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Vipra Shrivastava
Senior Manager - Content
Updated on Aug 11, 2025 11:40 IST
CAT 2025 preparation strategy - To begin CAT exam preparation, you must first understand the requirement and target score. Finalise a study plan before hand. First of all, know the CAT syllabus and question types. Then, make a monthly strategy. Read here Roadmap to CAT 2025: A Comprehensive Strategy Guide

CAT 2025 preparation strategy - To begin CAT exam preparation, you must first understand the requirement and target score. Finalise a study plan before hand. First of all, know the CAT syllabus and question types. Then, make a monthly strategy. Read here Roadmap to CAT 2025: A Comprehensive Strategy Guide.

Roadmap to CAT 2025 preparation

Roadmap to CAT 2025 preparation

CAT preparation 2025 - The ideal time to start CAT preparation is March so that you get about 9 months of study time. To begin with CAT 2025 preparation, first understand the requirements. CAT is a high difficulty level exam and requires long hours of study and practice. So, you will need to make a time table from the very beginning. Whether you’re a graduation student or a working professional, you need to set aside 6-8 hours for CAT 2025 preparation on daily basis. If you have started CAT preparation late, don't worry you can still cover the CAT prep journey in time. To help you prepare for this national level MBA entrance exam, we have a comprehensive strategy guide.

Table of contents
  • Roadmap to CAT 2025: A Comprehensive Strategy Guide
  • CAT Syllabus and Exam Pattern
  • CAT Sectional Weightage
  • Roadmap to CAT 2025: A Comprehensive Strategy Guide - Section Wise Preparation
  • CAT Mock Test and Question Papers
  • Best Books for CAT Preparation

 Roadmap to CAT 2025: A Comprehensive Strategy Guide

A comprehensive CAT preparation strategy includes books, study material, guidance, problem solving sessions and mock tests. If you plan to join a coaching institute for CAT preparation 2025, you will be guided well. But if you plan to prepare by self-study, you will need discipline and dedication along with a solid CAT preparation strategy.

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CAT Syllabus and Exam Pattern

CAT syllabus 2025 includes all important topics of Verbal Ability, Data Interpretation, Logical Reasoning and Quantitative Aptitude. Unlike other MBA entrance exams, CAT has no vocabulary or grammar questions. All the questions in VARC pertain to comprehension – passages, para jumble, para completion, odd sentence, etc.

Check below the most important topics of CAT 2025 syllabus that you need to focus on during the exam preparation.

  • CAT Quantitative Aptitude: Geometry, algebra, arithmetic, mensuration, trigonometry, modern math. 
  • CAT Data Interpretation: Data structure, data sufficiency, tables, pie charts, graphs.
  • CAT Logical Reasoning: Series, coding-decoding, family tree, blood relation, seating arrangement, assumptions.
  • CAT VARC: Reading comprehension, fill in the blanks, para jumble, para completion, odd sentence out

Check below the key highlights of CAT exam pattern. The key to scoring high in CAT is choosing the right questions to answer and avoid negative marking.

CAT Exam Pattern 2025

Mode of CAT exam

Computer Based Test 

Duration of exam

120 minutes 

40 minutes per section

CAT exam slots

Morning: 8:30 AM to 10:30 AM

Afternoon: 12:30 PM to 2:30 PM

Evening: 4:30 PM to 6:30 PM

Number of questions

68

CAT total marks

204

Number of answer choices

4

Question Type

MCQ and non-MCQ

Marking scheme

+3 for correct attempt

-1 for incorrect attempt

0 for no answer

No negative marking for non-MCQ

CAT Sectional Weightage

CAT VARC has maximum weightage, but since sectional cut offs are critical in CAT, you cannot ignore a section with low weightage for the section with high weightage. You need to prepare for every section of the CAT 2025 equally well.

