Analysis of CAT Test 2021

CAT2021: An Overall Analysis

The CAT 2021 started with suspense about the number of slots 1. The students hoped to pass the exam without much surprise, but in 2021, there were 66 questions instead of 76. Similar to previous years, the difficulty level of this exam was similar. Verbal was moderately difficult, DILR was a difficult to test and quant were moderate-to-hard.

Slot 3 scored relatively well with both DILR- and Quant scores higher. According to the last report, overall, the CAT exam went well.

Highlights:

·         Total number of questions - 66 (down 76 from 2020).

·         Duration: 2 hours (same time last year).

·         Difficulty Levels: VARC moderate, DILR difficult and Quant moderate to difficult

CAT2021 Exam- Slot 1 Analysis

See our detailed analysis of Slot 1 to gain insights into Slot 2 and 3 as well as performance differences for Slot 1

Students walked into the CAT exam hoping that the conducting body would follow the same pattern as last year and not surprise them. However, their prayers were not answered. The CAT 2021 Slot 1 exam had 66 questions total, 10 more than last year and spread over 3 sections. The exam was similar in structure, pattern and difficulty to previous CAT exams, with some variation across sections.

Exam Structure & Pattern:

The paper was divided into three sections, namely, 'Quantitative Aptitude', ’Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning' and 'Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension. Each section contained 24, 20 and 22 questions. Each section was limited to 40 minutes.

These sections were segmented for Slot 1 as

Section-wise Review

A review of the verbal section is moderately difficult to difficult. Good scores will depend on your accuracy.

Four RC passages were of medium length and contained four questions each. There were no TITA question in RC.

The subjects of passages were -

·         Cuttlefish have a remarkable personality

·         Review of a book on moral marketing-Utopian or Dystopian

·         The classic Maya period

·         Consumption and virtue are not compatible

An attempt of 15-20 with high accuracy will earn 99%ile

Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning: This section was the most difficult. There were 4 total sets - 2 of 6 and 2 of 4. One was the Bar Graph set with 4 questions. This was very calculation-intensive but was attempted most by all students. The missing values (i.e. AR set of 6 questions. Two sets of data reasoning were used - one set of four and one set of six questions. The total number of TITA questions was 5.

An AR set could be related to people and journals from different categories. It would have a lot of variables and their logical relationships. Few students can attempt more than two sets.

A total of 8-12 questions will earn you 99%ile

Quantitative Aptitude Review the Quant section was moderately easy. The majority of the topics, such as Profit & Loss and TSD, Time & Work, and Allegation, were well represented. Geometry questions had a moderate difficulty level and were three in number. Algebra contained 5 questions (2 Linear and 2 APGP, 1 on inequality). The quant section was manageable. The questions were, however, time-consuming, even though they were not difficult like last year. The best strategy was to skip questions that seemed difficult in the first attempt.

A 15-19 question attempt with high accuracy will earn you 99%ile

Attempts and Expected Percentile Table together with B-Schools Cut-offs

Table – Morning Slot

To make both slots equal, it appears that normalization of about 5% could occur.

CAT 2021 Exam- Slot 2 Analysis

See our detailed analysis of Slot 2 to gain insights into Slot 3

Slot 2 of CAT 2021 followed similar lines, with slight differences in the difficulty level of the Quant section. This was considered moderately difficult and quite lengthy. There were 66 questions in the slot 2, which was broken down into three sections.

Major changes:

1.       From 76 questions in 2020, the total number of questions has been lowered to 66 in 2021.

2.       Slot 1: Difficulty Level

Exam Structure & Pattern:

The paper was divided into three sections: 'Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension (VARC), 'Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning (DILR), and 'Quantitative Aptitude (QA), each with 24 and 20 questions. Each section was limited to 40 minutes.

These sections were segmented for Slot 2:

Section-wise Review

A review of the verbal section can be described as moderately too easy in terms of difficulty. A good score will be determined by accuracy and effort.

There were four RC passages with 4 questions each of medium length. Para jumbles - 3, Para Summary 3 and Odd one out 2 were the other questions. Total 5 TITA questions were asked from Para jumbles and odd one. TITA questions were not included in RC. Para summaries were slightly more difficult.

The subjects of passages were -

·         Philosophy where the author contemplates dilemmas

·         Languages are losing their significance

·         With a slight tilt toward politics, power and truth in general.

