Monday, August 31, 2009

Success Stories 3 (Motivational and Real Stories of CAT Success)

Amit Agarwal, IIM Calcutta, Batch of
2008-10

Username on PaGaLGuY: amitnsitian

A Journey called CAT IIM – The acronym every B-Schooler aspires for in India. I being not too different from others had similar aspirations, desires and dreams. Oh yes, forgot to mention the common full form of IIM is Indian Institute of Management; but I came to know of another full form during this journey, which will be eventually revealed to all. !Umm…where do I start from? Let me go back to April of the year 2000. It was the time when my sister made it to the well… Joka land. it was the time when I was preparing for my engineering and had already made up my mind to make it to an IIM.!
First two and a half years of Engineering went fine but it's generally in the third year when one starts
thinking about what next! Then I joined Career Launcher in Delhi in my fifth semester and little did I know that I was not the only one aspiring in my batch. I met the junta of Netaji Subhash Institute of Technology (NSIT) there. The classes started and very soon I realized the weakest link for me to the ultimate goal – the VERBAL part. Anyhow, my senior gave me this wonderful advice of taking CAT in the third year to get a "feel" of the
exam. I liked the idea and finally took it. And yes, at that time, CAT had no rule which barred people
taking the exam who are not in their final years. I think it is because of people like me that they thought of this rule. It's good to be a reason which made IIMs take a policy decision.!

CAT No. 1: Year 2002 in November!
It was a normal 3 section paper in which I had no pressure to perform. The paper went fine and it was the first time wherein the percentiles were to be revealed. Moving to the results, QA was 99.5 percent with an 86 odd in DI and some 65 in verbal. This clearly told me where I had to work on – as if I didn’t know it before. !Jan 2003 – Oct 2003 – The time when all of my friends, classmates and everyone and anyone was a CAT aspirant. It was good to be in excellent company and I think that competition forced me to prepare for the exam which eventually I think I did.!

CAT No. 2: Year 2003 in November!
Was I nervous??!! I WAS. This was the day, the time, the 2 hours which are going to decide the future for me. I still remember how the exam went. The sound of opening the sheet, the answer sheet being filled, the sweat, the tension – everything is still like a movie in my mind. Anyhow, in the end I was quite happy with my performance in DI and QA . Also, I knew that I had done well in Verbal because the two RCs which I attempted in the exam were luckily from some of the test mock papers of the institutes. !But then disaster struck as soon as I crossed the gates of the school of my centre when my mother told me, "Amit, CAT is
cancelled. The paper got LEAKED last night. "!I was like noooooooooooooo, it's difficult to give your best
again. Well, with no option left in life, I started preparing for my semester exams. !Forgot to mention this, three weeks before CAT, I had a disc collapse in my back which forced me into bed rest for two weeks which also meant no studies, nothing. However, I think that did not have any adverse effects on my CAT preparation. !Ah yeah, had that CAT not been cancelled, I would have never joined PaGaLGuY.com.! Year 2004 came and I had already done the greatest mistake of my life by filling just 3 forms – CAT, XAT and MDI. The XAT exam was next and with so much verbal focus that I knew it was difficult to clear it. But then trying was important, which I did and eventually failed also. But since CAT was still there, I thought to
myself that I still have a chance to make it to my dream school.!
 
CAT No. 3: Year 2004 in February!
After being there already, I was not as nervous but yeah, pressure to perform kills you. The exam was little on the tougher side but it went fine. In this Internet age, the solutions were out by the evening but I had decided not to check till the next day.  !Next day, I started checking my paper. As always, I started here also with Quant. The performance was sufficient enough to clear the cut-off. I don't know what prompted me to check verbal next. I did and was amazed to see my score and was already jumping in my room but hang on, story is not over yet.! I checked DI then and my world came crashing down. I had attempted four caselets and got two of them ABSOLUTELY WRONG!!! I scored a single digit in DI; it was something I was not prepared for, why why why!!! After not being able to make it in IIT-JEE because of Maths, again DI did me in.! Crying made me no better and I knew that it was bye bye IIMs and MDI.! The results came out as expected and I was prepared for it. Some of my close friends had all six calls or single call or some calls at least. Most of them made it and then we parted on our different paths in life.! I joined HCL Technologies in Delhi in July and was sure of cracking CAT this time. One intelligent thing that I did this time was widening my B-School list – IIMs, XLRI, NITIE, MDI, SPJain, IIFT and FMS. This meant I had to take four exams this time and that too with my job. Also, somehow I got a really good project in the company which required me put in a lot of effort. I could have avoided work but somehow it's in my nature to give 100 percent to everything that is entrusted on me. That year, I went to office for 29 days in October, 2 days off being 2nd October (Thanks to Gandhiji) and Dusshera (Thanks to God Ramchandra); else I would have been in office then also. Add to this was a family problem which required me to spend 3 months(nights) in hospital as my grandfather was ill. When I look back, I wonder how I managed all this. Oh one more thing, my sister wedding plans was also underway which required my inputs and participation too.!
 
CAT No. 4: Year 2004 in November
The exam time came. CAT, XAT, IIFT and FMS. Results: calls from IIM-L, MDI, IIFT and NITIE. I was confident of converting one call at least this time. CAT percentile overall was 98.94. Also, this was the time when PaGaLGuY shot to fame with that result link getting exposed and all. This was the first CAT in which differential marking was introduced.
Jan 2005 – MDI interview, my first B-School GD/PI experience. Somehow managed the GD and went in the interview. Interview was okiedokie. With next three interviews in March, I had loads of time to prepare for them.
Feb 28, 2004 – MDI results were out. Not selected, not even in the waitlist, was I that bad? Maybe yes. With around ten days to go, I left no stone unturned to prepare for the other GD/PIs. Next interview was NITIE in Mumbai on 8th March, 2004 (which was my birthday too).
March 7, 2004 – Disaster will be an understatement with what happened. I slept with a little back pain but just could not lift myself up from the bed. The pain in my lower back was killing me and even lying straight was not helping. We rushed to the hospital and I was diagnosed with slip disc. Three weeks bed rest, no movement nothing. My NITIE interview was the next day, IIFT in three days and IIM-L in ten days. No way was I going to miss them. I had to get admitted in the hospital and doctor did not allow me to move at all.
This meant, all pleadings for attending interviews for NITIE went waste. IIFT also went by and I sat there; could not do anything about it – just cry a bit, ok, not a bit but a little more. I had on my mind, come what may – I will attend my IIM interview. When the doctor heard the word "IIM", he also became a little soft and asked me to postpone it as much as possible. We tried our best but the next date given was still within my bed rest period. With some change in is heart, he allowed me to take the interview.! The GD was bad for me as the pain was still there and it was bad. I had to wait for nearly three hours for my interview and that aggravated the pain. Somehow, I braved it and faced the interview panel. It was an above average PI but performance in GD was still enough to ensure that I didn’t get in. !The results came and I was waitlisted at 107. This is when I joined PaGaLGuY.com and my first post was on the IIM L thread. After months of praying and tracking the WL day and night, it closed at 102!!!!I applied for a transfer to Mumbai to stay with my parents and take care of my back. Eventually the company did transfer me and I landed here in Mumbai. I joined the TIME test series and was doing pretty fine but the office culture here was really bad. For the first
six months from July to December, there was not a single day when I did not contemplate resigning.!
 

