CAT preparation@ Strategies to prepare for & solve algebra questions in CAT

The article shares the components and preparation strategies for algebra in the quantitative ability & data interpretation section of CAT 2012.

Noida, India (prHWY.com) September 7, 2012 - The quantitative ability section of CAT tests you primarily on three areas -- arithmetic, algebra and geometry. Even if you are weak in the section, you must ensure that you score enough marks that help clear the requisite cut off.
The article shares the components and preparation strategies for algebra in the quantitative ability & data interpretation section of CAT 2012. Arithmetic and geometry have previously been discussed in articles published on MBAUniverse.com (links are given below).

To score well in algebra, you need to be thorough with your basics. Algebra is all about formulae and knowing which formula will be appropriate for a particular problem. Let us have a look at the important topics of algebra.

Topics

The algebra section mainly consists of linear and quadratic equation, logarithm, progression, binomial theorem, inequalities, permutation & combination, probability, function, set theory, etc. Arks Srinivas, CEO, VistaMind Education, and former director, T.I.M.E., says, "Algebra appears in the form of indices, logs, quadratic equations and progressions."

Byju Raveendran, CAT expert and founder of Byju's CAT Classes, said, "Algebra questions, which form a substantial portion of the section, cover topics like equations, inequalities, functions compared to percentages, ratio proportion, profit & loss, etc. So, it will be an added advantage to be strong in algebra and even if you are not, you must find out the right strategy to improve yourself."

Preparation strategy

As algebra is mostly formula-driven word problems, you should be thorough with the basics and the formula first. Now, with around 35 days remaining for CAT, you must combine studying the concepts along with enough practice to boost your level of performance.

As the first step of preparation, you must know all the formulae by heart. In order to do so, you can follow the same method as you do for memorizing words, i.e. via flash cards. You can write the important formulae in small cards and paste it across the room so that they can easily meet your eyes.

Though you can spend a considerable amount of time daily memorizing the formulae, you won't be able to judge the proper usages as long as you don't practise them. Srinivas suggests, "Take a topic at a time and solve more than 100 questions on it. This will put you in a good state."

Revision is an equally important aspect of preparation. "Always make it a point to revise things that you have already covered, but do not exhaust yourself doing all these in the last few days."

Strategies for solving questions

If you have a good grip over algebra, you can utilize the techniques such as assumption and substitution. "An added advantage of being strong in algebra is that many unconventional techniques like assumption and substitution that can help reduce time can be used," said Raveendran.

While you see the question, you should visualize the problem first and then solve it. For that, you may use diagrams as well.

To choose the right option in the questions, you need to follow the process of elimination (POE). Atul Prashar, product head, TCYonline.com, explains the process, "Algebra is meant to be tackled through answer choices. Prefer POE to any other method. However, please note that sometimes putting numerical values help faster while in other cases you need to reach some formulated equations before trying the values. Preferred values are -3, -2, -1, 1, 2."

To read the MBAUniverse.com articles on Arithmetic and Geometry, click on the following links:

Quant for CAT 2012: Preparation strategy for geometry

CAT: Preparation strategy for arithmetic in Quant

Stay tuned to MBAUniverse.com for more on CAT 2012 preparation.

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Tag Words: cat preparation, cat 2012 algebra, cat algebra preparation, cat 2012

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