- Having pursued B.Tech. from IIT, what made you choose MBA than M.Tech. or MS?
I was always interested in general management. I was a college fest coordinator in the 2nd year, the batch senator and the head of the health committee in my final year. I was also the chief election officer for the General student body election in my final year and conducted elections for 600 students. I have enjoyed those responsibilities; and business management has always been my inclination.
Having studied in IIT, how different the IIT education system from rest of institutions?
I think the quality of education and the exposure to various cutting-edge technologies is what differentiates IITs from the rest of the institutions. Not to forget the foreign internships they provide which help you understand the way engineering differs in various parts of the world.
You academic journey has entered into a great phase right after your Intermediate. You have attended Ramaiah institute, then went on to IIT and now scored 99.78 percentile in CAT, what is the factor behind your success?
I think it’s the determination and interest towards the field which helps one excel. Moreover the support and guidance from my parents helped me through this journey.
Who is your inspiration in this successful journey?
I can say it has always been my dad, right from my childhood. I look up to him in various aspects of life. He has always been a great mentor and support.
Your father is a Project Director for Agni-3, what are the key qualities you have learnt from your father who is a great scientist?
The key qualities that I learnt from my father are hard work and determination.
Being close to a scientist right from childhood, can you brief us what are the key qualities a scientist possess?
I think they are extremely hard working.
When did you start your preparation for CAT exam? How did you plan to get through it successfully?
I started preparing for CAT exam from June 2014. I used to spend 4 hours a day regularly with a balanced approach towards both quant and verbal. I have attended classroom coaching from Anil Nair Classes and took online test series from TIME which helped me immensely.
During you coaching and preparation, what were the problems you had come across and how did you overcome them?
Balancing work and preparation was a major hurdle. Putting in consistent effort takes patience and determination. It is important to keep moving forward until the day of the examination.
What are the main topics to be covered to score well?
Quant: Data Interpretation, Arithmetic, Number System, Geometry, Algebra, Modern Maths. A lot of questions were asked from arithmetic in my slot.
Verbal: Reading Comprehension and Vocabulary are major areas of improvement for most CAT aspirants. Not to forget, the Logical reasoning video solutions provided by TIME in the mock cats were really helpful.
What were the books that you have referred during preparation?
I have practiced problems from textbooks offered by Anil Nair Classes and TIME. I have also gone through various forums in pagalguy.com, which helped me a lot.
Your analysis on CAT 2014… as to difficulty level and types of questions.
I think it was a lot easier than the previous year papers. There were very few difficult questions. Most of them were pretty straight forward. I think the questions from logical reasoning were tough; cracking them would definitely help score a better percentile.
How do you see the role of coaching institutions in preparation?
My classroom coaching was from Anil Nair classes: The various shortcuts discussed there were really helpful. The personal attention shown by the faculty on every student there is remarkable.
I have given test series from TIME. The video solutions provided by them are really good. They helped me sail through logical reasoning with ease.
Without assistance of coaching center, how can one plan his preparation to crack exam?
Taking up a test series is definitely going to help. It helps you know where you stand and what your areas of improvement are.
What are the usual mistakes committed by aspirants in their preparation and how can they over come?
I think October-November is a crucial period. Its either going to make or break your chances of cracking CAT. Preparing well and not losing hope are must.
What is your goal, and right from childhood how did you plan to achieve it?
I have always wanted to become an entrepreneur and give something back to the society. I think pursuing MBA at a good B-school is going to help me achieve this.
Finally what message you would like to share with CAT aspirants and young graduates?
Chalk out a career plan with clarity and focus. Stick to it and work hard and all your dreams will come true. I believe that success and failure are inevitable, getting back on feet rather than getting bogged down by failure is what makes me, ME.
We wish you all the best.
Thanks a lot!