CAT No. 5: Year 2005 in November!
I added one more exam in my list – JMET. Exams came and went and somehow I screwed ALL of them. CAT 97 percentile, XAT 99 percentile, JMET – 500 plus rank and similarly all. All but one – FMS. Had calls from both the courses and went to Delhi for the interview. MS GD was average, PI was also average. Then came the FT day. That time, people having both FMS calls did not have the process the same day, unlike today. Since I had become quite visible on PG, I met many familiar people. GD was excellent and PI was also good but FMS thought otherwise. My name did not figure in both the list, not even the waitlist. This was the very famous 1:1 ratio batch of FMS. One interesting thing about XAT. Had a 99.9 plus percent in both DI and QA but 86.80 or something in Verbal. Basically I missed the verbal cut-off by 0.01 percent. With two years work experience already in my kitty and entering the third year, the GMAT option was also available (just hang on for a bit, the other IIM is coming now). In April, I registered for a June date for my GMAT and also joined TIME classes for CAT preparation. I knew it was NOW or NEVER. PG was a really big help for GMAT and after 3 months of study, I scored a 710. This is where I found the other IIM which stands for Indian IT Male. Most of the applicants from India fall in this category and no wonder it is really difficult to get in US B-Schools when you are an IIM .Had plans to apply to only three schools – ISB,
CMU Tepper and Goizueta Emory. The application process in these is a pain but in the end, it is quite insightful. One comes to know so much about oneself . Coupled with this, I was attending classes in TIME and working too. Somehow, I stuck the right chord in Mocks and was posting on PG big time. I earned the label of "sophisticated spammer" which I still disagree to. I am not and never was a spammer.
October, November 2005 – Had interview calls from all three schools – ISB, Tepper and Goizueta. CAT day was also coming. I was done with my ISB interview (which was very very arbit) and Tepper interview over phone before CAT. The last interview was scheduled in Mumbai in December as a part of the World MBA Tour. Both the US B-School interviews were pretty straightforward – Why MBA, strengths, weakness etc.!

CAT No. 6: Year 2006 in November
The five options paper for CAT, man I had seen it all. Started with Quant and killed it. Moved to the most arbit verbal paper ever and then did DI. When the solutions came in the evening, verbal had left me hanging, well almost. By the way, SP Jain was out of the hit list.
Dec 2006 – Jan 2007 –> Worst time of my life. Rejects from ISB, Tepper and Goizueta. CAT result out. 100 percentile in QA, 95 in DI and 82 in verbal. It was over for me. With just 5 days to go for XAT, I had no option but to give it my best. It was verbal and verbal and just more verbal.7th Jan, 2007 – In the XAT paper itself, I knew that finally verbal is cracked. Meanwhile, JMET had given me a rank of 39 and calls from IIT B, D and KGP were on. MDI also found me suitable for college, even NITIE thought the same.!20th Jan,
2007 – The evening before the FMS paper. Just went online for something and saw the XL result link. With all my confidence, I punched in my roll number and saw the line "Sorry…." WTF !!!! how how how, then clicked on the scorecard link. QA 99 something, Verbal 95.42, scorecard is not over yet, DI 77 percentile This was just not possible, gave up all hope of MBA.Took the FMS exam and also prepared for the
upcoming GDs and PIs. Then someone advised me about the MAT route to JBIMS and MH-CET was
also added on the exam taking list. MAT went awesome and 99.99 percentile with a composite score of 800 ensured that JBIMS was there now.
All the interviews came one by one and I attended all of them. Some in Mumbai, some in Delhi, GOD! it was maddening. Filling forms, carrying the requisite stuff etc was quite arduous.!Finally came the news I was waiting to hear all my life.13th March, 2007 2230 hrs. A friend of mine called from FMS and here it was – WL 1. FMS it was. MS was WL 7. By the way, I attended my MDI and IITB interviews after my FMS convert. Though, people advised me against it but they had taken a lot of my hard earned money so I decided to take them.!Well, in the end, I had all converts – FMS (both), JBIMS, IITs (all 3), MDI and NITIE. It was
Delhi again for me. I resigned from my job and then decided to utilize my time by teaching in TIME. This is where ARKSS Sir (ARKS Srinivas, TIME Director, Mumbai) said to me, "Amit, CAT ek baar aur likh de." (Amit, please write the CAT once more for me) I was like no, never sir. I was tired of writing it. We left it there.!July came and I was in here – FMS. Met some of the sharpest people in the country and some awesome faculty. After one month of grilling, I called up ARKSS and told him that FMS is not chill at all. And people, I am serious. During that phone call, again the CAT thing came up and he said "Mere liye likh de."
(Please write it for me). I told him I can't do it now anymore, no time to study and all. He somehow convinced me to fill the form and I did it. Just filled the form and no preparation. No test series. There was no time in FMS. Initial work there, then summers, then exams everything was packed. And whatever time I had in life, I ensured that I sleep well.

