So, the CAT is out of the bag, quite literally. After a year full of hard work, discipline, sacrifices, struggle, it all boiled down to the final D-day that is 26th November 2023. Thousands of aspirants with dreams of pursuing MBA from reputed institutes of the country sat for the CAT 2023 in three slots in 400 centres in 155 cities across the country.
Let’s analyse CAT 2023
The overall difficulty of papers in all three slots was moderate, as compared to the previous year.
Number of Questions- There were a total of 66 questions in the CAT 2023 question paper. The division is as follows:
|
Section Name |
Number of Questions |
Difficulty Level |
|
Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension |
24 |
Moderate |
|
Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning |
20 |
Moderate to Tough |
|
Quantitative Aptitude |
22 |
Tough |
|
Total |
66 |
Moderate to Tough |
Question wise break-up-The question wise break-up for each section is as follows:
|
Topic |
Questions |
|||
|
Slot 1 |
Slot 2 |
Slot 3 |
||
|
Para Summary |
2 questions |
2 questions |
2 questions |
|
|
Verbal Ability (8 questions) |
Para Completion |
2 questions |
2 questions |
2 questions |
|
Para Jumbles |
2 questions |
2 questions |
2 questions |
|
|
Odd One |
2 questions |
2 questions |
2 questions |
|
|
Reading Comprehension Passages (16 questions) |
4 passages with 4 questions each |
Passage- Wolves and its impact in a French region (4 questions) |
Passage-Culture and Lifestyle (4 questions) |
Passage- Climate Change (4 questions) |
|
Passage-Indian Ocean Literature (4 questions) |
Passage- Streaming Platform (4 questions) |
Passage- Romanticism (4 questions) |
||
|
Passage-Colonialism (4 questions) |
Passage- Book Review (4 questions) |
Passage- Patrimony Laws (4 questions) |
||
|
Passage-Human Psychology (4 questions) |
Passage-Historical Fact (4 questions) |
Passage- Rationality (4 questions) |
||
|
Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning (20 questions) |
4 sets of 5 questions each |
Mean, Median, Mode |
Scheduling |
Routes and Networks |
|
Scheduling |
Median |
Median |
||
|
Routes and Networks |
Reasoning based DI |
Number Grid based LR |
||
|
Selection |
Mathematical AR |
DI Caselet |
||
|
Quantitative Aptitude (22 questions) |
Arithmetic |
7 questions |
7 questions |
8 questions |
|
Algebra |
8 questions |
8 questions |
4 questions |
|
|
Number System |
1 question |
2 questions |
3 questions |
|
|
Modern Math |
2 questions |
3 questions |
4 questions |
|
|
Geometry |
4 questions |
2 questions |
3 questions |
Normalization Process
CAT 2023 Marking Scheme-The marking scheme for CAT 2023 is as follows:
For every right answer- +3
For every wrong MCQ answer- -1
For every wrong non-MCQ answer-No negative marking
Ideal Scenario
Candidates got 40 minutes for each section. They should have aimed for at least 15-16 questions in the VARC section, 7-8 questions in the DILR section and 8-9 questions in the QA section. Overall, the candidates could attempt at least 30 questions.
General Feedback
The general impression of the various sections of CAT 2023 paper:
VARC- VA section was moderately difficult. To get a good score in VA, candidates would require a high level of accuracy. In the RC section, four passages of 350-450 words were given, having four questions each. While the passages were easy to read, the questions were a bit tricky. Some of the answer options in the MCQs were ambiguous or very close to each other.
DILR- There were 4 sets of 5 questions each. This section was difficult to handle. Candidates could have aimed for 2 sets of 5 questions each atleast.
QA- The QA section continued to be difficult. Students with high accuracy stand a good chance in this section, though a drop in attempts was noticed.
Overall, CAT 2023 fell in the moderate to tough category, with a few surprises thrown in, especially in the QA section. Candidates with high accuracy levels will stand a good chance of acing it.
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