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Saturday, March 14, 2015

MHCET First Day Analysis

The MHCET began all over the country today and while the exam has always been easy, this was probably easier than the earlier versions as well. There were several glitches - technical & otherwise- the biggest being the exam having only 4 options when the brochure of MHCET as well as the instruction sheet handed out before the exam clearly mentioned 5 options (should not affect a candidate much though). 

The 200 question exam is not divided by section but an approximate break-up of questions is provided below. 

Logical Reasoning: 85
Quant & DI: 55
Verbal Ability: 60


Detailed Break-up:-



Cut-Offs:- (these are rough estimates only and do not use these as targets)

The paper was definitely quite easy with only a handful of questions that could be termed as moderate-difficult. The English section, especially, was very easy.
Given that and the increased competition with several serious candidates attempting this (for JBIMS), we expect the top score to be possibly even top 170 (if the errors are suitably accounted for). The top score last year was 158.

Percentile-Score (these are estimates only and do not use these as targets)

99.99%ile - 177

99%ile - 147
95%ile - 128
90%ile -  116

Glitches during the exam:

The DTE for some reason has moved to Sify as the exam provider while TCS conducted it last year. They probably changed the vendor very late in the cycle which possibly might have driven the delayed applications as well. The hurried nature of the having a new provider conducting the exam showed in the sub-optimal exam experience that most people encountered. There were several errors in the questions (if you find yourself facing one, just attempt it and move on. No point asking the invigilator as he does not know anything) .

Most visual reasoning images required large amounts of horizontal scrolling and many questions had some portion of the text cut-off (if you face this on 15th, use the "Question Paper" option that previews all questions and refer to the specific question).

The interface itself was poor and difficult to navigate. It takes 3 seconds to move from one question to the next. You are starting with 140 minutes!!
While we have not been big fans of the TCS interface, Sify made TCS's interface look like a work of art.
In our center, the exam start was delayed by more than 30 minutes with 3-4 students having to switch computers 5 minutes into the exam.
It is also unclear why the switch was made given TCS has had a great track record of conducting exams well.

All in all, we hope the DTE fixes the issues for 2016!

Thursday, March 12, 2015

MHCET: Last Minute Tips

The MHCET marks the last major MBA exam of the 2014-15 season. With less than 48 hours to go, here are a few tips to help you optimize performance on test day. 

Before the exam

  • Do not practice or study the night before or the on the day of the exam. Keep you mind fresh and active to help you stay focused for 150 minutes.
  • Ensure you get a good night's sleep (at least 8 hours) before your exam. Lack of adequate sleep can render the mind significantly slower especially when speed is the key during the MHCET.
  • Reach the center well in time to avoid any nervous energy and stress creeping in. Stress can further reduce your performance in a time sensitive test such as the MHCET. Carry your Admit Card, Original Photo ID Proof and a pen. 
  • Get used to the MHCET format. If you have not given the free mock test, click here to take the free test and familiarize yourself with the pattern and type of questions. Click here to take the free mock MHCET. 
During the exam
  • Keep the difficult and time consuming questions for the end. Build confidence by attempting the easy ones first. The confidence will create a positive momentum for you to do well over the 150 minutes. 
  • Visual reasoning questions (there will possibly be 25-30 of them) should be ideally be kept for the last as these are typically more time consuming than the rest. There will be sufficient easy questions in the MHCET for you to locate and attempt during the first half of the test. However, if you have been solving it early and are comfortable with it, go ahead and use what works for you on these type of questions. 
  • Attempt all 200 questions. Remember there is no negative marking. Hence by following the two suggestions above, if you find yourself short on time, then you only have to take a guess on the difficult/time consuming ones and not the easy ones. 

Good luck with the MHCET!

Tuesday, March 10, 2015

CAT Study Planner & Preparation Schedule


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2) What is the syllabus for CAT?
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Oliveboard's innovative & dynamic Study Planner creates a customized preparation schedule taking into account the syllabus and the important topics. And what's more it keeps track of your progress all the way up to the end of your preparation.

To generate your customized Study Plan in less than 5 seconds, click here [You will need to be logged in to save the plan] 

Thursday, February 26, 2015

Top MH CET Colleges


MHCET or MAHCET is the last MBA exam of the season. The exam is conducted by the DTE for MBA admission into Maharashtra colleges. The following is a list of the top ranked MBA colleges that accept the MHCET/MAH-CET scores.

Click here to prepare for MHCET 2015



College City
Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies Mumbai
SIMSREE Mumbai
K. J. Somaiya Institute of Management Studies & Research Mumbai
Prin. L. N. Welingkar IMDR Mumbai
S.I.E.S. College of Management Studies Navi Mumbai
N.L. Dalmia Institute of Management Studies  & Research Mumbai
Department of Management Sciences (PUMBA) Pune
MET's Institute of Management Mumbai
ITM Navi Mumbai
Bombay St. Xavier College Soc.'s Xavier Institute of Management & Research Mumbai
Chetana's Ramprasad Khandelwal Institute of Management & Research Mumbai
Indian Education Society's Management College & Research Centre Mumbai
Lala Lajpatrai Institute of Management Mumbai
Thakur Institute of Management Studies & Research Mumbai
VES Institute of Management Studies & Research Mumbai
Rizvi Institute of Management Studies & Research Mumbai
St. Francis Institute of Management & Research Mumbai
Alkesh Dinesh Modi Institute for Financial & Management Studies Mumbai
 Atharva Institute of Management Studies Mumbai
Bharti Vidyapeeth's Institute of Management Studies & Research Navi Mumbai
Maratha Mandir's Babasaheb Gawde Institute of Management Studies Mumbai
Vidyalankar College of Engineering Mumbai

Wednesday, February 18, 2015

MHCET MBA List of Test Centers for 2015

Online registration for MHCET MBA/ MAHCET MBA has started today. You can register for the CET test by visiting http://www.dtemaharashtra.gov.in/mba2015/StaticPages/HomePage.aspx

This year, the exam will be conducted across 61 locations. 12 of these locations are outside of Maharashtra state to help students take the exam across India.