CAT No. 7: Year 2007 in November
 CAT was on the 18th and our first semester exams got over on the 15th evening. 15th and 16th were spent in chilling out in life and 17th was taken away by room cleaning. The only sane thing I did on 17th was sleeping at 2230 hours. Next day, I went to the exam centre which was nearby to the hostel, thankfully. From there, I called ARKSS again and told him that I still don't know why I am doing this. Finally, the paper started and it was exciting to do Math after so many months. Did QA, then Verbal and finally DI. Came back to the room and slept. In the evening, got up and checked the score. QA and DI were fine but as always a 20 in
verbal according to TIME keys. My score varied from 15 to 25 depending on institute keys. In either case, I was not clearing cut-off for verbal according to any of the institutes. So, it was over.! Life moved on, then came the day of the results. However bad one performs, there is always a desire to check the result (ok, I have it. ) The link given on the CAT IIM site was not working from the hostel. Then I came to know about the result by SMS thing. I SMSed and received the following reply.!QA (percentile) 99.98 with a score of 70!DI (percentile) 99.97 with a score of 76!Verbal (percentile) 96.40 with a score of 30!OA (percentile) 99.99 with a score of 176!YES YES YES I HAVE CRACKED IT !!! Calls started coming in and had all 6 calls. I was elated. But then, I had another problem. What will I say in the interview. FMS is awesome, why should one leave it. I had no clue what to do. The interview schedule came and the forms too. Took a lot of help from ARKSS for the same and prepared for the interview. I knew what to prepare – MBA academics and why chuck FMS for an IIM.!The first interview was IIML. A pretty decent GD and average PI. Next was IIM K. An average GD and bad PI. Indore was next but had a very important class to attend in FMS so
decided against it. By the way, both K and L asked about FMS.!The Big One was next – Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad. And man, I was nervous. The essay was fine and PI was a dream one. They just could not believe that someone wants to leave FMS and come to IIM A. I think I did a pretty decent job there and rest of the questions varied from work experience to MBA Academics to general stuff in life.!IIM Calcutta was next. A decent case study discussion followed by stress interview. Was asked Maths, Sub Prime, Telecom War, Quiz, FMS and everything.! Bangalore was the last one to be held. The date clashed with my second semester exams of FMS and it must have taken like 10,000 calls to them to get it shifted. Finally, it was shifted to the evening slot of the same day with my exam in the morning and another exam the next morning and interview sandwiched in between. The case study was the Scrablous one and the group was
quite decent in discussing the stuff. I was last to be interviewed. It was HORRIBLE. It was so so so bad
that they would have left a seat vacant in the college rather than taking me.!With interviews over, summer internship was something which was coming up. But, Supreme Court had other plans. I was also a part of the waiting pain but had no window to vent out the frustration because it was a secret I wanted to keep. By the way, my FMS classmates came to know about it somehow in January itself. I know who did it but have not done anything to that person. But I still have time to do it.!May 1 was about to dawn, I slept without much
tension in life. Was woken at 7 a.m. by a friend's call informing me about IIM B results being out. I checked and as expected, did not get through. I had to go the office and was on my way. Meanwhile, another friend called me and told me to check the WL of IIMB. He checked for me and no; I was not there, as expected though.! I reached office and realized that Wi-Fi was not working on my laptop (Murphy’s Law at its best). I went to IT guys and they needed "some" time to fix it. Just then, another person called me to tell me about IIMC results being out. I sat on the IT guys head as I wanted my laptop back up and running. After 20- 25 minutes of patience, laptop was handed back to me. !First thing I did was, checking the IIMC result. Opened the link, entered my details; my heart was beating fast as never before. And there it was. CONGRATULATIONS!!! Just could not believe it. Tears of joy tricked down my eyes I was IN. FINALLY IN!!!!! Got through L and K too but surprisingly A ditched me. But no issues…JOKA I AM COMING!I want to clarify two things regarding which I have been receiving a lot of queries.
1. Is FMS not good? - People, it is an awesome college; I just took CAT for the heck of it and my
stay in FMS had nothing to do with it. So, please don’t get me wrong here. Go ahead and join
without batting an eyelid.
2. Justifying interview panel about leaving FMS and going to IIM – The answer was a very planned out one and was structured in a way so that no cross questioning was possible, thanks to ARKS Srinivas sir again.! Some of the quotes which I had heard over so many years are really true!1.Patience pays!
2. Efforts never go waste!
3. Samay se pehle aur kismet se zyada kuch nahin milta and the likes. (No one gets anything before the
right time and more than what destiny has to offer.)
But my personal favourite is the one which my cousin said once she heard the result – "Finally, CAT ki aatma ko shanti mili" (The soul of CAT will finally rest in peace).

Answer of Brain Teaser 3

 16 men, 12 women and 72 children were working with the constructor.

Let's assume that there were X men, Y women and Z children working with the constructor.
Hence,

X + Y + Z = 100

5X + 4Y + Z = 200

Eliminating X and Y in turn from these equations, we get

X = 3Z - 200

Y = 300 - 4Z

As if woman works, her husband also works and atleast half the men working came with their
wives; the value of Y lies between X and X/2. Substituting these limiting values in
equations, we get

if Y = X,

300 - 4Z = 3Z - 200

7Z = 500

Z = 500/7 i.e. 71.428

if Y = X/2,

300 - 4Z = (3Z - 200)/2

600 - 8Z = 3Z - 200

11Z = 800

Z = 800/11 i.e. 72.727

But Z must be an integer, hence Z=72. Also, X=16 and Y=12

There were 16 men, 12 women and 72 children working with the constructor.

Answer of Brain Teaser 2

The last person covered 120.71 meters.

It is given that the platoon and the last person moved with uniform speed. Also, they both
moved for the identical amount of time. Hence, the ratio of the distance they covered -
while person moving forward and backward - are equal.


Let's assume that when the last person reached the first person, the platoon moved X meters
forward.

Thus, while moving forward the last person moved (50+X) meters whereas the platoon moved X
meters.

Similarly, while moving back the last person moved [50-(50-X)] X meters whereas the platoon
moved (50-X) meters.


Now, as the ratios are equal,

(50+X)/X = X/(50-X)

(50+X)*(50-X) = X*X

Solving, X=35.355 meters

Thus, total distance covered by the last person

= (50+X) + X

= 2*X + 50

= 2*(35.355) + 50

= 120.71 meters

Note that at first glance, one might think that the total distance covered by the last
person is 100 meters, as he ran the total lenght of the platoon (50 meters) twice. TRUE,
but that's the relative distance covered by the last person i.e. assuming that the platoon
is stationary.

Answers of Brain Teaser 1

1 Sachi Loti • Fill Out a Change-of-Address Form • Add Postage to Meter
2 Gianni Lau • Pick Up a Registered Letter • Send an Item Parcel Post
3 Carlos Pimentelli • Overnight Package • Send Airmail to Tibet
4 Donna Toriseza • Buy Stamps • Send an Insured Package
5 Mary Knutson • Buy a Money Order • Send Books fourth Class
6 Anthony Rendler • Complain About a Mail Carrier • Pick Up a Package

Answers of Reading Comprehension (Passage 21 and 22)

Passage 21
1. D 2. D 3. B 4. A 5. D
6. E 7. C 8. A

Passage 22
1. B 2. D 3. E 4. D 5. D
6. B 7. C 8. A

Reading Comprehension Exercise for MBA Entrance tests (CAT, GMAT, SNAP, IIFT, MAT)


