A guide to scoring well in quantitative aptitude of B-school entrance exams

By Career Launcher
Published: August 14, 2007

Before the 2006 incarnation of CAT, with an English section that might make many a
Shakespeare turn in their graves, quantitative aptitude was the section which was
notorious of tormenting MBA aspirants the most!

In fact, there is still a general notion in the world of MBA wannabes that there are two
kinds of MBA aspirants. Those who are poor at quant and those who are very poor at
quant. People who are good at quant and DI stay on Mars. However, I dare to make a tall
claim that this notion is a misconception and an over-hyped phobia. Mastering
quantitative aptitude is just another task, which can be fulfilled with focused strategy in
preparation and sustained hard work.

Since I have made this loud declaration that quant may be wild but is definitely tamable I
ought to substantiate it. For this, I need you to look at the quant section (CAT 2006
notwithstanding) of B-school admission tests as divided into the following two functional
categories:

1. Quant that appears in CAT or XAT

2. Quant that appears in other exams (SNAP, IRMA, MAT, NMIMS, etc)

However, the so called ‘syllabus’ for both types of tests remains the same, and roughly
comprises of the following:

1. Questions on properties of numbers, divisibility, LCM, HCF, remainder theorem

and their applications.
2. Basic arithmetic and its applications like calculating simple and compound
interest, ratio and proportion, profit, loss and discount, mixtures and work-time or
time-speed based problems, essentially commercial mathematics.
3. Basic algebra and its applications like simple and quadratic equations, series,
exponents, polynomials, functions.
4. Geometry and mensuration. Comprising of primarily two dimensional figures,
and application of basic theorems.
5. Modern maths: Set theory, Venn diagrams, permutation, combination and
probability.

Although the syllabus and breadth of areas remain the same in both types of exams, there
is a huge difference in types of questions that are asked and hence the approach to
prepare and attempt questions also varies.

Let us look at quant in non-CAT exams. The quant in these exams (SNAP, IRMA, etc) is
what could be primarily called a Speed and Accuracy Test. The number of questions is
large, but most of the questions are either direct formula-based questions or direct
application of a basic concept. The premium is on speed. Those who can solve questions
quickly rule the roost. Consider few sample questions:

A trader bought two watches for Rs 2,000 each. One he sold at 5 per cent profit and the
second at 7 per cent loss. Calculate net profit/loss.

This is a simple question of calculating a percentage (2 per cent) on Rs 2,000, which is

40.

Consider another question. If today a father is four times as old as his son and five years
ago he was five times as old as his son, find their present ages. This again is a simple
application of algebra, or substituting the given options.

For this type of quantitative aptitude (non-CAT), the following preparation strategy is
suggested:

1. Leave no area unprepared, as coverage is more important than depth. Even

dreaded topics like probability and permutation and combinations should not be
left.
2. Cram and make yourself familiar with all basic formulae (for mensuration,
algebra, logarithms and modern maths) and theorems (for geometry) as a starting
point. Practise them well to the extent that you become well-versed with their
application in basic questions.
3. Each functional area in quant has five to 10 standard sub-areas associated with it
and each such sub-area has two to three basic concepts involving standard
questions related with it. For example in work-time and time-speed questions, the
sub-areas are relative speed, pipes and cisterns, boats, circular motion, clocks and
work efficiency. You should familiarise yourself with each sub-area and standard
questions. Again, practise well so as to solve any similar question quickly,
efficiently and correctly. Remember, this will potentially comprise 80 per cent of
quantitative aptitude section. You have to ensure 100 percent accuracy in them.
4. Many questions require nothing but faster calculation; hence it is sine qua non
that you have complete mastery over the multiplication tables of first 30 natural
numbers and the squares, cubes and square roots of the first 20 numbers.
Memorising reciprocals of the first 30 numbers is also helpful in dividing faster.
You will find it extremely useful in arithmetic problems like computing
compound interest.
5. While attempting questions, divide your attempts into multiple rounds (at least
two). In round one, attempt only those questions, of which you are 100 percent
sure, and solving them is just a matter of time. The prime test of this ‘doability’ is
that you should not have one iota of doubt that you can solve the question. If there
are certain questions that you have solved earlier and hence know are doable but
time-consuming, put a circle over them and return to them if time permits in the
second round. Similarly, questions where nothing strikes your mind in first 10 to
15 seconds are best left. Put a different symbol — say a sign of interrogation —
over all such questions and you can return to them in your third round. For
questions about which you have no clue in first five seconds, put a cross in front
 of them and leave. They are a potential round four questions, subject to
availability of time.

