How to score high in LRDI section?

How to Score High in the LRDI Section?

The LRDI section in MBA entrance exams can either boost a student's confidence or bring it down. Before I address how to score high in this section, let me first explain why it is often placed in the middle of the exam. When you are required to decide the order of sections to solve, LRDI should ideally be attempted in the middle.

This section bridges the gap between two contrasting areas of the MBA exam: Quantitative Aptitude and Verbal Ability. Feedback from most students attempting mock tests indicates they are typically strong in either Quantitative Aptitude or Verbal Ability, but rarely both. This imbalance often results in difficulties in achieving high scores. However, it is crucial to recognize that a career in management demands individuals who adopt a balanced approach to both life and business.

The 2008 subprime crisis taught organizations an essential lesson: hiring the world's most talented individuals is not enough to make an organization great. Instead, diverse teams with people from varied backgrounds can create more efficient and operationally sound products.

This is why management colleges prioritize candidates from non-technical backgrounds. A balanced organization thrives when people with diverse academic, gender, and personal interests come together to create solutions.

So, back to the question: What should you do now that CAT is approaching?

You need to think like a manager. When faced with 10 tasks, would you randomly pick one and start working on it, or would you assess all tasks, prioritize them, and begin with the easiest before moving on to the toughest? The latter approach ensures productivity and prevents you from achieving nothing by the end of the day.

This principle applies to LRDI as well. Whether you are scoring high or low, begin by reviewing all the sets and then solve them in order of difficulty—from easiest to toughest.

If you find that, despite following this strategy, your scores in mock tests remain low, remember that mock tests are often designed to simulate challenging scenarios. Some mocks might focus on topics you are less comfortable with. Don’t let this discourage you. Instead, focus on solving previous years' CAT papers to familiarize yourself with the actual exam pattern and difficulty levels.

Lastly, even if you manage to solve only one set of LRDI in the actual exam, don’t lose hope. Many top MBA colleges evaluate candidates based on their overall score, with either minimal sectional cut-offs or none at all.

All the best for your entrance exams, dear aspirants! Remember, this is just the first step on your journey to becoming a successful manager.