Passage 21

Bernard Bailyn has recently reinterpreted the early history of the United States by applying new social research findings on the experiences of European migrants. In his reinterpretation, migration becomes the organizing principle for rewriting the history of preindustrial North America. His approach rests on four separate propositions.
The first of these asserts that residents of early modern England moved regularly about their countryside; migrating to the New World was simply a “natural spillover.” Although at first the colonies held little positive attraction for the English—they would rather have stayed home—by the eighteenth century people increasingly migrated to America because they regarded it as the land of opportunity. Secondly, Bailyn holds that, contrary to the notion that used to flourish in America history textbooks, there was never a typical New World community. For example, the economic and demographic character of early New England towns varied considerably.
Bailyn’s third proposition suggests two general patterns prevailing among the many thousands of migrants: one group came as indentured servants, another came to acquire land. Surprisingly, Bailyn suggests that those who recruited indentured servants were the driving forces of transatlantic migration. These colonial entrepreneurs helped determine the social character of people who came to preindustrial North America. At first, thousands of unskilled laborers were recruited; by the 1730’s, however, American employers demanded skilled artisans.
Finally, Bailyn argues that the colonies were a half-civilized hinterland of the European culture system. He is undoubtedly correct to insist that the colonies were part of an Anglo-American empire. But to divide the empire into English core and colonial periphery, as Bailyn does, devalues the achievements of colonial culture. It is true, as Bailyn claims, that high culture in the colonies never matched that in England. But what of (what of 1: what is the situation with respect to 2: what importance can be assigned to) seventeenth-century New England, where the settlers created effective laws, built a distinguished university, and published books? Bailyn might respond that New England was exceptional. However, the ideas and institutions developed by New England Puritans had powerful effects on North American culture.
Although Bailyn goes on to apply his approach to some thousands of indentured servants who migrated just prior to the revolution, he fails to link their experience with the political development of the United States. Evidence presented in his work suggests how we might make such a connection. These indentured servants were treated as slaves for the period during which they had sold their time to American employers. It is not surprising that as soon as they served their time they passed up (pass up: 放弃;错过) good wages in the cities and headed west to ensure their personal independence by acquiring land. Thus, it is in the west that a peculiarly American political culture began, among colonists who were suspicious of authority and intensely anti-aristocratic.
1.   Which of the following statements about migrants to colonial North America is supported by information in the passage?
(A) A larger percentage of migrants to colonial North America came as indentured servants than as free agents interested in acquiring land.
(B) Migrants who came to the colonies as indentured servants were more successful at making a livelihood than were farmers and artisans.
(C) Migrants to colonial North America were more successful at acquiring their own land during the eighteenth century than during the seven-tenth century.
(D) By the 1730’s, migrants already skilled in a trade were in more demand by American employers than were unskilled laborers.D
(E) A significant percentage of migrants who came to the colonies to acquire land were forced to work as field hands for prosperous American farmers.
2.   The author of the passage states that Bailyn failed to
(A) give sufficient emphasis to the cultural and political interdependence of the colonies and England
(B) describe carefully how migrants of different ethnic backgrounds preserved their culture in the united States
(C) take advantage of social research on the experiences of colonists who migrated to colonial North America specifically to acquire land
(D) relate the experience of the migrants to the political values that eventually shaped the character of the United StatesD
(E) investigate the lives of Europeans before they came to colonial North America to determine more adequately their motivations for migrating
3.   Which of the following best summarizes the author’s evaluation of Bailyn’s fourth proposition?
(A) It is totally implausible.
(B) It is partially correct.
(C) It is highly admirable.
(D) It is controversial though persuasive.B
(E) It is intriguing though unsubstantiated.
4.   According to the passage, Bailyn and the author agree on which of the following statements about the culture of colonial New England?
(A) High culture in New England never equaled the high culture of England.
(B) The cultural achievements of colonial New England have generally been unrecognized by historians.
(C) The colonists imitated the high culture of England, and did not develop a culture that was uniquely their own.
(D) The southern colonies were greatly influenced by the high culture of New England.A
(E) New England communities were able to create laws and build a university, but unable to create anything innovative in the arts.
5.   According to the passage, which of the following is true of English migrants to the colonies during the eighteenth century?
(A) Most of them were farmers rather than trades people or artisans.
(B) Most of them came because they were unable to find work in England.
(C) They differed from other English people in that they were willing to travel.
(D) They expected that the colonies would offer them increased opportunity.D
(E) They were generally not as educated as the people who remained in England.
6.   The author of the passage is primarily concerned with
(A) comparing several current interpretations of early American history
(B) suggesting that new social research on migration should lead to revisions in current interpretations of early American history
(C) providing the theoretical framework that is used by most historians in understanding early American history
(D) refuting an argument about early American history that has been proposed by social historiansE
(E) discussing a reinterpretation of early American history that is based on new social research on migration
7.   It can be inferred from the passage that American history textbooks used to assert that
(A) many migrants to colonial North America were not successful financially
(B) more migrants came to America out of religious or political conviction that came in the hope of acquiring land
(C) New England communities were much alike in terms of their economics and demographics
(D) many migrants to colonial North America failed to maintain ties with their European relationsC
(E) the level of literacy in New England communities was very high
8.   The author of the passage would be most likely to agree with which of the following statements about Bailyn’s work?
(A) Bailyn underestimates the effects of Puritan thought on North American culture.
(B) Bailyn overemphasizes the economic dependence of the colonies on Great Britain.
(C) Bailyn’s description of the colonies as part of an Anglo-American empire is misleading and incorrect.
(D) Bailyn failed to test his propositions on a specific group of migrants to colonial North America.A
(E) Bailyn overemphasizes the experiences of migrants to the New England colonies, and neglects the southern and the western parts of the New World.

 

Passage 22

Many United States companies have, unfortunately, made the search for legal protection from import competition into a major line of work. Since 1980 the United States International Trade Commission (ITC) has received about 280 complaints alleging damage from imports that benefit from subsidies by foreign governments. Another 340 charge that foreign companies “dumped” their products in the United States at “less than fair value.” Even when no unfair practices are alleged, the simple claim that an industry has been injured by imports is sufficient grounds to seek relief.
Contrary to the general impression, this quest for import relief has hurt more companies than it has helped. As corporations begin to function globally, they develop an intricate web of marketing, production, and research relationships. The complexity of these relationships makes it unlikely that a system of import relief laws will meet the strategic needs of all the units under the same parent company.
Internationalization increases the danger that foreign companies will use import relief laws against the very companies the laws were designed to protect. Suppose a United States-owned company establishes an overseas plant to manufacture a product while its competitor makes the same product in the United States. If the competitor can prove injury from the imports—and that the United States company received a subsidy from a foreign government to build its plant abroad—the United States company’s products will be uncompetitive in the United States, since they would be subject to duties.
Perhaps the most brazen (marked by contemptuous boldness) case occurred when the ITC investigated allegations that Canadian companies were injuring the United States salt industry by dumping rock salt (rock salt: n.岩盐,石盐), used to de-ice roads. The bizarre aspect of the complaint was that a foreign conglomerate with United States operations was crying for (cry for: v.吵着要, 恳求) help against a United States company with foreign operations. The “United States” company claiming injury was a subsidiary of a Dutch conglomerate, while the “Canadian” companies included a subsidiary of a Chicago firm that was the second-largest domestic producer of rock salt.
1.   The passage is chiefly concerned with
(A) arguing against the increased internationalization of United States corporations
(B) warning that the application of laws affecting trade frequently has unintended consequences
(C) demonstrating that foreign-based firms receive more subsidies from their governments than United States firms receive from the United States government
(D) advocating the use of trade restrictions for “dumped” products but not for other importsB
(E) recommending a uniform method for handling claims of unfair trade practices
2.   It can be inferred from the passage that the minimal basis for a complaint to the International Trade Commission is which of the following?
(A) A foreign competitor has received a subsidy from a foreign government.
(B) A foreign competitor has substantially increased the volume of products shipped to the United States.
(C) A foreign competitor is selling products in the United States at less than fair market value.
(D) The company requesting import relief has been injured by the sale of imports in the United States.D
(E) The company requesting import relief has been barred from exporting products to the country of its foreign competitor.
3.   The last paragraph performs which of the following functions in the passage?
(A) It summarizes the discussion thus far and suggests additional areas of research.
(B) It presents a recommendation based on the evidence presented earlier.
(C) It discusses an exceptional case in which the results expected by the author of the passage were not obtained.
(D) It introduces an additional area of concern not mentioned earlier.E
(E) It cites a specific case that illustrates a problem presented more generally in the previous paragraph.
4.   The passage warns of which of the following dangers?
(A) Companies in the United States may receive no protection from imports unless they actively seek protection from import competition.
(B) Companies that seek legal protection from import competition may incur legal costs that far exceed any possible gain.
(C) Companies that are United States-owned but operate internationally may not be eligible for protection from import competition under the laws of the countries in which their plants operate.
(D) Companies that are not United States-owned may seek legal protection from import competition under United States import relief laws.D
(E) Companies in the United States that import raw materials may have to pay duties on those materials.
5.   The passage suggests that which of the following is most likely to be true of United States trade laws?
(A) They will eliminate the practice of “dumping” products in the United States.
(B) They will enable manufacturers in the United States to compete more profitably outside the United States.
(C) They will affect United States trade with Canada more negatively than trade with other nations.
(D) Those that help one unit within a parent company will not necessarily help other units in the company.D
(E) Those that are applied to international companies will accomplish their intended result.
6.   It can be inferred from the passage that the author believes which of the following about the complaint mentioned in the last paragraph?
(A) The ITC acted unfairly toward the complainant in its investigation.
(B) The complaint violated the intent of import relief laws.
(C) The response of the ITC to the complaint provided suitable relief from unfair trade practices to the complainant.
(D) The ITC did not have access to appropriate information concerning the case.B
(E) Each of the companies involved in the complaint acted in its own best interest.
7.   According to the passage, companies have the general impression that International Trade Commission import relief practices have(答案在第二段第一句话
(A) caused unpredictable fluctuations in volumes of imports and exports
(B) achieved their desired effect only under unusual circumstances
(C) actually helped companies that have requested import relief
(D) been opposed by the business communityC
(E) had less impact on international companies than the business community expected
8.   According to the passage, the International Trade Commission is involved in which of the following?
(A) Investigating allegations of unfair import competition
(B) Granting subsidies to companies in the United States that have been injured by import competition
(C) Recommending legislation to ensure fair
(D) Identifying international corporations that wish to build plants in the United StatesA
(E) Assisting corporations in the United States that wish to compete globally

