How to Prepare for a CAT Retake – Part II

How to prepare for a CAT retake – Part 2: To take up classroom coaching or not? That is the question. The first voluntary disclosure from my side is that I took up classroom coaching for my first attempt. I attended classes regularly, but my regularity was mostly due to my enjoyment of spending time chatting with fellow aspirants, who are now my closest friends. Another factor was that I was not working and distances in a small city like Visakhapatnam were not a hindrance.

In recent times, there has been a discernible trend towards self-preparation. This trend is due to the distances in metros, work schedules, and the perception about the level of difficulty of the CAT. However, I believe that unless you have scored well in excess of 95 percentile and have taken classroom coaching regularly, some form of classroom coaching will always be helpful. It doesn’t have to be a full-length program; you can choose the duration depending on your aptitude and effort put into your first attempt. Here are a few reasons why:

1. There is nothing like a well-designed class sheet to learn from. A well-structured program with well-designed class sheets will provide you with a comprehensive program so you don’t have to scour various sources to design your own. If you know how to solve all the problems in the class sheets provided, you will have covered all the necessary concepts and patterns needed to ace the test.

2. A good teacher always brings something new to the table. While there are books with concepts, questions, and shortcuts, a good teacher can bring a unique perspective to problem-solving. Observing how a teacher solves a problem can help you go beyond your usual approach and find more efficient and elegant methods.

3. There is a lot you can learn from a good peer. Having a good peer or peer group for your preparation is valuable. While online resources can provide similar support, having someone in person to discuss doubts and solve questions from the same syllabus can be more beneficial. Sometimes, students come up with better ways of solving questions than instructors, and observing their methods can enhance your own problem-solving skills.

4. Online resources are helpful, but they are not coaching. While online forums and communities can offer information, content sharing, and networking opportunities, they are not sufficient for maximizing your score. Working with a mentor who knows the CAT inside out can help you achieve your best percentile.

5. The quality of your practice material is important. Accumulating free content from the internet might be tempting, but it should be avoided. A good question requires careful crafting and testing. The art of making questions is something that is learned from a mentor and perfected over time. Brands with well-established academics teams are usually the ones that provide high-quality practice material and that will help you to prepare for a CAT retake in Part-2.