Mock tests and analysis for CAT

Mock tests are the closest thing to the real CAT, and for most candidates they are where scores rise fastest in the last few months. They train the things topic practice cannot: choosing questions under pressure, managing 40-minute locks, staying sharp in the third section, and recovering after a bad passage.

But a mock only helps if you learn from it. Candidates who take mock after mock without analysis tend to repeat the same mistakes with growing frustration. The score on the screen is the least useful part of a mock. The questions you left, the ones you got wrong and the minutes you wasted are where the learning is.

When to start and how many

• One diagnostic mock in the first month. It gives you a baseline and shows you the pattern.
• Full mocks every two weeks in months two and three, with sectional tests in between.
• One a week in month four, two a week in month five, and two or three a week in the first weeks of the final month.

Over a six-month preparation, that adds up to roughly 20 to 30 full mocks, plus sectionals. More is not automatically better. If you cannot analyse a mock properly within two days of taking it, you are taking too many.

Simulate the exam properly

A mock taken casually teaches casual habits.

• Full 120 minutes, sections in order, 40 minutes each, no pausing.
• At the time of day your slot is likely to be.
• Phone in another room; no breaks between sections.
• Rough paper and a pen only, like the exam centre. Use the on-screen calculator in mocks if your series provides one, since CAT provides a basic one.

The four-step analysis

Set aside at least as long as the mock itself, often longer. Go section by section.

1. Selection. List every question you attempted and every one you left. Mark each as easy, medium or hard after seeing the solution. Which easy questions did you leave? Which hard ones did you sink time into?
2. Accuracy. For each wrong answer, find the cause: concept gap, calculation slip, misreading the question, or a guess.
3. Time. Where did the minutes go? Note any question or set that took more than about twice the average.
4. Re-solve. Without a timer, attempt every question you left. Then compare your method with the official solution and note faster approaches.

A worked analysis

Suppose a candidate's QA section in a mock went like this: 14 attempted, 10 right, 4 wrong, all four wrong ones MCQs.

• Score: 10 × 3 − 4 × 1 = 26.
• Analysis shows two of the wrong answers were calculation slips on easy questions, and the candidate spent 9 minutes on one hard geometry question they got wrong.
• Re-solving untimed, they solve 4 of the 8 skipped questions in under 2 minutes each.

What would a better selection have given? If they had skipped the 9-minute geometry question (removing one wrong answer) and used that time to solve three of the easy skipped questions correctly, the score would be (10 + 3) × 3 − 3 × 1 = 39 − 3 = 36. That is 10 marks from choice alone, with no new knowledge. This is the most common story in CAT analysis, and the reason analysis matters so much.

Re-solving is where learning happens

After a mock, many candidates find they could solve a good share of their skipped questions easily once the clock is gone. That is a sign that selection, not ability, was the problem. The fix is not more topic study. It is practising the first scan of each section, so easy questions get noticed.

When you re-solve, also study the solutions of questions you got right. A correct answer that took five minutes may have a one-minute method you should know.

Keep an error log

An error log turns scattered mistakes into patterns you can fix.

Review the log every week. When the same lesson appears three times, it deserves focused practice.

Track the right numbers

(Made-up figures for illustration.)

Track sectional percentiles as well as the overall figure, because a strong overall number can hide a weak section that would fail an IIM sectional cut-off. Also track accuracy per section; an accuracy below about 75% usually means you are attempting too much.

Look at trends across five mocks, not single results. Mock difficulty varies, and one bad score tells you little.

Choosing a mock series

• Pick one main series with a large, serious test-taking population, so percentiles mean something.
• Stick with it for consistent comparison. Add a second series only if you run out of mocks.
• Also take the official CAT mock when it is released, to get used to the real interface.

For section-specific analysis, see our guides on DILR mock analysis and VARC mock analysis.

Practice set

1. In DILR a candidate attempts 12 questions: 5 MCQs (4 right) and 7 TITA (5 right). What is the score?
2. A candidate's QA accuracy is 60% on 20 attempts. Roughly what does this suggest?
3. Your overall mock percentile dropped from 90 to 82 in one mock. Should you change your strategy?

Answers:

1. MCQ: 4 × 3 − 1 = 11; TITA: 5 × 3 = 15; total 26.
2. 12 right and 8 wrong. Too many attempts or careless work. Fewer, more careful attempts would likely score more.
3. Not on one result. Check whether the drop came from one section or selection error, and look at the trend over the next few mocks.

What to do next

• Book fixed mock slots in your calendar for the next month.
• Create an error log with the five columns above.
• After your next mock, do all four analysis steps before taking another.
• Read our guide to exam-day section strategy and test one idea from it in each mock.