Sunday, August 30, 2009

Group Discussion Topic 2: SHOULD WE CHANGE THE PRESENT SYSTEM OF EDUCATION IN OUR COUNTRY?

Introduction
The history of education in India is as old as India itself. We have a rich heritage of the Gurukul system of education for the elementary level and outstanding ancient universities like Takshshila, and Nalanda. The educational system in India has kept pace with all the changes happening around like invasions, the advent of the Mughals etc. But the biggest turn around came when the British came to India. They believed that India was a barbaric country and that exposure to their religion, language and literature would make us civilized. In 1835, Lord Macaulay proposed minutes on education and that led to the change of the medium of instruction to English. The basic system of education started by him is still very much intact in essence. After independence the system accommodated many changes under the leadership of Dr. Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan.
In modern times, Indian educational institutions (such as the IITs, IISc, IIMs, NITs, AIIMS, ISI, JU,
BITS, and ISB) are well known in the world. The broader pattern of education in India as under:

Arguments in against the topic
· The biggest criticism that has come up is that our education system honours only merit. An intelligent student, merely on the basis of his academics, cracks the top most exams like IITJEE, CAT etc. to get the best of education and then also cracks the civil services exam to get a top administrative job. This is a serious issue for the HRD ministry because you can not honour only intelligence. Other factors which are equally important are normally ignored.
· The Indian education system also faces the problem of how to create quality manpower for the future demands of the Indian industry. Many surveys clearly show that we will have huge numbers of educated manpower in the next 10 years, but still we will have an enormous short fall of quality manpower. Our education system needs to address this issue.
· Modern education in India is often criticized for being based on rote learning. Emphasis is laid on passing examinations with a high percentage. Very few institutes give importance to developing personality and creativity among students. Recently, the country has seen a rise in instances of student suicides due to low marks and failures, especially in metropolitan cities, even though such cases are very rare. The boards are recently trying to improve quality of education by increasing percentage of practical and project marks.
· Many people also criticize the caste, language and religion-based reservations in the education system. Many allege that very few of the weaker castes get the benefit of reservations and that forged caste certificates abound. Educational institutions also can seek religious minority (non-Hindu) or linguistic minority status. In such institutions, 50% of the seats are reserved for students belonging to a particular religion or having particular mother-tongue(s). For example, many colleges run by the Jesuits and Salesians have 50%
seats reserved for Roman Catholics. In case of languages, an institution can declare itself a linguistic minority only in states in which the language is not official language. For example, an engineering college can declare itself as linguistic-minority (Hindi) institution in the state of Maharashtra (where official state language is Marathi), but not in Madhya Pradesh or Uttar Pradesh (where the official state language is Hindi). These reservations are said to be a cause of heartbreak among many. Many students with poor marks manage to get admissions, while meritorious students are left out. Critics say that such reservations may eventually create rifts in the society.
· Expenditure on education is also an issue which comes under the scanner. According to the Kothari commission led by Dr. Vijay Kothari in 1966, expenditure on education has to be minimum 6% of the GDP. Whereas in 2004 expenditure on education stood at 3.52% of the GDP and in the eleventh plan it is estimated to be around 4%. The “Sarva Shikshan Abihyan” has to receive sufficient funds from the central government to impart quality education.
· The quality of teaching in government schools is pathetic. The reason behind it is that education is still under the purview of the state governments. They have a shortage of funds and also are not very serious about education welfare.

Arguments in favour of the topic
· The government has already taken many measures to revamp the education system in India. The “Sarva-Shiksha Abihyan” is doing very well. And we are close to achieving the same across India as we have done in Kerala.
· Many rational changes have been made by CBSE in its curriculum. Now there is no failure (read as exams) up to class 5th and hence students are free from all pressures.
· Many new updated courses have been introduced in senior classes which is directly in line with the updated requirements of the industry. Subjects like financial planning; computer programming, business studies, etc. have already been introduced.
· Many high level international schools have started imparting education of new standards.
· Many NGO’s with the support of the government are doing great work for providing quality education to kids as well as adult slum dwellers for example “Teach India Campaign” by Times of India etc.

Reading Comprehension Tricks for MBA Entrance Tests (CAT, MAT, GMAT, SNAP, XAT IIFT etc.)

General Strategies for Reading Comprehension
1. Try to read the whole text of the passage once, if possible.
Many people think you should just skim the passage or read the first lines of every paragraph, and not to read the passage. We believe this is an error: if you misunderstand the main idea of the passage, you will certainly get at least some of the questions wrong. Give the passage one good read, taking no more than 3 minutes to read all of the text. Do not read the passage more than once – that wastes too much time. If you have not understood it completely, try to answer the questions anyway.
Note: this point of reading the whole passage is important for test-takers whose first language is not English, provided that they can read the passage in 3 minutes or less.

2. Make brief notes on the text on your scrap paper.
As we will see below in greater detail, you should write down a couple of words on A) the Main Idea or Primary Purpose, B) Organization/Structure of the passage, and C) the Tone or Attitude of the author (if applicable). You just need a few words for each of these areas, and altogether it should not take longer than 30 seconds to write down.

