CAT Verbal Section Tips by Pravin Vedamuthu of IMS

n the last minute build-up to the Verbal Section of CAT 2008, we would do well to remember that CAT 2007 had 3 main ‘components’ to its verbal section, totaling 25 questions: verbal ability based questions (6), verbal reasoning based questions (7) and reading comprehension based questions (12). Each question with 5 answer choices had 4 marks allotted to it and a negative of 1 mark. Though CAT sections are not strictly timed, it is safe to say that one needed to allot 50 minutes per section so as to have the best chances to clear sectional cut-offs. So these 25 questions needed to be attempted over 50 minutes. The objective was to maximize score, not necessarily attempt all.

Over the years, Reading Comprehension (RC) based questions and Jumbled Sentences (JS) have been constant features in a CAT paper. For the last lap, it would be wise to take 1 ‘drill’ everyday on these topics. A drill will try to mimic the actual situation which you will face w.r.t these question types in the actual paper.

An RC drill would consist of a set of 4 passages with 3 questions each to be attempted in 25 minutes. A JS drill would consist of 4 questions on Jumbled Sentences to be taken in 10 minutes. While taking a drill, it has to be kept in mind that the idea is to maximize score under a pressure situation. After a drill is taken, you should compute your score. So 1 RC drill and 1 JS drill each day will need 35 minutes of your time and an additional 25 minutes for computation of the score and analysis. So 1 hour each day on drills.

Prepare a set of examples, w.r.t. all important grammar concepts focusing on errors. If you have every important concept error (e.g. mistakes in parallel construction, dangling modifiers, subject- verb disagreement, etc.) in the form of an example, you will be alert to these when you tackle the sentence correction questions.

For critical reasoning type of questions, it is absolutely necessary to be very clear about words like ‘inferred’, ‘implied’ and ‘implicit’ and how they play out in a CAT paper. Also, question types like ‘what, if true, would best support the author’s view…’, ‘what, if true, would provide the most compelling logical disproof of…’ ,‘all of the following support the author’s claim EXCEPT…’etc.

For vocabulary based questions, it would still be good to go through a wordlist and glance at especially those words which you have heard and read but were not sure about. It is of course past the time to learn completely new words.

Last but not least, remember that the CAT is becoming more and more rigorous and the questions more and more complex. It is less of a ‘speed game’ now and more of clear, composed and focused thinking free from biases and prejudices. It tests who has better reasoning in a stressful situation rather than who has ‘worked’ the most. So stay calm and do not panic. The test is not about ‘how tough or easy’ it is always about ‘how competitive’ and hence the most important thing is how to avoid meltdowns and not give fellow competitors a ‘competitive advantage’.

I wish you the very best of luck for CAT 2008.

Pravin Santosh Vedamuthu,
IMS Learning Resources
P.G - MICA

Courtesy: www.imsindia.com
Email: ims@imsindia.com