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Complete CAT Syllabus for CAT 2018 Exam
Paper Pattern for the CAT 2018 Exam
CAT Syllabus has remained more or less the same for the last decade but the paper
pattern has changed. Before we actually try to understand the complete and detailed
CAT syllabus for the CAT 2018 exam, we need to understand the pattern of the paper.
Once we know the pattern of the paper, it would be simpler for us to understand the
syllabus for CAT. The pattern for CAT exam has remained more or less the same for
the past 3 years – CAT 2015, CAT 2016, and CAT 2017. It is safe to assume that a
similar, if not exactly the same, pattern would continue for CAT 2018 as well.

CAT 2018 exam would be divided in to three separate sections of 1 hour each.

Section 1 – Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension (34 questions)

Section 2 – Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation (32 questions)

Section 3 – Quantitative Aptitude (34 questions)

Another thing to keep in mind is the fact that you are not allowed to switch
between sections. The order of the sections has remained the same for the past few
years so the same is expected to continue.

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CAT Syllabus for Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension section of CAT 2018 Exam
Over the past few years, the Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension (VARC)
section has focused quite heavily on Reading Comprehension. Out of 34, you can
expect anywhere from 20 to 25 questions from the Reading Comprehension. The other
10-15 questions would be from the Verbal Ability part.


Given below is the CAT Syllabus and the topics you need to cover for the VA RC
section

Reading Comprehension Different Categories of Passages

Writing Styles
Tone of Writing
Types of Questions
Reading Skills
Types of Passages
Accuracy in RC
The Articles – A, An, The Grammar
Parts of Speech in English
Sentence Construction in English
Punctuations
Modifiers
Subject-Verb Agreement
Verbs Tenses
Sentence Correction
Word Usage
Verbal Reasoning Logical Deduction
Statements & Assumptions
Courses of Action
Parajumbles (Basic Rules, Extra tips)
Para Completion
Sentence Exclusion
Fact Inference Judgment
Syllogism
Basic Assumption And Inference Critical Reasoning
Strengthen and Weaken an Argument
Paragraph Summary
Method of Reasoning and Boldfaced
Flawed and Paradox
Parallel, Further Application, Evaluate
Fallacies and Strong Weak Arguments
I would like to add that it is unlikely that you would get questions on most of
these topics but these are the tools that you would need to prepare and score well
in the Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension section.

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CAT Syllabus for Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation section of CAT 2018 Exam
Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation (LRDI) has become the most grueling of
all sections in the CAT exam over the years. Typically, there are 8 sets with 4
questions each. To score around 90%ile need to do 2-3 sets correctly, whereas to
score around 95%ile in the LRDI section, you need to do 3-4 sets correctly. I would
like to divide the CAT Syllabus for the LRDI section in two levels.

Level 1 consists of topics that you need to do to build a base.

Level 2 consists of topics on which you can expect actual questions to be asked in
the exam.

Level 1 topics of CAT syllabus for LRDI section

Coding – Decoding
Number Series
Letter Series
Symbol Series
Symbol based Logic
Number & Alphabet Analogies
Odd one out
Direction Sense
Blood Relations and Family Tree
Cryptarithmetic (Verbal Arithmetic)
Inequalities and Conclusions – Coded Inequalities
Data Sufficiency
Approximation of Values
Level 2 topics of CAT syllabus for LRDI section
Bar Graphs
Pie Charts
Tables
Binary Logic – True / False statements based questions
Pan Balance / Spring Balance
Linear and Circular Seating Arrangements
Matrix and Grid based Arrangements
Games and Tournaments (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3)
Sequential Output / Input-Output
Logical Conditions (If this, then that)
Logical Grouping – Questions based on Team Formation
Critical Path
Cubes based problems
Matchstick / Coin picking based problems
Dice Related Problems
Order and Ranking
Quant Based LR Puzzles
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CAT Syllabus for Quantitative Aptitude of CAT 2018 Exam

As far as CAT syllabus is concerned, probably the Quantitative Aptitude section is
the most well defined and the most voluminous as well. Probably, that is the reason
a large number of students make the mistake of spending too much time on it. They
sometimes end up spending more than 75% of their time preparing for just the
quantitative aptitude section ignoring the others. I hope you would not do that.
Given below is the structure of the Quantitative Aptitude section. As you can see,
I have further divided the Quant part, in to 5 sup-parts:

Number System
Algebra
Arithmetic
Geometry
Modern Math
The numbers given in the picture are based on the average pattern of the CAT exam
over the last 4-5 years. You can expect a swing of +/- 2 questions in each
category. Also, it is sometimes difficult to categorize a question in one sub-topic
versus the other, so I have taken some poetic license while doing that.


Number System Syllabus for CAT 2018 Exam
A common issue while preparing with Number System for CAT is that students are not
aware or relative importance of various topics that are asked in Number System.
They spend time sharpening their skills to find out the last two digits, or to
understand Fermat Theorem to find out the remainders in Number System questions.
These types of concepts are not required for CAT Preparation. It is one of the low
priority areas of CAT syllabus.