3. Remember that the tone or attitude of the passage is usually respectful and moderate, never going to extremes of praise nor criticism.
ETS obtains its Reading Comprehension passages from real articles about real academics and professionals. So the tone of the articles, even when there is criticism in the passage toward an academic or her work, is always balanced and moderate. In the same vein, articles that deal with minorities or ethnic groups are almost always positive and sympathetic.

4. Look out for structural words that tell you the important ideas or transitions in a passage.
Continue the Idea Words
Similarly
Moreover
Additionally
In the same way
Likewise

Conclusion Words
Thus
Therefore
Hence
So
In summary
In conclusion

Contradiction or Contrast Words
 Nevertheless
Nonetheless
However
But
Although
Though
Even though
Notwithstanding
Yet
Despite
In spite of
On the one hand…on the other hand
While
Unlike

5. Go back to the text of the passage for the answers.
Many test-takers fail to return to the text of the passage to look for the correct answers. They rely solely on their memories and understanding of the passage after having read or skimmed it. Wrong. ETS is counting on that. Go back to the text to look for information to answer the questions. Nine times out of ten, the answer lies within the passage.
Of the 6 most important types of questions for Reading Comprehension, we will first look at Main Idea/Primary Purpose Questions, and the strategies we can use to answer them.

Main Idea/Primary Purpose Questions

Many people believe there is no difference between the main or central idea of the passage and the primary
purpose of the author of the passage. This is simply not true. Let's take a look at the subtle but important
difference between them:

Main Idea
The question might look something like this:
"Which of the following best states the central idea of the passage?"
"Which of the following most accurately states the main idea of the passage?"
"Which of the following is the principal topic of the passage?"
"The main topic of the passage is...."

Primary Purpose
The question might look like this:

"The primary purpose of this passage is to..."
"The primary purpose of the passage as a whole is to..."
"The primary focus of this passage is on which of the following?"
"The main concern of the passage is to..."
"In the passage, the author is primarily interested in...."
"The passage is chiefly concerned with..."

Strategy:
Main Idea : Look in the first and last paragraphs for the main idea. Any conclusion words like therefore, thus, so, hence, etc. that you see are most likely introducing the main idea. The correct answer will say the same thing as it says in the text, but using different words. The Main Idea is not always stated explicitly in the passage – in fact, more likely than not, it is not stated explicitly. Therefore, in order to answer this type of question when it is more implicit:

1. Re-read the first line of every passage, and the last line of the first and last paragraphs. This should give
you the general structure or outline of the argument, with which you can answer the Main Idea question.
2. After determining the general structure or content of the argument, eliminate answer choices that are
too broad or too specific, i.e. answer choices that go beyond the content of the passage, or that deal with
content only discussed in one paragraph of the passage.
3. Make brief notes – a couple of words- regarding the Main Idea on the text on your scrap paper while
you read.

Primary Purpose : What is the author trying to do? What is his intention? If he is evaluating a theory, then the
answer could be something like "Discuss an interpretation". Note that the correct answer would deal with "an
interpretation", because the author is only dealing with one theory. If the Primary Purpose is to criticize 2 new
books, then his intention or his primary purpose might be to "Critique new studies". Again, as in Main Idea
questions, re-read the first line of every passage, and the last line of the first and last paragraphs. This should
give you the general structure or outline of the argument, with which you can answer the Primary Purpose
question.
Note : A good main idea or primary purpose does not go beyond the scope of the passage, nor does it limit itself to discussing only one part of the passage.

Explanation
This is a Primary Purpose question, so we have to determine what the author is trying to do or say in this
passage. So, let's read the first and last lines of the passage in order to get an idea of the primary purpose. The first line says "Great news for Star Trek fans: warp drives that can propel starships around the Galaxy faster than the speed of light may be possible after all--with a little help from Dr Who." The last line is a quote by a physicist that says "Of course, there are still some basic questions--like how does one go about constructing this Tardis space-time--but it puts the concept of space warps back on the agenda." From both these sentences, we get the idea of space travel, faster than light travel and space warps – maybe this is a discussion of faster than light space travel. Does that match what you have already read? Yes, basically this is a discussion of the theoretical state of play in the area of faster-than-light space travel. Do any of the 5 answer choices match that?
Yes – B, even if the wording is somewhat different from how we are wording it, the idea is almost exactly the
same. B is the answer.
Another way of getting to the answer is through elimination of obviously incorrect answer choices. We can
eliminate A because the author mentions the popular science fiction program Star Trek merely to introduce the idea of faster-than-light travel, and nothing more. C is a stronger possibility because the second paragraph of the passage does discuss some disagreement among physicists about the possibility of creating a warp-drive, but in the same paragraph the theoretical dilemma seems resolved. Moreover, since the author only discusses this in one paragraph, it cannot be the primary purpose of the entire passage. We can eliminate D because the author does not go into detail discussing the uses of space-warping material. And we can discard E because the author does not really go into how the space-warping bubble would work in the real world.

Title Questions by Stephen Bolton , 20th August, 1999
Title questions are very similar to Main Idea questions, though are less common. Though some of the example
passage we use in this tutorial and in the Practice Section are from the New Scientist, and therefore have titles,

What is the primary purpose of this passage?

A) discuss the importance of the television program Star Trek for the international space
program
B) discuss important theoretical work concerned with faster-than-light space travel.
C) explore a dispute among theoretical physicists regarding the uses of space flight
D) describe the possible uses of space-warping material
E) explain how a space-warping bubble would work in the real world
the passages in the real GMAT will not have titles. The question might look like this:

"Which of the following titles best summarizes the passage as a whole?"

Strategy :
Treat this as a Main Idea question. A good title sums up the central idea of a passage. Therefore, in order to answer this type of question:

1. Look in the first and last paragraphs for the main idea. Any conclusion words like therefore, thus, so,
hence, etc. that you see are most likely introducing the Main Idea/Title. The correct answer will say the
same thing as it says in the text, but using different words.
2. Re-read the first line of every passage, and the last line of the first and last paragraphs. This should give
you the general structure or outline of the argument, with which you can answer the Title question.
3. Make brief notes – a couple of words- regarding the Title on the text on your scrap paper while you
read.
4. After determining the general structure or content of the argument, eliminate answer choices that are
too broad or too specific, i.e. answer choices that go beyond the content of the passage, or that deal with
content only discussed in one paragraph of the passage.

Explanation
This passage actually already has a title, "Warp Factor One". But we have to look for another title possibility,
one that would be most like the Main Idea of the passage. We look at the first and last paragraphs, and since the Main Idea is that researchers now feel that faster-than-light travel maybe more than mere fantasy, we can find the correct answer choice. Does any answer choice correspond to this idea? Yes- answer D, which is the correct answer.
We can also find the correct answer through elimination. There is nowhere in the passage where it discusses
building Dr. Who's Tardis (pity!), so we can eliminate A. Nor does it tell us how to make space-warping
material. Eliminate B. While bubbles in space-time are discussed at some length in one of the paragraphs, we
cannot say this is the main concern of the passage, and thus should eliminate C. And nowhere are the uses of
space travel discussed, so discard E.
Specific Detail or Target questions are probably the most common types of questions, and the easiest to answer.
The question might look like this:

"According to the passage,...."
"The passage states that ...."

