CAT 2024 Syllabus

CAT 2024 Overview of Subjects and Topics

The CAT exam syllabus is very diverse. The CAT subject list is divided into three categories/topics which include:

• Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension
• Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning 
• Quantitative Aptitude 

For the preparation for CAT syllabus, students can read the following highlights related to the subjects and their constituent topics:

Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension

The section includes questions based on verbal reasoning, English grammar, and reading comprehension. The questions include para jumbles, finding out-of-context sentences, error correction, sentence completion, and other questions based on critical reasoning. Knowledge and understanding of the English language, logic, and reasoning are the main areas in which students must become proficient.

Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning

Data interpretation and logical reasoning, as a subject, analyses the analytical abilities of the candidates. Questions based on diagrams, pie charts, bar graphs, and tables are put forward. Students need to analyse the given data and answer questions based on their analysis. Data interpretation and logical reasoning are combined to analyse the thinking capabilities as well as the calculation power of the candidates.

Quantitative Aptitude

Quantitative Aptitude is based on various topics related to mathematics. Questions based upon arithmetic, geometry, number system, algebra, mixtures and allegations, simple interest, profit and loss, and time at work are listed in the CAT exam. Understanding the basics and continuous practice can help students solve the questions based on quantitative aptitude in the CAT exam.

CAT 2024 Exam Pattern Overview

The CAT exam pattern has been specified and laid down by the Indian Institute of Management. The exam consists of 66 objective questions that are both MCQ and Non-MCQ based. Students are provided with a total of 120 minutes to solve the entire exam divided into three sections namely Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation, Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension, and Quantitative Aptitude. 40 minutes is allocated to each section giving students ample time to solve the problems. Following is the CAT exam pattern for 2024

Following are the main CAT syllabus highlights that students must read and understand for full proof preparation:

The non-MCQ questions are termed as ‘Type in the Answer’ or TITA questions. With a ratio of 3:1, a total of 16 to 17 questions are TITA based. Students have to fill in their answers for such questions making them different from the MCQ-based questions. Moreover, the CAT exam pattern is based on negative marking. All the MC queue questions except TITA carry negative markings. For every wrong answer, 1 mark is deducted from the total marks making it imperative for the students to solve and plan accordingly for the CAT syllabus.

CAT 2024 Syllabus Download Official PDF

The CAT exam syllabus for MBA is released every year. However, the CAT syllabus 2024 is still unknown and has not been released by the IIM. Candidates can however get their hands on the CAT exam syllabus pdf from various online websites. Providing information about the MBA CAT syllabus, the CAT exam syllabus pdf is based on previous exam papers and questions. Following are the important topics and questions with students can consider in the MBA CAT syllabus:

Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension

Reading comprehension, questions based upon vocabulary, grammar, and fill-in-the-blanks. Para jumbles Para completion and various other topics.

Logical Reasoning

Blood relations, seating arrangement, coding and decoding, family tree, and series are some of the important topics for CAT syllabus 2024.

Data Interpretation

Questions based on data structure, data sufficiency, pie charts, graphs, and various other topics must be practised and considered as the part of MBA CAT syllabus.

Quantitative Aptitude

Geometry, trigonometry, mensuration, algebra, and questions on time and work, percentage, and various other subtopics are the most important for the CAT exam.

CAT Exam Insights Topic Wise

The following table provides information about various topics covered under the CAT exam 2024 syllabus along with their weightage for better understanding:

CAT 2024 VARC Syllabus 

The Verbal Ability and Logical Reasoning in CAT syllabus includes various topics based on English proficiency and grammar. Following are the important topics which students must consider and practise for acing this section:

• Reading comprehension
• Para jumbles - Selection of odd one-out sentences & correct arrangement of sentences
• Detection of errors in the sentences based on grammar
• Syllogisms, analogies, antonyms idioms
• Para completion and inference

