How the plan changes with the days you have
Every plan uses the same four phases. The planner sizes them to your date. With less than a month, it drops the Build phase and spends the time on the highest-value topics, mocks and revision.
| Days left | Build | Strengthen | Convert | Perform |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30 days | Skipped | 6 days | 12 days | 12 days |
| 45 days | 7 days | 11 days | 14 days | 13 days |
| 60 days | 15 days | 15 days | 15 days | 15 days |
| 90 days | 23 days | 23 days | 23 days | 21 days |
| 120 days | 42 days | 36 days | 24 days | 18 days |
| 180 days | 63 days | 54 days | 36 days | 27 days |
How many hours a day you need
| Your situation | Hours a day | Suggested split |
|---|---|---|
| Full-time preparation | 8 to 10 | QA 3 · DILR 2.5 · VARC 2.5 · revision 1 |
| College student | 5 to 6 | QA 2 · DILR 1.5 · VARC 1.5 |
| Working full time | About 4 on weekdays | Topics on weekdays, a full mock on the weekend |
How to use the plan
The plan has four phases. Build covers the chapters that appear in every paper. Strengthen adds geometry, number system and harder sets. Convert is mocks and repair. Perform is revision and mocks at your slot time. With fewer days, the early phases shrink and the last two stay.
A mock needs about four hours with a first look at the answers. If your weekdays are shorter than that, the planner moves mocks to your longer days. The day after every mock is for analysis, because the analysis is where the marks come from.
The plan tells you what to study each day. It does not teach the topic. For that you need notes, a question bank and mock tests of your choice.
CAT has 68 questions in 120 minutes: VARC, DILR and QA, 40 minutes each, in a fixed order. The pattern has been stable for the last two papers. Check iimcat.ac.in for the official notice and your exam date.