Given below are some of the topics that you should cover in Number System

Basics of Numbers
Properties of Numbers
Divisibility Rules
Divisibility and Factors
Highest Common Factor and Lowest Common Multiple
Finding Out Last Digit
Finding Out Last Two Digits
Number of trailing zeroes
Special cases of Factorials – Highest Power in a prime, rightmost non zero digit
Finding out Remainders
Based on basic divisibility rules
Based on Binomial Theorem
Based on Simplifying the Dividend (Single and / or Multiple Divisors)
Fermat's Theorem
Euler's Theorem
Pattern Recognition and cyclicity of remainders
Wilson's Theorem
Base Systems
Conversion of Bases
Addition / subtraction / multiplication in different bases
Arithmetic Syllabus for CAT 2018 Exam
As far as CAT syllabus for Arithmetic is concerned, I would like to suggest that
you divide it in three parts.

Part 1 – Basic concepts from the syllabus that you need to solve any question

Averages
Mean Median Mode
Percentages
Ratio and Proportion
Simple and Compound Interest
Part 2 – High probability areas of CAT syllabus on which questions can be asked in
the CAT 2018 exam

Installments
Profit and Loss
Mixtures and Alligations
Time Speed and Distance
Basic Concepts
Linear and Circular Races
Boats and Stream
Relative Speed
Escalator Based Questions
Time and Work
Pipes and Cisterns
Part 3 – Concepts from CAT syllabus that you should know but are unlikely to be
asked in the CAT

Calendars
Clocks
Stocks and Shares
Algebra Syllabus for CAT 2018 Exam
Algebra is probably the most neglected portion of Quantitative Aptitude in CAT
syllabus for the simple reason that people do not know what to do in it and where
to practice for it. Some students think that they can skip topics like Basic
Algebraic Equations and Inequalities because you rarely get direct questions on
those in CAT. While it is technically correct, it is still a bad idea to skip these
chapters. The reason being that the other questions that are asked in the CAT exam
are based on these concepts.

Given below are some of the topics that you can and should go through to get a good
grasp on the Algebra section.

Basics Algebraic Formulae

Linear Equations
Problems on ages
Number of integer solutions
Quadratic Equations
Finding out roots
Maxima and Minima
Higher Degree Equations
Descartes Rule of Signs
Inequalities
Logarithm
Functions
Modifications of graphs
Smallest value in a maximum function
If you have to look at the most important chapter in Quantitative Aptitude, it has
to be Functions. Do not ignore that.

Geometry Syllabus for CAT 2018 Exam

Over the years, Geometry has proven to be the most scoring (most scary for some
students) part of the Quantitative Aptitude section. It is the only topic where you
can hope for a direct application of a concept or formula without thinking too much
about it. Often, you can just draw a diagram or even assume a value to get to the
answer fairly quickly. The problem with Geometry portion of CAT syllabus is that
quite a lot of students have not studied Geometry at all after class 10th. Even if
it was a part of the syllabus, they focused on fancy topics lie Permutation and
Combination or Probability. It would take some time to get back in to the groove
but every hour that you spend on preparing for Geometry will help you in the CAT
exam.

As far as the topics and syllabus for Geometry is concerned, this list below should
be helpful

Lines and Angles

Triangles – Basic Concepts
Area, Angles
Similar Triangles
Special Triangles (30-60-90, 45-45-90, 30-30,120)
Polygons
Circles
Solids / Mensuration – 3D Geometry
Co-ordinate Geometry
Trigonometry
Among the above topics, Co-ordinate Geometry and Trigonometry are low priority
areas. If you can spend even an hour on Trigonometry to understand the basic
concepts and simple applications of those basic concepts – it should be enough for
the CAT exam. You do not need anything more than that. Similarly, as far as Co-
ordinate Geometry is concerned – it is a combination of a large number of formulas.
If you are good at remembering stuff, 75% of your co-ordinate geometry problems
would be solved in less than a minute.

Modern Math Syllabus for CAT 2018 Exam

Modern Math is a low priority topic as far as the CAT exam is concerned. It also
includes some part that isn't really covered till class 10th Math such as
Permutation and Combination, Probability, etc. However, those topics are not that
important. What is important is topics like Set Theory. Questions on Set Theory can
also be asked in the Logical Reasoning section so it is important that you are well
prepared for it.

Given below is a list of topics that are included in Modern Math section of CAT
syllabus:

Sequence and Series

Binomial Theorem
Set Theory
Venn Diagram based on 2 / 3 sets
Venn Diagram based on 4 sets
Maxima and Minima related to values in a set
'At least n' type of problems
Permutation and Combination
Fundamental Principles of Counting
Distribution of Objects
Problems based on Grids
Rank of a word in a dictionary
Probability
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