The usual and the most popular confusion MBA Aspirants have regarding CAT Prep is about books to refer for CAT. The choice of books is vast and quite varied. But what MBA Aspirants need to understand is that it is not the choice of books that they refer to but how they refer to these books. All books available in the market are very similar in the nature of their content of Test Prep Material but the important thing is what you make of it. So here we provide you with a list of books for each section that can help you accelerate your preparation to ace the tests. The task for aspirants now is to recognize their current stage of preparation and to identify which style of books they find a perfect fit with.
Quantitative Ability:
NCERT mathematics books (6-10): These books are a good way to start if one needs to clear their basics and concepts. NCERT books are best to start with if you have a lot of time before your exam date and need to brush up on concepts before solving advanced problems.
How to Prepare for Quantitative Aptitude for the CAT by Arun Sharma: This book by Tata McGraw Hill is really easy and simple to understand. The USP of this book is that it has three levels of difficulty for each topic which helps students to prepare not only for CAT but also for other exams such as NMAT, SNAP, MAT, XAT, IIFT, etc.
Quantitative Aptitude for Competitive Examinations by Abhijit Guha: This book is quite comprehensive for various competitive exams, for both MBA aspirants and for those seeking jobs who need to prepare for the aptitude tests.
Quantitative Aptitude Quantum CAT by Sarvesh Verma: It is an extensive book for students aspiring to go to IIMs. It is a one stop book for people with as well as without mathematical background due to its lucid and tailor made content revolving around CAT.
The Quantitative Aptitude and Data Interpretation for the CAT by Nishit Sinha: This book by Pearson focuses on in depth understanding of core topics for basic and advanced applications. The USP of this book is that it has been written by an IIM Lucknow alumnus who specialises in CAT Training and Coaching.
Verbal Ability:
How to Prepare for Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension for the CAT by Meenakshi Upadhyay and Arun Sharma: This book is apt for students who want to brush up their verbal and reading comprehension skills. It covers three important topics under verbal ike reading comprehension, verbal ability and verbal reasoning. It provides sufficient practice and mock papers for self-assessment.
Verbal Ability and Logical Reasoning For The CAT by Nishit Sinha: This book by Pearson provides not only an exhaustive resource for verbal ability but also for logical reasoning. It also includes numerous tests as well as integral problem solving techniques and approaches.
Word Power Made Easy by Norman Lewis: This is the go-to book to improve your vocabulary. It is not a book to be read but a book to work with daily to enrich your vocabulary. This book may or may not have a direct impact on your score for verbal ability but it will ensure that you’re well prepared for WATs, GDs and PIs.
High School Grammar and Composition by Wren and Martin: It is a sacred book for people who want to improve their grammar skills. It helps to understand and conceptualise different aspects of grammar and it is a must have book for anyone with poor grasp on verbal ability.
Read books from different genres: The ultimate key to improve your verbal ability is to read extensively and to read books from different genres. This ensures that when the time for reading comprehension comes you are well acquainted with different writing styles and topics. Reading extensively also improves your reading speeding over a period of time. There are no shortcuts here.
Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation:
A Modern Approach to Logical Reasoning by R.S. Agarwal: This book is to start with the most basic reasoning problem as it is quite simple to understand. It is segregated into different sections such as logic, statements, inferences and arguments, assumptions, conclusions, course of actions, logical puzzles, etc.
How to Prepare for Logical Reasoning for CAT by Arun Sharma: This book by Tata McGraw Hill contains all topics to be considered under Logical Reasoning for CAT as well as other entrance exams. Each topic is explained with solved examples followed by a series of problems with varied difficulty levels to solve which gives an individual enough practice for this section.
How to Prepare for Data Interpretation for CAT by Arun Sharma: This book focuses on all areas of Data Interpretation and Data Sufficiency. It provides and emphasizes on developing our calculations to get an edge with DI. This book also provides you with previous years questions, Model and Sample test papers.
Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation for the CAT by Nishit Sinha: This book covers fundamental and advanced topics under the aforementioned section which are explained with the help of solved examples, case lets and exercises to do. It is useful for various other exams as well.
5. Data Interpretation: Practice Book for the CAT and Other MBA Entrance Examinations by Nishit Sinha: This book provides adequate practice and to sharpen the skills for Data Interpretation. It is also quite useful for other competitive exams like NMAT, GMAT, SNAP, CMAT, etc.
Another book to be considered is Previous Years’ Solved CAT Paper: This ensures that you are familiar with the kind of questions that are asked in CAT providing you an edge. They can be taken as mocks and the analysis of the same can provide you with great insights for your preparation.
There are plenty of other books for these topics in the market, but these are by far the most popular as well as helpful books for anyone preparing for entrance exams.
Another way to procure Test Prep Material is to get study material from coaching classes as those are tailor made for students and focuses highly on student’s needs.
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