CAT Preparation of DILR section should start 5-6 months before the exam date with all the important topics like Bar Graphs, Seating Arrangement, etc. CAT Preparation of DILR should be focused on improving the calculation speed. CAT DILR Question Paper will have questions in the form of Sets and solving one set accurately can get you around 12-15 marks. To obtain a 95+ percentile, you will have to obtain 35-40 raw marks.

 In this article, we take a look at how to prepare DILR for CAT 2024.

CAT DILR Preparation Highlights

Section Name	Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning
Allotted Time	40 minutes
Total Number of Questions	20
Number of Data Interpretation Questions	10
Number of Logical Reasoning Questions	10
Total Marks	60
Type of Questions	MCQs (15 questions); Non-MCQs (5 questions)
Marks Awarded for Each Correct Answer	+ 3
Negative Marks for Each Wrong Answer	-1
Difficulty Level of Questions	Moderate to Difficult

How to Prepare for CAT Data Interpretation?

• Work to improve your ability to comprehend voluminous data.
• Regularly solve DI sets that require reasoning skills.
• Have a good understanding of the DI sets by answering as many questions as possible well in advance.
• Do not leave out DI sets that seem big on data volume. More data does not automatically mean a difficult set.
• Do not try to solve all the problems at once. Try to answer a bulk of easy questions and a few difficult ones at a time.
• Most importantly, practice as many DI problems as you can.

CAT Data Interpretation Important Topics

Topic	Description
Tables and Charts	Comparison of data for various years and ages
Graph, Bar diagram	Data analysis, comparison of various years, groups, and classes
Tables, Pie chart	Decoding and determining the data of missing period, taking clues, and interpreting the missing links
Graphs, Charts	Data analysis and finding conclusions, making future projections

Various MBA entrance exams have different way of setting questions in DILR:

• NMAT prefers independent LR questions which, although not very difficult to solve, are time consuming considering the format of exam
• MAH CET, apart from asking normal LR questions, asks unusual number of visual reasoning questions which are a rarity in other examinations
• XAT has a section of Decision Making. Generally 50 per cent share of this section is made of LR questions
• CMAT asks independent problems which are time consuming in nature, if not difficult
• IIFT creates a mix of sets and independent questions

DILR for CAT: Scores and Level of Difficulty Over the Years

The section of DILR for CAT has seen many changes across the years. Here is an overview of the past few years:

• CAT 2022 DILR had a slight change in the exam pattern. The DILR section was divided into 4 sets with 5 questions, unlike CAT 2021’s DILR section.
• CAT 2021 DILR difficulty level was moderate with 20 questions. The section had 2 sets comprising 4 questions each and 2 sets comprising 6 questions each.
• CAT 2020 DILR difficulty level was moderate with 24 questions.
• CAT 2019 DILR was a little easier than the 2018 CAT DILR with 32 questions in total.
• CAT 2018 DILR difficulty level was moderate with 32 questions.
• CAT 2017 DILR was more difficult than the 2016 CAT DILR with 32 questions.

Best Books for DILR Preparation for CAT

If you are planning on preparing for the CAT exam by yourself. Here are some books that can help you in preparing for this section-

• How to Prepare for Data Interpretation for CAT – Arun Sharma
• Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation for CAT – Nishit Sinha

Conclusion

DILR for CAT is as important as the other sections of the CAT Exam. DILR preparation for CAT also makes an impact on the candidate’s selections due to the sectional cut-off announcement by IIMs for Shortlisting Candidates. It’s a difficult and time-consuming section that results in low scores for candidates. So prepare for the section and develop a plan that works for you.