‘Exams’ is not like the most beautiful word in the dictionary. Be it the elementary exams in school or CAT exams taken by lakhs of IIM aspirants every year. Worse is when applicants actually opt to take the CAT exam, the first day, first slot, knowing very well that the bulk of applicants will take it towards the end of the exam schedule. What can possibly be the reason to chose the early slot and tread the unlikely path. Pagalguy spoke to two of them to find out.
Take Rinkesh Yadav (22) who is appearing for CAT tomorrow (October 27) at 10.00am at a centre in New Delhi. His first attempt at CAT, he took the decision to sit early to lessen his trauma. “I did not want to be one of the last to give the papers and spend the entire 20 days asking others about their papers and in the bargain anticipating mine. An early slot means I will have done away with this stress by tomorrow evening.”
Rinkesh adds that if he sat for CAT with the later groups, his anxiety levels would have definitely risen. “Suppose I was to sit with those like the Dream team guys who will probably attempt 60 questions and say I would attempt 40, that would make me tense like mad. Better to sit early and finish off with all the speculations. “
Rahul Grover
For Rahul Grover (21), also from New Delhi, it was last year’s errors that prompted him to take the CAT exam first slot tomorrow. Last year, he chose one of the last slots. “That created too much pressure. I spent the days only thinking how my paper would be and that created so much stress that I did not do well in the paper. This time I decided quite early to take CAT. First I thought I should take it in the first week, but then I felt there would still be some days of stress so better to pick the first day itself,” Rahul told Pagalguy.
Both Rinkesh and Rahul have friends who are giving CAT either in the later slots or in the coming days but peer pressure did not work against them. Besides, their families did not stand in the way of their decision either.
Rinkesh Yadav
The day before the big day
Rinkesh says he is bored. “I have done my work. Studied very hard. I am only bored and now waiting for CAT to get over. My books are open but I don’t seem to be studying.” The only worry for Rinkesh is that he should wake up in time for the exam. “I attempt to wake up at 7.00am evereyday but wake up at 9.00am. Tomorrow I can’t afford to. I have to wake up at 7.00am. But my dad will wake me up.”
Rahul on the other hand is eagerly waiting for his exam tomorrow. Meditation has helped him keep cool and in control last few months. He says he is much prepared this year than last year so does not feel so tensed.
Additionally, for both Rinkesh and Rahul, ‘getting done with the exams’ was also a reason to choose the first day slot, so that they could resume living their lives like earlier.
In fact, Rahul quit his BPO job for CAT and has been at his books since June. “Last year’s CAT made me realise how much I needed to put in, so gave up my job. It is not possible to do night shifts and study for CAT,” he says. Rahul started working very early in life and so completed his graduation through correspondence, while working. “This also meant that I was away from actual studying for long and that is another reason I quit my job to study for CAT properly,” he adds.
Stress
The last few months have been strenuous for the two. Both joined coaching centres and have given plenty mocks. At their coaching centres too, they were goaded to take CAT at a later date but they did not budge form their decision. Says Rinkesh: “Finally coaching centres are business models. I don’t know how much advise they give really works.” Like others taking the CAT, Rahul and Rinkesh have put in hours and hours of study. Adds Rahul, “Before 2008, CAT every year would throw up surprises and but after last year and the exams stretching to 20 days, I don’t think there will be many surprises this year.”
Regret
At any point did either of them regret choosing the earlier slot of the exams.? Rinkesh says somewhere the normalisation thing got stuck in his head. “I know there are very very few giving the exam on the first day, first slot. And I am going to be among them. I hope the normalisation process does not work against me since I am gong to be pitted against a small number,” he hopes. Rinkesh has calculated that given the fact that about 10 per cent of the crowd is taking the test on October 27, he will be pitted against a small number of applicants.
For Rahul, some stray thoughts have bugged him on whether he should have chosen the later slot. “But I managed to cast away the thoughts as soon as they came. Over all I am happy with my decision to finish off with the exam on the first day.”
Both Rahul and Rinkesh are going to to be appearing for other entrance exams post CAT. Rahul of course will take a 5-10 day break after CAT and return to FMS and other exams. Rinkesh will be studying for his engineering exams which are between November 8-16.
Ahead
Both have grand plans ahead, if they score well and get through an IIM. While Rinkesh wants to join a corporate firm and and later start something on his own, Rahul has plans to rise high in the corporate ladder. “I want to climb very high. All the steps. When I climb one step, I will see another step and yet another. There is no end. I want to climb all those steps and just keep going on ,” dreams Rahul.