The Common Admission Test 2025 (CAT-2025) exam will be held on November 30, 2025. CareerMantra.Org brings you tried-and-true last-minute CAT 2025 preparation tips from CAT toppers currently studying at IIM Ahmedabad, IIM Calcutta, IIM Kozhikode, MDI Gurgaon and SPJIMR Mumbai. These CAT-2025 preparation strategies and tips will help you make the most of your final days, boost your CAT score, and keep you stress-free.
According to CAT toppers, in the final moments before the CAT, you need to shift from learning mode to performance mode. Please stick to a clear test-taking strategy and only revise what you already know. You should also minimise your workload, stay calm, and follow slot-wise and exam-day guidelines to ensure you’re in the right mental state for the test. Read these tried and tested CAT last-minute preparation tips and strategies.
CAT-2025 exam on November 30, 2026
The last two days aren’t about learning everything; they’re about learning to stay calm. This is the advice many CAT toppers are offering as the Common Admission Test 2025 (CAT-2025) approaches. The Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode (IIM Kozhikode) will conduct the exam on November 30, and the CAT admit cards have already been released on the official website – iimcat.ac.in. The exam will be conducted in three sections – Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension (VARC), Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning (DILR), and Quantitative Aptitude (QA), with a sectional time limit of 40 minutes.
Finalise your own test-taking strategy!
The first set of last-minute CAT-2025 preparation tips from CAT toppers emphasises the importance of developing your own strategy. It focuses on avoiding blind copying and identifying your individual strengths and weaknesses. A student at IIM Ahmedabad and a CAT topper says, “The biggest mistake I’ve seen is that students follow the exam-taking strategies of other ‘successful’ students. You should understand that a strategy works for them because it suits them! You have to find out what works for you through trial and error. Don’t follow the crowd!”
CAT-2025 Last-Minute Strategies:
A) Focus on Your Strengths
Last-minute strategies for the next CAT-2025 exam are simple but essential! As simple as it may sound, CAT toppers emphasise the importance of planning your last-minute CAT preparation based on your strengths. A student from the 2023-25 batch of IIM Kozhikode PGP advised, “Because I knew my strengths were LRDI and Quant, I was prepared to manage my time well.”
B) Ignore Your Weaknesses
These last-minute preparation tips are crucial for the CAT 2025 exam: You should avoid focusing on your weaknesses, especially during last-minute CAT preparation. An MBA 2023-25 student from IIM Calcutta said, “As the exam approached, I ignored my weaknesses. My target was to solve 2 out of 4 problems, which had 10 questions, as this was enough to get a good percentile in the DILR, as it was my weakest section.”
Stay stress-free in the final hours of CAT!
These CAT last-minute preparation tips 2025 have been shared by several CAT toppers. They emphasise the importance of staying calm on exam day. Strategies include getting enough sleep, engaging in relaxing activities like listening to soothing music, watching motivational movies, and deliberately avoiding excessive stress to avoid mistakes.
Ananya, a student at FMS Delhi, told CareerManra.Org, “I didn’t study the day before the exam. Instead, I focused on relaxing and making sure everything was perfect on exam day,” she recalls. Anurag added, “The last 2-3 days are all about staying calm. If your mind is clear, you have a better chance of doing well on exam day.”
