Stage 1: sectional foundations
Begin with short sectional tests so you can find your level in each area: VARC, DILR and Quantitative Aptitude. The goal here is accuracy and technique, not time.
Stage 2: timed sections
Move to full 40-minute sectionals. In DILR practise reading all sets and ranking them; in VARC decide which passages to take; in Quant clear the easy questions first. These choices are the real skill of CAT.
Stage 3: full mocks
Take a full mock every week or so in the last few months, at the actual exam time of day. Spend at least as long reviewing a mock as taking it.
The review that moves your score
- Redo skipped DILR sets and Quant questions without a clock
- List the reasons for every wrong answer
- Track attempt rate and accuracy per section, not just the total
The process is expanded in how to use mock tests for CAT preparation. For the paper structure see the CAT pattern overview, try free CAT mock tests or browse the CAT hub.
