Though the Indian Institutes of Management are a good one month late with the announcement of the modalities and admission procedure brochure of what is touted as India's toughest management examination, it is reported that CAT 2010 will commence a month earlier this year. Slated to be held during a 20-day testing window - as opposed to last year's hurried 10-day attempt which created mass confusion and required rescheduling of the exam for thousands - the examination is scheduled to commence on October 27. This means, time is running out for CAT aspirants across the country.

With less than three months remaining for this all-important examination, The Hindu EducationPlus spoke to experts on preparation pointers for students and streamlining their preparatory efforts thus far. CAT 2010 will be organised by the Indian Institute of Management, Lucknow, and final announcements on the exam are awaited.

However, both the IIMs and their implementing partner, the U.S.-based firm Prometric, have made it clear that the pattern of testing will remain unaltered. This means that students will only have the task of familiarising themselves with the computer-based format and put in hours of practice on the computer to iron out any difficulties this new format may pose.

For those seeking practice papers in a digital or computer-based format, there is plenty of material online. CAT aspirants will find that a simple Internet search will throw up a plethora of free online tests, many of which also offer you the opportunity to time and sometimes offer evaluations. Experts, however, caution students that while doing as many tests as you can is the best way to prepare for an exam like the computer-based CAT, spending time on random and 'unscientifically-designed' tests could prove counterproductive.

"There are thousands of tests online, and we have found that a majority of them are technically sound and do offer a mock CAT experience; however, the content is poor," observed Ajay Arora of the Triumphant Institute of Management Education.

"Our assessment of these tests is that while they do offer practice, the difficulty levels are random and are not scientifically-captured. So they do not offer students any proper testing experience." Mr. Arora points out that exposing themselves to a large variety of questions is critical to students at this point; however, practising right is also important. Useful tips.

"The key is to start working out model papers. Start identifying patterns, checking out what questions are your weakness and where your strengths lie. It is important to identify these things at this point so that you will be able to work on them. For students who have been practising for a few months now, it is time to get into the analysis mode."

Rama Chari, who takes CAT coaching in a Bangalore-based centre, agrees. She believes that spending a week analysing individual patterns is a good exercizat doesn't." As for late entrants to the CAT preparation scene, all is not lost, these experts say.