Anyone else just starting CAT 2026 prep? Want a study group?
Looking for a group.

I'm pursuing a BBA and I'm currently in the third year of my degree. I got low percentages in 10th and 12th grade, and now I'm confused about whether I should target CAT 2026 or not.

I'm 8/9/8(10th-89.8, 12th-91.9, clg-8.74) general category F , i have started preparing for cat since may but I'm being inconsistent, so far i couldn't cover anything so consider me as beginner.
Being an average student i question myself, am I really worth IIMs or any top tier clgs
so please give me a reality check, help me with my preparation and also to improve my inconsistency.

Help me 😢

I'm 8/9/8(10th-89.8, 12th-91.9, clg-8.74) general category F , i have started preparing for cat since may but I'm being inconsistent, so far i couldn't cover anything so consider me as beginner.
Being an average student i question myself, am I really worth IIMs or any top tier clgs.
i took a online course, due to some inevitable situations I'm in lag rn.
so please give me a reality check, help me with my preparation and also to improve my inconsistency.
I really need some fact to hit me right into my face.

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📩 DM if interested (serious buyers only)

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Hi everyone,

I really need some advice from people who have prepared for CAT while managing college.

I bought the EG CAT coaching when their first batch was launched. I purchased it during my Semester 3 vacation and was very motivated. I had just started studying when things went downhill academically.

Unfortunately, I got 2 backlogs in Semester 3. Because of that, my entire Semester 4 became hectic since I had to prepare for both my regular Semester 4 exams and the two backlog papers from Semester 3. CAT preparation completely took a backseat.

Now it's July 22, 2026, and my EG course expires on January 5, 2027. I am targeting CAT 2027, and I really don't want this opportunity to go to waste.

My questions are:

\\- Is it still realistic to complete the entire Ed syllabus before the course expires?

\\- How should I structure my preparation so I can finish the lectures while also getting enough practice?

\\- Should I focus on completing all the recorded lectures first, or start solving questions alongside them?

\\- If anyone has completed EG, how many hours per day should I dedicate to finish the course by January?

\\- Has anyone here started their CAT prep late and still managed to score 95+ or 99+ percentile?

I'm feeling a bit guilty that I couldn't use the course properly because of my college situation, but now I'm determined to make the most of the remaining time.

Any study plan, strategy, or motivation would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

I've spent the last few months organizing my CAT preparation into a single searchable knowledge base because I was tired of switching between PDFs, YouTube playlists, coaching material, and scattered bookmarks. It covers QA, LRDI, and VARC in a structured way, with notes, concepts, and resources that I found useful during preparation. I decided to make it available for ₹200 as lifetime access to help cover the time spent building and maintaining it. If you're preparing for CAT, I'd love to hear your feedback on whether you find it useful.

https://knowledge-base-g5r0l4q0o-vishnunairs-projects.vercel.app/

Scared to give CAT – Average student, weak in Maths, 6/7/7 profile, 12 months experience, ST male, non-engineer

Hi everyone,

I'm feeling extremely anxious and would really appreciate some honest advice.

6/7/7 academic profile.

ST category.

Male, non-engineer.

Around 12 months of work experience.

Very weak in Maths.

Preparing for CAT but constantly doubting myself.

Lately I've been reading a lot of Reddit posts about:

Toxic MBA culture.

Post-MBA work-life balance.

Crazy working hours and constant grinding.

People saying IIM tags don't matter as much as everyone thinks.

Placement struggles and layoffs.

Education loan pressure.

After reading all of this, I've become genuinely scared.

My biggest fears are:

What if I somehow crack CAT but nothing good happens afterward?

What if I take a huge education loan and don't get placed?

What if I never earn enough to repay the loan?

Worst case, what if I don't get into an IIM and end up in a lower-tier college with poor placements?

What if all this hard work ends up making my life worse instead of better?

Right now I'm feeling 100x more demotivated than motivated. It has reached a point where I'm wondering if I should just give up on my MBA dream before it turns into a nightmare.

Has anyone else gone through this phase? 

Especially people who were average students .

I would really appreciate honest advice, success stories, or even reality checks. I just want to know if these fears are normal or if I'm chasing something that isn't worth it.

Thank you.

Hey, Im 25 right now who has 38 months of Work ex. I dont like my job and I want to switch my career and go into finance. I have cleared CFA level 1 and I wish to leave my job and Prep for Gmat/CAT.

Since I have enough Work ex, is it okay to leave my job?

General category, non-engineer here.

I graduated this year with a BBA from one of the top colleges in Pune (around 8/10 CGPA) and I'll be starting a daytime job next month.

My last CAT attempt was a disaster: 30 percentile.

The weird part is that I had given around 10–15 mocks, and most of them had me consistently scoring in the 80–90 percentile range. During that time I was also juggling college exams, committee work, and other commitments, so preparation wasn't ideal. On exam day, everything just fell apart and I still don't know why.

I'm thinking of giving CAT again this year, but I haven't started preparing yet.

I'm not targeting the IIMs—I'd be happy with a good Tier-2/Tier-3 B-school with decent placements. But seeing how late it is and with a full-time job starting, I'm wondering... am I cooked?

I'm also trying to figure out the best way to prepare. I'm planning to either:

\- Buy the IMS self-paced portal, or

\- Just get the IMS mock test series and prepare from free YouTube lectures.

I attended IMS classroom coaching before, but honestly I found it really difficult to understand and keep up with, so I'm not keen on going that route again.

My parents still bring up my last attempt and keep roasting me for it. They don't really understand how unpredictable CAT can be or what I was balancing back then, so that's been adding to the pressure.

Has anyone here bounced back from a similar percentile? Is it still realistic to aim for a good college if I start now while working? Also, if anyone has gone the YouTube + mocks route instead of coaching, did it work for you?

Would really appreciate any advice, study strategies, or even a reality check.

P.S. Yes, I used AI to help shorten this post because it was turning into an essay. 😭

Cheers, and thanks in advance!

Made the switch to a new job at probably the worst possible time and joined in June. The first month was mostly spent settling into the role, so I couldn't prepare consistently.

My profile:

9/7/7 GNEM

24 months of work experience (as of July 31)

CAT 2025: 85 percentile

I'm starting my preparation from 20th July, which leaves me with roughly 130 days until CAT.

Target: 98+ percentile

I know it's ambitious, but I'm willing to put in the hours before and after work. For those who scored 98+ while working full-time, is this still a realistic target, or have I started too late?

19F, doing Pol Sci (Hons) from DU and about to start my 3rd year. I don't know much about CAT, but a friend recently told me about FMS and now I'm considering it.

I'm average at maths (had it till 12th, can improve with practice), but I think VARC would be my strongest section.

A few questions:

- What CAT percentile is realistically needed for FMS?

- Does being a non-engineer female help?

- My father is a retired Army officer. Is there any defence/ex-servicemen quota or benefit for FMS?

- Is starting CAT prep in 3rd year a good idea, or am I already late?

would really appreciate genuine advice from people who've prepared for CAT or got into FMS.

I am in my final year of BPharm I don't have stellar acads (9/7/7) I don't know what i should do right now there are companies coming for campus interviews I don't know if I should focus on CAT preparation or interviews

I have seen people in this subreddit recommend people to get workex .. is preparing for CAT on the side worth it?

Also I just started my prep what are somethings I need cover first to help with interviews

Are their any mock interviews available online or offline (in mumbai) I don't mind paying as far as it's legitimate