MBA expert Patrick Dsouza suggests following a consistent three-phase approach to complete your CAT 2026 syllabus on time and solve as many mock tests as possible in the final phase.
If you are preparing for the Common Admission Test this year and you're suddenly feeling stuck, you are not alone.
Several aspirants who begin their MBA preparation journey feel confused and stuck at some stage in their lives.
With so many resources and advice available online, candidates are bound to feel overwhelmed and unclear about their exam preparation.
The official announcement and date of CAT 2026 is likely to be announced in July 2026. But if you are planning to take the exam in November this year, you must start your preparation now.
Some of the questions students often ask me is:
- How long should I take to complete the syllabus?
- When should I start with the mocks?
- How much (extensively) should I study the subject?
- Do I need to do anything more?
- Have I studied every topic in depth?
At this stage, I recommend aspirants to follow a three-phrase preparation plan for CAT 2026.
In some cases, especially if you start late, the phases may overlap or you may simultaneously have to work on two phases at the same time.
Phase 1: Completing the Syllabus
In the initial weeks of your CAT preparation, the aim is to get familiar with the syllabus and different topics covered under the exam. You must be able to build confidence to be able to solve easy questions from each topic.
This phase can last between two months (for students starting their preparation four to five months before CAT) to six months (for students starting their preparation 18 months before CAT).
During this phase, students should go through each topic and be able to solve simple sums from these topics. If you are starting your preparation just now, avoid studying any topic in depth as you may waste a lot of your time and you might take longer to simply complete the syllabus.
For Verbal Ability (VA), at this stage you need to be able to create a good habit of reading.
While you start learning new topics, ensure that you also review whatever you have learnt at regular intervals -- weekly or fortnightly.
Phase 2: Building Strength
In the second phase, you must work on solving tougher sums from some specific topics. If you are weak in a particular subject and the focus is to clear the cut offs, you must shortlist a few topics and learn to solve difficult sums from those topics.
If you are strong in that subject and want to maximise your score then pick up more topics and try to solve higher difficulty level sums.
For Quantitative Aptitude (QA) it is advisable to pick arithmetic, especially if your focus is to clear cutoffs as it has high weightage and a lot of students are comfortable with it.
To maximise your score you also need to pick up algebra and attempt more topics based on your ability. At this stage you can start writing a few mocks, but less frequently.
For VA, at this stage you can start solving reading comprehension passages and other verbal ability exercises such as jumbled paragraphs and paragraph summaries.
Phase 3: Writing Mocks
In the third phase, you must focus on writing and practicing mocks at regular intervals. The aim is to build paper strategy, and to identify specific areas that you need to improve upon.
Work on your strategy and how you can help yourself to solve questions quickly.
Setting clear goals for these three phases will help you plan your preparation well.
Start with the first phase and draft a weekly and monthly plan with clear goals. Have a tentative deadline as to when you will complete your first phase.
Planning is the first step to bell the CAT, followed by consistency and follow up.
- Questions about MBA admissions and CAT 2026? Ask rediffGURU Patrick D'Souza HERE
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