Sections

Important Topics

Number of questions

Total marks

VARC

Parajumbles, Sentence-Completion, Reading Comprehension, Para-Summary, Inferences

24

72

DILR

Tables, Graphs, Data Caselets, Blood Relation, Venn Diagram, Seating Arrangement and Syllogism

22

66

Quantitative Aptitude

Percentages, Profit & Loss, Simple Interest-Compound Interest, Time & Distance, Averages-Mixtures-Alligations, Numbers, Mensuration, Logarithms, Functions & Graphs, Indices & Surds, Quadratic Equations, Special Equations, Statistics

22

66

Roadmap to CAT 2025: A Comprehensive Strategy Guide - Section Wise Preparation

CAT VARC preparation tips: You need to start VARC preparation early as it involves developing reading habit. Read books and novels of different types from the very beginning. If you are an avid reader already, you may not need extensive reading. Only practicing Reading Comprehension passages for CAT will be helpful. However, if you are not much of a reader, you will need to start reading on a daily basis. The key is to practice a good number of Reading Comprehension passages of various types – easy, moderate and tough. Get hold of practice paper and sample questions from various sources.

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Q:   Is the CAT syllabus difficult?
A:

Yes, CAT syllabus is difficult to crack if you do not have enough time. There are three subjects in CAT- VARC, DILR and Quantitative Aptitude. Most of the candidates find RC passages tough to crack. In Quants, Arithmetic, Algebra and Geometry pose significant challenge during preparation. In DILR, Reasoning questions often turnout to be tricky and confusion.

Q:   Is it difficult for non-English medium students to crack CAT?
A:

It is difficult but not impossible. If you give yourself a good enough time to improve English comprehension, grammar and vocabulary, you will be able to do it. Yes, a non- English medium student will require longer time for CAT preparation as they will have to start reading and improving English comprehension. So, may be they need to start English preparation for CAT in the second year of graduation, instead of final year (much earlier than English medium students). They may also need two attempts to crack CAT with high percentile. But that's not true for all. If you work hard and study smartly, you will be able to crack it. 

Q:   What are the factors to keep in mind to cover CAT syllabus timely?
A:

CAT syllabus is vast. It has numerous topics from Verbal Ability, Reading Comprehension, Quantitative Aptitude, Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation. Covering the CAT syllabus also includes practicing a variety of sample questions on the topics included. Thus, it requires a lot of time. Candidates must given themselves atleast 3-4 months to cover CAT syllabus and keep in mind the following:

·      Check the previous years' CAT papers to know topics which carry more weightage so that you can focus on those topics more.

·      List down topicsin order of easy, moderate and tough and allot time to them accordingly.

·      Make sure to study about 6-8 hours per day to complete the syllabus 2-3 months before the exam.

·      After studying every topic, practice sample questions. Balance theory with practical.

 

CAT DILR preparation tips: Data Interpretation section of CAT is calculation based and has questions on tables, charts, graphs, etc. B thorough with mathematical calculations. The questions are asked in sets, so you need to be able to solve all the questions of a particular set. For this, correct selection of the CAT Data Interpretation set is important. You will be able to make this judgment if you have enough practice of all types of DI questions.

In CAT Logical Reasoning, the challenge is to understand the patterns and puzzles. There is no formula or theorem in CAT LR. There is neither any mathematical calculation involved, so all you have as the sources of preparation is practice questions. An important aspect to learn for LR is how to unravel a question. For this, take guidance and attend online practice sessions. Sectional time-bound CAT mock tests for DILR will be of great help.

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CAT Quantitative Aptitude preparation tips: If your Mathematics is strong you can sail through this section with practice. However, if it isn’t then you should better start from scratch. Go back to Class 9 and 10 NCERT Maths books to understand the basics of Algebra, Geometry, Trigonometry and Arithmetic. The CAT Quantitative Aptitude questions are of advanced level so after understanding the basics, start working on advance level Maths. Practice sample questions and previous years’ CAT question papers to gain control over the topics. Most of the questions are asked from Arithmetic and Algebra so pay special focus on them.

Overall, cracking CAT with high scores is dependent on your practice. The more you practice the better you gain control over topics and types of question – easy, medium, difficult, tricky or lengthy.

Also Read:

CAT Mock Test and Question Papers

Shiksha has created free CAT mock tests for aspirants to practice and assess their preparation level. These mock tests are based on previous years' CAT questions so that you get familiar with the difficulty level of the actual exam. 

