institutes are you targeting?
Risshi: I am targeting all of the BLACKI colleges:
Read More Topper Interview:
- CAT 2022 Topper Interview- Atish Naskar, 99.81 percentiler
- CAT 2022 Topper Interview- Tushar Sarkar- 99.80 Percentiler
- CAT 2022 Topper Interview: Know how Parul Garg cracked CAT with 99.93%ile
- CAT 2022 Topper Interview: "Consistency is the Key" Believes Vasu Reddy, 99.36%iler
- CAT 2022 Topper Interview: Apurba Das, 99.24 percentiler
- CAT 2022 Topper Interview- Mohul Kishore- 99.08 percentiler
- IIM Admission Criteria
News & Updates
Explore Other Exams
Jul '26 | XAT 2027 registration dates |
Sep '26 | XAT 2027 mock test |
Aug '26 | SNAP 2026 Registration Process |
28 Nov '26 | SNAP 2026 admit card session 1... |
Aug '26 | NMAT 2026 Registration Window |
Aug '26 | NMAT 2026 Scheduling Window |
17 Oct '24 - 5 Dec '24 | IIFT 2025 registration and app... |
1 Apr '26 - 25 May '26 | MAT May 2026 Registration PBT |
1 Apr '26 - 8 Jun '26 | MAT May 2026 Registration CBT |
Jul '26 | IBSAT 2026 Registration |
Dec '26 | IBSAT 2026 Exam Date |
17 Feb '26 | CMAT 2026 result |
31 Jan '26 - 2 Feb '26 | CMAT 2026 exam answer key obje... |
9 May '26 | MAH MBA CET 2026 exam 2 |
7 Apr '26 - 8 Apr '26 | MAH MBA CET 2026 exam |
16 Mar '26 - 15 Apr '26 | TANCET registration window |
May '26 | TANCET admit card download |
Mar '25 | IRMASAT 2025 Final Result Anno... |
Feb '25 | IRMASAT Personal Interviews |
Student Forum
Anything you would want to ask experts?Answered Yesterday
Structured programmes, continuous skill-building and exposure to the "real world" from day one are set up to prepare students for the corporate world.
Interview Preparation/Career Readiness Training Methodologies
1. Completion of a Dedicated Programme (CPMP)
Over the course of the semester, the course
M
Beginner-Level 4
Answered Yesterday
The percentile needed for admission would depend on the category you belong to. JAGSoM accepts various entrance examinations for admission to the MBA/PGDM course, like CAT, XAT, MAT, etc.
As per the estimated XAT cutoff in 2026, a percentile of 70 would be good enough to secure a chance at admission
N
Contributor-Level 10
Answered Yesterday
Students who get valid results in any of the above exams are eligible to apply to ISBR, after they have cleared the eligibility
N
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 2 days ago
You don't strictly need CAT to get into GIBS Business School. They accept both CAT and MAT scores, but even if you haven't appeared for them, you can still get admission through their direct admission or interview process.
CAT → accepted, helps in selection
MAT → also accepted, gives another option
No
P
Contributor-Level 7
Answered 2 days ago
Candidates should practice at least past 10 years' CAT question papers to have a good control over the exam. Many times, questions are repeated so prior practice will be helpful. CAT question papers are also best source of RC passages.
N
Contributor-Level 7
Answered 2 days ago
Yes, the question papers of all CAT exam slots are different from each other. This is done to ensure that there is no question leak before the next slot, and that second and third slot candidates have no advantage over first slot candidate.
E
Contributor-Level 7
Answered 2 days ago
XIM University accepts the CAT cutoff for admission to the MBA course. According to the XIM University CAT cutoff 2025, a percentile of 91 (both overall and sectional) would be required to be eligible for XIM University admission.
Candides should know that just clearing the final cutoff does not gr
N
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 2 days ago
Yes, Talent Skillsvarsity admissions are possible without the CAT scores. The below are the Talent Skillsvarsity admission related criteria:
- PG course: NMAT, MAT, CMAT, CET, XAT, ATMA, & GMAT.
Selection: Aptitude test, personal interview round & panel interview
V
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 2 days ago
IBS Mumbai CAT cutoff 2025 was released for admission to the PGPM course for various All India categories. The cutoff was published in the form of percentiles.
For the General AI category, the overall percentile was 70 and 40 sectional for to the PGPM programme. Students who attain these percentile
N
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 2 days ago
To attain admission in Loyola Institute of Business Administration, students who belong to the General category under the All India quota would need to attain a CAT percentile of 80 overall and 50 for the Quants, VA-RC and DI-LR sections.
Other categories will have different cutoffs accordingly. Gen
N
Contributor-Level 10
Shruti Garg is a graduate in English and Education with over 7 years of experience in content writing/editing and education journalism. At Shiksha.com, Shruti covers UG and PG entrance exams like MBA entrance exams,
Read Full Bio