Strategy

What would be an appropriate title for this passage?
A) Constructing The Tardis
B) How To Make Space-Warping Material
C) Bubbles In Space-Time
D) Faster-Than-Light Travel: A Possibility?
E) Debate On The Uses of Space Travel

The Specific Detail or Target that we are looking for could be a Line Number, or a Name or Date. Go to the
Line Number or Name or Date, and then read several lines above and below it. Find the answer choice that
basically says the same thing as in the passage, though usually with different words or word order.

Explanation
This is a Specific Detail/Target question, and therefore we look for the Name, Line Number, or Date that will
help us. In this case, the detail consists of the names Pfenning and Ford. We scan the text, starting from the top of the passage, looking for the names Pfenning and Ford. We find them in only place, at the beginning of the second paragraph. We read a couple of lines above the names, and keep reading until a few lines after the
names. It says "But in 1997 Michael Pfenning and Larry Ford at Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts,
apparently killed this ingenious idea by showing that it needed far more than the entire energy content of the
Universe to work (This Week, 26 July 1997, p 6)". The line after that says the research of another physicist then resurrected the possibility of FTL travel, negating the implications of the research of Pfenning and Ford. Now we can answer the question. Do any of the answer choices match the information given around the target area?
Yes- E.
Let's also eliminate. If we re-read what the passage says about Pfenning and Ford, we can eliminate B, C, and D.
None of them are supported by the information in the passage, so let's eliminate all of them without wasting
too much time and with a minimum of fuss. A is tougher to eliminate. From the sentence that mention Pfenning
and Ford, it seems their work does rule out the possibility of a space-warp drive. But if we read the next line, it says another researcher said it was indeed possible. So the Pfenning and Ford could not have "conclusively"
demonstrated the impossibility of the FTL drive.

This is probably the most difficult type of Reading Comprehension problem. The question might look like this:
"It can be inferred that the author makes which of the following assumptions?"
"Which is an assumption underlying the last sentence of the passage?"
"Which of the following, if true, would most strengthen the hypothesis mentioned in lines 17-19?"
"With which of the following statements regarding chaos theory would the author be most likely to
agree?"

Strategy :
1. First, treat this type of problem as a Specific Target question. Look for a target in the question, find it in
the text, and then look above and below it. Often you do not have to infer very much, the answer
remains within the text.
2. If the answer must be inferred and is not stated explicitly within the text, then choose the answer choice
that can be inferred or assumed from the information given. Again, you should not have to infer very
much – only one or two logical steps removed from the information in the passage.
According to the passage, Pfenning and Ford
A) demonstrated conclusively the impossibility of faster-than-light travel
B) explored the possibility of bubbles that warp space
C) supported the work of Alcubierre
D) work at of the Institute for Theoretical Physics at the Catholic University of Leuven
E) suggested that a warp drive was not physically possible
3. Make sure that the answer choice you decide on does not violate or contradict the Main Idea of the
passage - if it does, the answer choice is probably wrong.

It can be inferred that a house with the properties of the bubble mentioned in the passage
A) would be larger on the inside than on the outside
B) could move faster than the speed of light
C) might be very energy efficient
D) could move through time
E) would eventually fold in on itself and be destroyed

Explanation
First, let's try to deal with this question as a Specific Target problem. Is there a target in the question? Yes – the bubble. The bubble is first mentioned at the end of the second paragraph, and then discussed at length
throughout the third paragraph. Remember, we have to look above and below that target area (as well as read the target area again), so quickly go through the second, third, and first part of the fourth paragraph.
When you are finished, look at the answer choices. Can any of them be inferred from the information given in
the target area? Well, we could eliminate C, D, and E for simply not being supported by the information given
in the passage. B – maybe, but a house moving through time seems pretty silly. But in the fourth paragraph the
author talks about the Tardis, "which looked like a police box but had a spacious interior". Big on the inside,
small on the outside. Is that like our house? Yes- answer A. As well, we can choose A because it does not go
against or contradict the Main Idea in this case, which if it had, would have made it necessary to eliminate. So
choose A.

The question might look like this:
"The author's attitude towards Morgan's theory could best be described as one of ..."

Strategy :
Look for descriptive words, adjectives or adverbs, that could tell you the author's attitude. For example, the
words unfortunately or flaw suggest a negative connotation, while strength or valuable emphasize the positive.
Make brief notes – a couple of words- regarding the Tone of the text on your scrap paper while you read.
Additionally, keep in mind that the author's attitude toward a theory, book, or ethnic group will almost always
be respectful, even when somewhat critical.

Explanation
Since this is a Tone/Attitude question, we must look in the passage for descriptive words that tell us what the
author thinks of Alcibierre and his theory. In the second paragraph the author call's Alcibierre's theory "this
ingenious idea". This is positive, and the only positive answer choice is A. A is the correct answer. As well, if
we could not find the tone so easily, we could also eliminate C and D at the very least, for being too extreme.
It can be inferred that a house with the properties of the bubble mentioned in the passage
A) would be larger on the inside than on the outside
B) could move faster than the speed of light
C) might be very energy efficient
D) could move through time
E) would eventually fold in on itself and be destroyed

The author's attitude towards Miguel Alcibierre's theory could best be described as one of
A) admiration
B) mild skepticism
C) unbridled scorn
D) dismay
E) complete objectivity

The question might look like this:
"Which of the following best describes the organization of the passage?"
"Which of the following best describes the organization of the first paragraph of the passage?"
"One function of the third paragraph is to...."

Strategy :
Re-read the first line of every passage, and the last line of the first and last paragraphs. This should give you the general structure or outline of the argument, with which you can answer the question. Remember to make brief notes about the structure of the text on your scrap paper. If you are looking for the organization of one
paragraph, read the first and second sentence of the paragraph. That will give you a rough idea of what is the
structure or organization of the paragraph.

Explanation
Read the first sentence of the paragraph: "But in 1997 Michael Pfenning and Larry Ford at Tufts University in
Medford, Massachusetts, apparently killed this ingenious idea by showing that it needed far more than the
entire energy content of the Universe to work (This Week, 26 July 1997, p 6)". Then read the second sentence:
"Now Chris Van Den Broeck of the Institute for Theoretical Physics at the Catholic University of Leuven,
Belgium, has resurrected Alcubierre's proposal". So if we out those two sentences together, and in different
words, first the usefulness of Alcubierre's theory is questioned by two researchers, then the theory is validated
by yet another researcher. Which of the answer choices is closest to this? C. None of the other answer choices follow the organizational pattern of the paragraph – they reverse it, or are completely dissimilar. C is the only possible answer.
1. Read the whole text of the passage once.
2. Make brief notes about the text on your scrap paper.
3. Remember that the tone or attitude of the passage is usually respectful and moderate, never going to
extremes of praise nor criticism.
4. Look out for structural words that tell you the important ideas or transitions in a passage.
5. Go back to the text of the passage for the answers to specific questions.