CAT_Mock_Test_1 CAT_Mock_Test_1_Solutions
CAT_Mock_Test_2 CAT_Mock_Test_2_Solutions

DOWNLOAD: Previous years' CAT question paper PDFs

CAT Questions with Solutions for Practice - PDFs

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Best Books for CAT Preparation

Preparation of CAT is largely dependent of CAT books. You should refer to the book suggested by experts and previous years’ toppers for comprehensive preparation. Listed below are section wise best books for CAT preparation:

CAT Books (DILR)

Author/Publisher Name

Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning

Gautam Puri

Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation for the CAT

Nishit K. Sinha

Data Interpretation & Data Sufficiency

Ananta Ashisha

How to Prepare for Data Interpretation for CAT

Arun Sharma

CAT Books (VARC)

Author/Publisher Name

How to Prepare for Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension for CAT

Arun Sharma and Meenakshi Upadhyay/Arihant

30 Days to a More Powerful Vocabulary Mass Market Paperback

Wilfred Funk & Norman Lewis/ Simon & Schuster

How to Prepare for Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension for the CAT

Sharma and Upadhyay

PSC for VA for CAT

Nishit Sinha

CAT Books (Quantitative Aptitude)

Author/Publisher Name

NCERT Mathematics books (Class 9-10)

NCERT

How to Prepare for Quantitative Aptitude for the CAT

Arun Sharma

Quantitative Aptitude Quantum CAT

Sarvesh Verma

Quantitative Aptitude for CAT

Nishit Sinha

Quantitative Aptitude

 RS Aggarwal

Q:   What are the best ways to prepare for the DILR section?
A:

The best way to prepare for DILR section is through practice. Before starting the preparation, aspirants should check previous years’ question papers. Since there is not much conceptual understanding required in this section, practice is important.

Some of the most popular books on DILR section that you can refer are How to Prepare for Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning for CAT by Arun Sharma, Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation for the CAT by Nishit Sinha, Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning for CAT by Pearson, to name a few.

Q:   Is CAT exam tough for an average student?
A:

CAT is a speed based test of analytical aptitude, logical reasoning skills, data interpretation and English comprehension. Now, it may sound tough, but these are the skills which we are taught in school so there is nothing new to learn. What is required is to learn these subjects at advanced level. If you are an average student but have studied Science or commerce in Class-12 and graduation, you will find a lot of familiar topics in Data Interpretation, Quantitative Aptitude and Logical Reasoning. All you will need is brush up the basics and practice the concepts on advance level problems.

However, since the competition is so high in CAT and less than 95 percentile can break your dream of joining a top college like IIM, the preparation for CAT requires a lot of focus, dedication, discipline and diligence. If you can do that, despite being an average student, you can crack the CAT exam.

Q:   Why is CAT considered a difficult MBA entrance exam?
A:
The CAT is conducted as a difficult MBA entrance exam because it is the main national level test for MBA Admission in India. Over 2 Lacs candidates appear for it every year. Thus, the competition is high. The question paper is set by the IIM. Even though the score is accepted by over 1300 colleges the top colleges accept above 90 percentile. The Iims have cut offs above 95 percentile. It has been seen that out of the total number of test takers which is usually around 2 Lacs, only about 20 candidates are able to score 99-100 percentile. The difficulty level of CAT is the highest among all the MBA entrance exams in India. It is conducted for 2 hours and has 66 questions in total to solve. However, the difficulty level of all the questions from VARC DILR and Quantitative Aptitude is high. The VARC has tough and long Reading Comprehension passages. The Data Interpretation tables and charts are dense and calculation intensive. Logical Reasoning questions are also on the tougher side. Moreover, there is sectional time limit of 40 minutes for each section. Candidates have to complete a section in the given time limit only.
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Vipra Shrivastava
Senior Manager - Content

Vipra Shrivastava is MA in English Literature from Delhi University with extensive experience in content writing of over 14 years. She has been handling content for Management, Accounting and Commerce streams for 8

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