The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Mixed reactions after the CAT

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Nov 19, 2007
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Mixed reactions after the CAT

Staff Reporter

The pattern was similar to last year’s and free of glitches

— Photo: K. Murali Kumar

after hours: Students who appeared for the Common Admission Test to premier business schools in India at one of the centres in Bangalore on Sunday.

BANGALORE: Management aspirants, who flocked out of examination centres in Bangalore on Sunday, conveyed mixed emotions. While some were all ready to celebrate, the more cautious said they were waiting to see the answer keys to see where they stood.

‘More tricky’

“The exam was more tricky than tough. The quantitative section was extremely tough this year and the answer choices were too close for us to approximate,” said Padmakumar, a student. Stress levels were high and so was speculation. “Going for coaching and taking several mock exams helped us deal with this stress and to function better. I saw people worried and anxious, but it is all part of the game,” said Murali Krishna, a third-timer who calls himself a CAT veteran.

Parents and family members, who eagerly waited for the students at the entrance of the test centres, seemed almost as nervous as those writing the examinations. Sunitha R., who was waiting for her husband, wondered if there would be changes in the pattern of questions. “It is all about how nervous you are; all of them can solve the papers outside. It is a different ball game inside the examination hall,” she said.

“I find it difficult to balance my classes with my work schedule, which is why I am a bag of nerves. I am waiting for the websites to publish the answer keys,” said Ershaad Ahmed, a software professional. Several websites of coaching centres published answer keys and detailed analysis of each section, with clear section-wise and overall cut-off marks. Last year, to boost transparency in the admission process, the Indian Institutes of Managament, for the first time, had published the answer keys on their websites. Websites like TIME and “Paagalguy” are faster, and uploaded the details by 4 p.m.

Feedback

Most analysis figures for the overall cut-off marks needed to make it to the IIMs averaged around 100 to 110 out of 300. All of them provided a break-up of individual sections and speculated about what would be the general approach that students would have taken. The pattern was similar to last year’s, with three sections (data interpretation, quantitative ability and verbal), with 25 questions carrying four marks each.

Last year, while the number of questions was reduced from 90 to 75, the examination duration was increased by 30 minutes. “This is a healthy pattern since it reduces stress levels significantly. Students get more time to work it out and concentrate on accuracy, which is probably why the exam just got tougher,” said Gautam Puri, Vice-Chairman, Career Launcher. While last year, the paper had four wrong questions, CAT 2007 was free of glitches.

Students complained that the quantitative analysis section was tougher this year and it focused on calculations.

“Data sufficiency questions have made a huge comeback after two years, and students could have been taken by surprise,” said Ajay Arora, Regional Director of TIME. The questions were less ambiguous, he added.

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