Which of the following best describes the organization of the second paragraph of the passage?
A) Two investigations that support Alcubierre's theory are introduced
B) Possible objections to the uses of the warp drive are present, and then refuted
C) An objection to the practicality of the theory is raised, and then another work is cited to
shore up the applicability of the original theory
D) A work of theoretical physics that supports Alcubierre's theory is raised, and then another
that refutes it is presented
E) Alcubierre's theory is analyzed by a panel of several eminent physicists

Explanation
Read the first sentence of the paragraph: "But in 1997 Michael Pfenning and Larry Ford at Tufts University in
Medford, Massachusetts, apparently killed this ingenious idea by showing that it needed far more than the
entire energy content of the Universe to work (This Week, 26 July 1997, p 6)". Then read the second sentence:
"Now Chris Van Den Broeck of the Institute for Theoretical Physics at the Catholic University of Leuven,
Belgium, has resurrected Alcubierre's proposal". So if we out those two sentences together, and in different
words, first the usefulness of Alcubierre's theory is questioned by two researchers, then the theory is validated
by yet another researcher. Which of the answer choices is closest to this? C. None of the other answer choices follow the organizational pattern of the paragraph – they reverse it, or are completely dissimilar. C is the only possible answer.
1. Read the whole text of the passage once.
2. Make brief notes about the text on your scrap paper.
3. Remember that the tone or attitude of the passage is usually respectful and moderate, never going to
extremes of praise nor criticism.
4. Look out for structural words that tell you the important ideas or transitions in a passage.
5. Go back to the text of the passage for the answers to specific questions.

Saturday, August 29, 2009

Daily Reasoning Questions 2

Vampire bats have been attacking a different person in the village of Batsrus on different days of the week and they all managed to succeed in sucking a little blood from their victim. The victim fought off the attacking bat by using any weapon to hand.
Can you determine the amount of blood sucked from which person, on what day and what they defended themselves with?
1) Miss Fitch had 4ml of blood sucked from her neck before managing to fight the bat off, but not with her Handbag or Fist and this wasn't on a Saturday.
2) The bat that was fought off with a Walking Stick managed to suck 1.5ml more than the bat that attacked 2 days before the victim that used a Slipper to defend themselves, which was not Mr. Sachs.
3) Mr. Sachs had more blood sucked from him than the Saturday victim.
4) A bat was hit with a Fist 2 days after a bat was hit with a Handbag.
5) The victim that had 7ml of blood sucked was attacked the day before the victim having the least amount of blood sucked, which was not on a Wednesday.
6) Monday's bat attack was on Mrs Melbury who didn't fight the bat off with a Slipper.
7) Ms Trews did not use an Umbrella as her weapon.

Brain Teaser 4


Five swimmers (Adam, Brad, Carl, Doug, and Eric) have been preparing for the Olympics. It is now time for the swimming time trials. The five swimmers each compete in the four different strokes (backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly, and freestyle). The top three finishers in each event will qualify for the Olympic swim team in that stroke. Using the following clues, determine the order of finish in each of the four strokes.
1) Only one contestant qualified in all four strokes.
2) No contestant finished last in more than one event.
3) Adam finished better in the backstroke than he did in the butterfly.
4) Brad finished better than Doug in the butterfly.
5) Adam finished just behind Brad and just ahead of Eric in the breaststroke.
6) Doug finished just ahead of Carl in the freestyle.
7) Neither Brad nor Eric finished third in any event.
8) Eric's finish in the backstroke was the same as Doug's in the butterfly.
9) Doug only finished in the same position in the backstroke and the freestyle.
10) Carl finished in a different position in each event.
11) Brad finished only two events in the same position.
12) The contestant who finished second in the butterfly beat Doug in the freestyle.
13) The contestant who finished first in the freestyle did not qualify in the backstroke.
14) The contestant who finished fifth in the backstroke did not finish third in the butterfly.
15) No contestant finished in the same position in both the breaststroke and the butterfly.

Thursday, August 27, 2009

Why MBA?

"Want to be an MBA ?" 
This is probably one of the most hackneyed and trite comments that the graduating youth of recent times come to face. Graduates today want to be an MBA, but have little idea what a manager really does. Most students are attracted to management education at top business schools because of the high pay packages they get at the end of it. Sure, it is a brilliant career to pursue, but if your ultimate aim is to stuff your pockets, you might just cut a sorry figure in your future life or, for that matter, even in your Group Discussions or your Personal interviews.

Do you have a goal? 
Many students who make it to the best B-Schools do have a purpose or a firm goal. You will be astonished to know that every year, about six to eight percent of the graduating managers from top B-Schools join start-up enterprises because of the tremendous learning opportunities that start-ups provide. Almost an equal percentage of students join NGOs or social service organizations. If you know your goal, the two year period at a B-School becomes a path to CAT: Some notions All of us have heard that CAT is your objective and your learning is more focused.a test of Quantitative ability and Verbal ability.
 You can't really blame students for thinking so. This is because institutes inject this thought into their minds. Moreover, students believe CAT is all about 90 questions, divided into three sections to be tackled in 150 minutes. Often, we come across examples of class toppers performing badly in CAT, while an average student in the same class would crack CAT.
This puts forth a few questions:
 Are B-Schools actually looking for your Quantitative and Verbal skills in the written CAT ?
 Are B-Schools looking for your communication skills in GDs and interviews?
 If your answer to these questions is yes, it is time you snap out of your hallucination and face reality. Most test preparatory institutes prepare you for Quantitative and Verbal skills, but forget to put an element of stress that forms the basis of written CAT
CAT -- A few home truths For most students, GDs and interviews mean preparation of certain macro topics and self-awareness issues. But interviewers want to know the core of your business acumen. GDs and interviews preparation is not a 10 to 12 session programme, but a year-long process. They are more about sharpening your business acumen.

There are topics such as
  • Do you know something about impact of China's deliberate slowdown, on Indian economy?                   
  • Why does the Indian prime minister give top billing to infrastructure?                                                       
  • What are your thoughts on the consolidation in the Indian telecom sector?  
If you have an idea of the above, your preparation has direction. If not, you probably are so engrossed in your Mathematics and English that you are ignoring the real aspects of CAT preparationMBA: Some facts -Just having an MBA degree will not help you. Dig into the reason why you want to
 do an MBA. Discover your core skills. If you are good at creativity and have an aptitude for advertising, an advertising school is a better option for you than a B-School. Don't get bogged down with the fat pay packages. Salary packages are just a direct function of economic growth. If in a particular year, there is an upward economic swing, salary packages will shoot up. In a year of recession, even the best B-Schools in India find it tough to place their students. Look at the placement scenario this year. The IT and ITES companies led the fray, followed by finance companies. Old economy companies were almost out of the reckoning. This tells us the economic growth pattern in the years to come.
                                                
Steps to become an MBA
Remember, an MBA is a medium to reach your destination. It is not the destination.
The following points might help you
  • build a strong foundation to your management career: 
  • Set a goal for yourself. Introspect and find out your flair. 
  • Shortlist the B-Schools and the areas of specialization, based on your flair. 
  • Start reading about management so as to get an edge over others. 
  • Know how to prepare for CAT. CAT is not only about Mathematics and Verbal skills. 
  • Introduce an element of stress and uncertainty at each and every step of your preparation deliberately. 
  • Learn to relax at the end of the day. 

All the best for your CAT preparation and examination!