1.5-Month CMAT Preparation Plan: A Daily and Weekly Breakdown

The Common Management Admission Test (CMAT) is one of the most crucial exams for MBA aspirants in India. With only 1.5 months left to prepare, it's essential to devise a detailed and focused plan to ensure you are well-prepared. In this blog, we'll discuss a structured 1.5-month CMAT preparation strategy, breaking it down into weekly and daily goals, so you can maximize your efforts and approach the exam with confidence.

Understanding the CMAT Exam

Before diving into the preparation plan, let’s understand the CMAT exam format and marking scheme:

• Mode of Examination: Online
• Time Duration: 180 minutes
• Number of Questions: 100
• Total Marks: 400
• Number of Answer Choices: 5
• Marking Scheme:
• +4 marks for every correct answer
• -1 mark for every incorrect answer

The key to success in CMAT lies in a balanced approach: practicing all sections thoroughly while maintaining accuracy to avoid negative marking.

Week 1-2: Building a Strong Foundation

In the first two weeks, your primary goal is to build a solid foundation in all four sections of the CMAT syllabus. These two weeks will focus on revising basic concepts, practicing problems, and enhancing your speed.

Daily Tasks:

• Quantitative Techniques and Data Interpretation:
• Focus on high-priority topics like arithmetic (percentages, ratios, time and work), algebra (equations, inequalities), and basic geometry (lines, circles, triangles).
• Practice solving 15-20 problems every day.
• Review common data interpretation types: bar graphs, pie charts, tables, and line graphs.
• Logical Reasoning:
• Practice logic puzzles and games such as seating arrangements, blood relations, syllogisms, and coding-decoding.
• Solve at least 15-20 LR problems daily.
• Work on improving your speed and understanding different question types.
• Language Comprehension:
• Dedicate at least 45 minutes to reading passages from newspapers, magazines, or novels.
• Practice answering comprehension questions and work on improving vocabulary by learning new words daily.
• Focus on grammar, sentence completion, and error spotting.
• General Awareness:
• Read newspapers daily to stay updated on business news, government policies, and general world affairs.
• Spend 30-45 minutes per day reading current affairs, focusing on topics like economics, sports, international relations, and business.

Weekly Review:

• At the end of the week, assess your progress. Look for patterns in the mistakes you are making, and focus on improving those weak areas.
• Take a couple of practice tests to assess your progress and simulate exam conditions. Set a goal to finish 30 questions within 40 minutes.

Week 3: Focusing on Practice and Mock Tests

The third week is all about practicing rigorously and testing your skills through mock exams. This is the time to refine your strategies and identify any gaps in your preparation.

Daily Tasks:

• Quantitative Techniques and Data Interpretation:
• Increase your problem-solving speed. Try solving questions within a set time frame to simulate exam pressure.
• Focus on the advanced level of problem-solving, including complex data interpretation sets.
• Logical Reasoning:
• Focus on more complex reasoning puzzles. Challenge yourself with harder sets, and aim to solve them faster.
• Work on mental shortcuts and strategies to solve puzzles in the least time possible.
• Language Comprehension:
• Start attempting 2-3 full-length RC (Reading Comprehension) passages per day.
• Work on solving vocabulary-based questions like synonyms, antonyms, and analogies.
• General Awareness:
• Continue reading newspapers and current affairs articles, and focus on understanding the economic and political climate, as well as major international events.
• Create notes on important events to revise later.

Weekly Review:

• Take at least 2-3 full-length mock tests at the end of the week.
• After each mock test, spend a few hours analyzing your performance. Identify sections where you struggled and focus on improving them in the upcoming week.

Week 4-5: Enhancing Speed and Accuracy

In these weeks, the focus should be on refining your time management and improving accuracy under exam conditions. Your strategy should include taking more mock tests, analyzing mistakes, and revising key topics.

Daily Tasks:

• Quantitative Techniques and Data Interpretation:
• Start attempting complex problems with a time-bound approach.
• Try solving mixed sets of DI questions to improve adaptability.
• Logical Reasoning:
• Practice reasoning puzzles with stricter time limits. Aim for 15-20 high-difficulty questions per day.
• Work on solving mixed sets of logical reasoning problems.
• Language Comprehension:
• Continue attempting 2-3 full-length RC passages every day.
• Solve 20-25 questions based on sentence correction and error spotting.
• General Awareness:
• Keep revising your notes and current affairs.
• Aim to increase your speed of recalling facts during the exam.

Weekly Review:

• Continue taking mock tests (at least 3 per week).
• Review the results of your mock tests, focusing on speed and accuracy. Make sure you're improving in the sections where you have weaknesses.

Week 6: Final Revision and Strategy Refinement

In the final week, focus on revision and consolidating all the knowledge you’ve gained. Refine your exam strategy and practice taking full-length tests under exam-like conditions.

Daily Tasks:

• Quantitative Techniques and Data Interpretation:
• Focus on revising formulas, tips, and tricks for solving problems faster.
• Practice solving mixed sets of questions from all topics covered so far.
• Logical Reasoning:
• Continue solving high-difficulty puzzles and work on improving your speed.
• Focus on attempting 30-35 LR questions in less than 30 minutes.
• Language Comprehension:
• Revise key grammar rules and vocabulary.
• Solve 3-4 RC passages each day and work on solving them faster.
• General Awareness:
• Revise your current affairs notes.
• Focus on important topics such as business, economy, politics, and international affairs.

Weekly Review:

• Take 2-3 mock tests and ensure you are solving questions faster with greater accuracy.
• Fine-tune your exam strategy based on your performance in the mock tests.

Summary:

In 1.5 months, with consistent preparation and a smart strategy, you can significantly improve your performance in the CMAT exam. Stay focused, manage your time well, and avoid cramming in the last few days.

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