Hello,
One of the first things a person needs to do before embarking on his
preparation for CAT is an honest assessment of where he stands now.
This can be done through a Diagnostic Test. It simply means taking a
mock full length CAT test (from IMS, any CAT preparation guide etc.).
Purpose is to see where you stand today and what are the areas where
you need to focus your energy on.
Often the areas get split into three sections - Verbal, Numerical and
Analytical. From your diagnostic test you’d know where your strengths
lie. Also, you’d know what are your weaknesses.
If verbal ability is an issue then start with brushing your grammar
and basic English language fundamentals. Wren & Martin is a helpful
book.
If reading Comprehension is an issue then start with reading
newspaper editorials - Eco Times, Hindu and Times of India are good
reading. Idea is to increase your speed while improving your
comprehension. Often these two move in opposite directions.
If according to your diagnostic test, you find numerical ability to
be an issue - see which particular area: is it algebra, series,
fractions, permutations or probability. The more you narrow down your
problem area, the easier it is for you to go to a text book, brush
your fundamentals on that topic.
Here, its important to stress that more important than taking a test
is analysing your performance. Its not enough to take a test and be
satisfied with your score. Improvement comes from analysing your
mistakes, reading through the relevant material and ensuring that you
don’t repeat those mistakes.
Ok, all the above need to start a year before you plan to take CAT.
On the question of which is a better course, I feel all do the job
since how you prepare is more important than what are the specific
tests you take. However, I used IMS and found it good - so you can
decide.
CAT is high pressure but if the preparation is handled with proper
planning and regular ’’brushing your fundamentals’’ to ’’avoid
repeating mistakes’’ - you can crack it!!
Deejay