·         A historian's view of India's colonial past

An attempt of 15-19 with high accuracy is expected to fetch 99%ile

Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning: This section, like the rest of the last few years was very difficult, but it may be slightly easier than Slot1. There were 4 sets total - 2 of 6 and 2 of 4 questions respectively. The sets were on 1) Bar graph - Product packaging and dispatched (easiest), 2) Distribution operations 3) Games & tournaments Table, and 4) Date interpretation. There were 5 total TITA questions.

A 12-15 question attempt with high accuracy will earn you 99%ile

Quantitative Aptitude Review: Many students found the Quant section to be a little more difficult than Slot 1. The majority of the topics, such as Profit & Loss and Time & Work, Allegation, etc were well represented. Geometry questions were three in number, and relatively easy. Slot 1 slot 1 slots had similar Algebra questions. The quant section was somewhat difficult, which would have reduced attempts by 3-4. The best strategy was to skip questions that seemed difficult in the first attempt. There were 6-8 questions in the TITA.

A 12-17 question attempt with high accuracy will earn you 99%ile

Attempts and Expected Percentile Table together with B-Schools Cutoffs

Table Slot 2

It appears that normalization of about 5% could take place in order to make all slots the same level.

CAT 2021 Exam Slot 3 Analysis

See detailed analysis of slot 3

The Slot 3 of the CAT 2021 was similar to the previous one, with slight differences in the difficulty of Quant section. This was considered moderately difficult and quite lengthy. The total of 66 questions in slot 2 were spread over 3 sections.

Major changes:

·         The total number of questions in 2021 has been reduced from 76 in 2020 to 66. This is in the same vein as in Slot 1 & 2.

·         Slot 1& 2: Difficulty Level

Exam Structure & Pattern:

The paper was divided into three sections: 'Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension (VARC), 'Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning (DILR), and 'Quantitative Aptitude' (QA) with respective 24, 20 and 22 questions. Each section was limited to 40 minutes.

These sections were segmented for Slot 3:

Section-wise Review

Review of The verbal section can be classified as difficult to moderately difficult based on its difficulty. A good score will be determined by the quality of your attempt, accuracy, and passage selection.

Four RC passages were of medium length and each contained 4 questions. Parajumbles - 3, Para Summary 3 and Odd one out 2 were the other questions. Total 5 TITA questions were asked from parajumbles and odd one. There were no TITA questions in RC. Para summaries were slightly more difficult.

The subjects of passages were -

·         Price is a scientific method that accurately records time. It has moderate difficulty.

·         Transition from mechanical robots into nano-robots in the early 2000s (scientific in nature, vocab dense and thus tricky passage).

·         The New Doctrine on how language is hardwired in the brains of humans (moderate difficulty).

·         Psychology based on dreams, hallucination, and other phenomena (difficult).

An attempt of 15-19 with high accuracy is expected to fetch 99%ile

Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning This section was the most difficult in recent years and was on a similar level to Slot 1 and 2. There were 4 sets total - 2 of 6 and 2 of 4 questions for each. The sets were: 1) An AR set of 6 questions - 3 people interviewing and selecting questions (doable), 2) Mixture & Allegations (difficult), 3) Games & Tournaments - Javelin throw, which is a long and difficult event and 4) Bar graph - 4-person project team (easy). Five total TITA questions were asked.

A 12-15 question attempt with high accuracy will earn you 99%ile

Quantitative Aptitude Review the Quant section was moderately challenging, but easier than Slot 2, although students found it time-consuming. The majority of the topics such as Profit & Loss and Time & Work, Allegation, Ratio, and Allegation, etc. were well represented. The Geometry questions were four in number, and relatively easy. Slot 1 slots had similar Algebra questions. The quant section was somewhat difficult, which would have reduced attempts by 3-4. The section had 8 TITA questions. Question selection was key to getting a better score.

A 16-19 question attempt with high accuracy will earn you a 99%ile

Attempts and Expected Percentile Table together with B-Schools Cutoffs

CAT 3 Analysis

To make all slots equal, it looks like there may be a normalization of about 5%.

B-School Cut-offs

B-Schools use CAT scores as a primary screening tool for shortlisting candidates for the GD/ PI round. Other factors that are considered when generating calls include academic performance, graduation, and work experience. The cut-offs for older IIMs are usually higher than for new IIMs.