Important Topics & Weightage Insights of VARC

The Verbal Ability and Logical Reasoning section in CAT syllabus comprises various questions based on English grammar. However, reading comprehension carries the maximum weightage and should be given preference over the other questions. The below table provides information about the important topics as well as their total weightage in the exam:

Explore Past Year Passages for Practices

Students must download the CAT exam syllabus pdf for in-depth information about the type of topics in the VARC section. The following table provides information about the reading comprehension passages for the 2023 and 2022 CAT exams that students can analyse:

Guide to Boost CAT VARC for Success

To ace the CAT VARC section, the candidates are encouraged to improve their understanding of the English language. The following tips can help with VARC preparation:

• One must develop the habit of reading books, magazines, novels, and even passages from E- newspapers to improve reading and comprehension power.
• Speed reading of reading comprehension passages is the key to solving the questions in the VARC section. Therefore, daily practice of reading comprehension passages from books and past year papers can help the candidates immensely.
• Daily reading and analysis of sentences for improving English comprehension can help students as well. One must try to improve the overall English vocabulary by learning about various words, their synonyms, and antonyms.

CAT 2024 DILR Syllabus

Considered to be one of the most important CAT subjects, Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning (DILR) include the following topics:

• Logical Reasoning
• Syllogisms
• Logical Deduction
• Order And Ranking
• Team Information
• Assumptions
• Seating Arrangement
• Blood Relations
• Games And Tournaments
• Data Interpretation
• Venn Diagram
• Tables
• Bar Graphs
• Pie Chart
• Scatter Plot
• Line And Trend Charts
• Bubble Charts

Important Topics & Weightage Insights of DILR

The CAT subject list for the DILR topic is not fixed. However, some important topics have been listed below based on previous exams along with their weightage:

Guide to Boost CAT DILR for Success

The Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning-based questions in CAT syllabus require practice by the candidates. Following tips are helpful for the preparation for the DILR section

• Data Interpretation-based questions like tables and pie charts are based on mathematical calculations as well as logical reasoning. Students must therefore practise reading bar graphs, pie charts, and other data interpretation models. Inferences and analysis from the available data must be extracted to solve the given questions.
• For the Logical Reasoning-based questions, students must consider solving past-year papers. Various books are available as well providing practice questions based on coding, family tree, blood relations, etc. 
• Daily solving of sample questions and taking mock exams can prove to be helpful for the candidates as well.

CAT 2024 QA Syllabus 

The CAT exam 2024 syllabus for Quantitative Aptitude (QA) includes questions based on arithmetic, algebra, geometry, and mensuration. The following list provides information about the MBA entrance exam syllabus for the quantitative aptitude section:

• Percentage

• Probability
• Profit and loss
• Geometry
• Trigonometry
• Time, speed, and distance
• Binomial theorem
• Work and time
• Ratios and proportions
• Simple interest and compound interest
• Mean, mode, and median

Topic Wise Weightage Insights of QA

Being a speed-based exam, students have to solve the given questions correctly and within the least time possible. Students must therefore focus their attention on the important topics and even opt for tips, tricks as well and quick mental maths for solving the questions. The following table provides information about the important topics in quantitative aptitude as well as the weightage in CAT syllabus:

Important Topics of QA

The important topics in the CAT exam syllabus for the MBA Quantitative Aptitude section have been tabulated below:

Guide to Boost CAT QA for Success

Practice is the key to scoring high percentile in the Quantitative Aptitude section. The following points help candidates boost their overall marks in the CAT QA section:

• Candidates must practise solving various types of questions through books and previous year's papers available online. Practice is the key to scoring high percentile in the Quantitative Aptitude section.
• Students must understand the importance of mental maths. Various tips and tricks must be learned to solve a given question in the least time possible. 
• The candidates must remember the important formulas and improve their overall knowledge of the basics.

Candidates must completely avoid the questions that they are unsure of. Negative markings for the wrong answers can bring down the overall percentile.