Father Mathew Principal, St Xavier’s College, Calcutta

Q: I wish to appear for CAT. Which subjects should I take up in my graduation to help me succeed in CAT?

Sampriti Bhattacharya

A: Doing management studies, particularly at one of the IIMs, has become the dream and obsession of many ambitious young men and women. Thanks to the media hype about the IIMs, you too seem to have been bitten by the management bug. You must ask yourself if it is a deliberate career choice arrived at after assessing your capabilities.

CAT is one of the toughest competitive exams. Before appearing for the exam, you should know yourself well in terms of your talents and capabilities. The capacity for disciplined hard work, the tenacity to work towards achieving your goal are the passports to success in any sphere. To succeed in a management competitive exam like CAT, you need to have a strong foundation in mathematics and versatility ? both in written and spoken English.

One must also aim at conceptual understanding, rather than rote learning, and develop logical thinking and strengthen one’s power of comprehension. Cultivate a good reading habit of current topics. Since CAT is aimed at selecting management students, knowledge of subjects related to business, finance, economics, management, accountancy, etc will add to your chances of success. I have observed that students who do their graduation with economics, mathematics and statistics seem to have an edge over those from other streams. But whatever the stream, please remember that a solid grounding in mathematics and English is a must to succeed in CAT.

Q: I am studying in Class XII (science). I want to opt for an undergraduate course in science at St Xavier’s College, Calcutta. But if my father is transferred to a remote place, will the college allow me to leave the institution? Is there any rule that states that no student can leave the institute during the course?

Aranya Sen

A: St Xavier’s, or any college, for that matter, cannot deny or prevent a student migrating to another college/university of his/her choice, subject to fulfilling the formalities prescribed for taking the transfer certificate (TC). However, you must make sure that the college/university you are migrating to is ready to consider your application favourably. This will depend on the compatibility of your subject combination and also the examination system. A hurdle that a migrating Calcutta University (CU) student used to face was the three-tier examination of the other universities compared to the two-tier examination of CU. However, with CU too opting for the three-tier system of examination, this difference in exam systems will not be a hurdle in the future.

Father Manipadam Provincial Youth Delegate, Don Bosco Youth Services, Calcutta

Q: I am a student of Class XI science. I want to join an IIT. Should I join a correspondence course to prepare for the examination? Will it be helpful? Will it affect my current academic performance?

Ashish Kumar

A: If you want to go to one of the IITs, you need to prepare for the joint entrance tests as well as for your Class XI and XII exams. Which means that you should have the ability and the time to study hard for both the ISC and the joint entrance examinations. Can you do that? If your private preparations are not enough, you will need to take help from some coaching agencies or do a correspondence course. This is what all those who try for the IITs do. But remember, you must be a reasonably bright student to be able to prepare for the joint entrance tests along with your Plus Two studies. Think it over and then decide.