The big challenge

Now let’s move to the big league, the CAT and XAT exams. The syllabus of quantitative
aptitude sections of these exams as mentioned earlier is same as for other exams. The
difference lies in nature of questions. Here not merely the width but the depth and clarity
of basic concepts, along with complete mastery over first principles, is an absolute
necessity.

Although the questions derive from basic concepts, application is of a high degree. For
example, although in geometry the basic theorems involved are the same (around a
dozen), a single question may involve application of multiple theorems or a single
theorem will only become applicable when some further construction is done in the
question. Mere familiarity with the topic and basic formulae is not going to help you
score well here. Nevertheless, there are always a few sitters, and most of the suggestions
given for other exams also hold water for CAT and XAT. However, one needs to go that
proverbial 'extra mile' to tame the quantitative ability section of CAT and XAT.

Let’s see what extra must be done. Following guidelines will be helpful:

1. You need to identify your ‘areas of strength’. Areas of strength are those areas
where your grip over the first principles is very clear, you are psychologically at
ease even with the difficult questions and can easily comprehend and solve newer
type questions. Typically this will be the area where you were ahead of your
friends, either from day one, or were able to grasp fundamentals swiftly. You
probably invest maximum time in solving problems in this area, and also enjoy it.
Statistically, your accuracy is also highest for such topics. Your mock test scores
will also indicate that. Everyone has few of these areas. It could be number
system or geometry or algebra. You really need to introspect and cogitate to
discover your areas of strength and further groom them to become your ‘milch
cows’.

2. The larger trick lies in picking the sitters from other areas, and scoring heavily in
areas of strength. Invest more time in solving difficult questions from these areas
of strength. Go through previous CAT papers to find out how many questions are
coming from that area. If the number is consistently 10 to 15, then you are on the
right track. If it is lesser then you need to identify another such area of strength.
The logic is simple, and can be explained using an analogy drawn from cricket.
Every batsman has few pet shots, using which he scores most of his runs, say a
pull, flick and cut. He is only average with other shots, but the mastery over these
few shots is such that he rarely leaves an opportunity to score using them. You
also need to identify, develop and hone your areas of strength in the same way.

3. People who are really good at quantitative aptitude are those who have got a
larger number of areas of strength and keep on adding more to their repertoire. To
 further bolster your areas of strength, start modifying and altering questions from
them after solving them. Better still, try to frame your own questions in areas of
strength. The exercise of framing one's own questions is very helpful in further
mastery.

4. Now again, while attempting the actual paper or mock tests, the operating logic is
simple. The surface-level questions, if any, should be done in round one. Then
one should invest time in questions from one’s areas of strength. However there is
a caveat: no matter how good you are in one particular sphere, there still could be
questions, which you cannot solve, so the criterion of reasonable time investment
per question has to be kept in mind. As per this criterion, if you are clueless about
a question after investing two minutes even in your area of strength, the chances
are that it is beyond you at that point. Leave it; there are other battles to be fought.

In the end, at the cost of sounding clichéd, I may add that mastering quantitative aptitude
is not a fixed rigid goal but a process, which can be refined to no end. Applying patience
and perseverance can help you in achieving this task. Moreover, you never know, maybe
the quant of CAT 2007 also turns out to be like CAT 2006! Amen.

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The author, Harpreet Dhody is Senior Manager - Academics at Career Launcher.

Career Launcher (CL) is Asia's leading education service provider catering to the needs
of more than 50,000 students annually in its 100+ study centers located across India and
the Middle-East. It currently offers test-prep programs for careers in Engineering, Law,
Services sector (Hospitality, IT) and Management.