The complete list of 12 centers for MHCET outside Maharashtra are :

CenterState
AhmedabadGujarat
BangaloreKarnatakka
BhopalMadhaya Pradesh
DelhiDelhi
JaipurRajasthan
KolkataWest Bengal
LucknowUttar Pradesh
PanajiGoa
PatnaBihar
RaipurChattisgarh
RanchiJharkhand
SrinagarJ&K


The 49 centers for the MHCET in Maharashtra are:
  1. Ahmednagar
  2. Akola
  3. Amravati
  4. Aurangabad
  5. Beed
  6. Bhandara
  7. Bhusaval
  8. Buldhana
  9. Chandrapur
  10. Dhule
  11. Gadchiroli
  12. Gondia
  13. Hingoli
  14. Jalgaon
  15. Jalna
  16. Karad
  17. Kolhapur
  18. Latur
  19. Lonavala
  20. Miraj
  21. Mumbai Central
  22. Mumbai Western
  23. Mumbai-Dombivali
  24. Mumbai-Harbour
  25. Mumbai-Kalyan
  26. Nagpur
  27. Nanded
  28. Nandurbar
  29. Nashik
  30. Navi Mumbai-Kamothe
  31. Navi Mumbai-Kopar Khairane
  32. Parbhani
  33. Pardharpur
  34. Pune Ambegaon
  35. Pune Narhe
  36. Pune Vadgaon
  37. Pune Warje
  38. Pune-Erandwane
  39. Pune-Kondhwa
  40. Ratnagiri
  41. Sangamner
  42. Sangli
  43. Satara
  44. Sindhudurg
  45. Solapur
  46. Thane-Ghorbunder
  47. Wardha
  48. Washim
  49. Yavatmal
Oliveboard offers 10 mocks to prepare for MHCET. Click here to prepare for MHCET 2015 Online now.

Monday, February 16, 2015

Last minute Tips for CMAT Preparation

The CMAT test starts in less than 72 hours. This post will help you with a few last minute tips to help you ace the CMAT 2015 exam.

1. Time Management.

CMAT has 100 questions to be solved in 180 minutes(3 hours). 25 questions of GK should take you no more than 10-15 minutes to answer.

This leaves you with 165 minutes for 75 questions, more than 2 minutes per question. Make sure you read each and every question carefully, analyse it and solve it.

Remember, CMAT is not a speed test. Dont panic at any time if you are taking a long time to solve a single question.

2. Revise and Practice Important Topics of RCs (Short) & Analytical Reasoning

Perhaps the single most important topic for the CMAT exam is RC (based on short passages) with 15 questions across 4-5 passages of 3 questions each (in Sept, there was 1 passage of 6 questions). Most questions are standard passage questions based on critical reasoning, tone, what the author agrees with or believes etc.

In the Logical Reasoning section, more than half the section is based on Analytical Reasoning topics of Arrangements - Linear & Circular, Selection & Matching etc.


3. Revise shortcut formulas for Quantitative Ability Section

Go through various shortcuts that will help you solve problems faster.
Go through the 3 pdfs Oliveboard has specially created to help you with these.

Speed Math Shortcuts Volume 1
Speed Math Shortcuts Volume 2
Speed Math Shortcuts Volume 3

4. Take a couple of Mock Tests

Take a couple of Mock Tests to help you with your last minute preparation. This will help you finalize your strategy as you take the CMAT test. Make sure you have figured out the order in which you want to attempt sections. Our advice has been to attempt your strongest section first as it gives confidence as you begin the exam, which you can carry forward through the 3 hour test.

5. Eat and Sleep well before the day of the exam.

Make sure you have slept well the day before the exam, and have had a good meal before the exam. A relaxed mind will definitely help you in perform to your complete potential in the CMAT.

Good Luck with your CMAT!

Click here to login to Oliveboard and practice for CMAT now.

Saturday, February 14, 2015

MHCET Registration Dates Announced

After weeks of uncertainty, the DTE has finally come out with the dates for registrations. Students can register for the MHCET from Feb 18th. Contrary to what many students feared, the exam dates have not been postponed and will be conducted, as scheduled, on March 14th & 15th.

Few things that have been confirmed by the DTE are (Complete pdf can be found here)

1. The exam will be conducted Online like last year in the same interface.
2. The pattern of the exam remains the same with 200 questions from Reasoning, Verbal Ability and Quantitative Aptitude to be attempted in 150 minutes (2 hours and 30 minutes).

The important dates for students to remember are captured in the table below:

Online Registration for MAH-CET Begins18-02-2015
Online Registration for MAH-CET Ends27-02-2015 at 5 PM
Late registration for MAH-MBA/MMS CET 201502-03-2015 up to 5 PM
Issue of Hall Tickets10-03-2015 onwards
Exam dates of MAH-CET14-03-2015 and 15-03-2015
Result Declration25-03-2015 at 5 PM

Please visit http://www.dtemaharashtra.gov.in/mba2015 for more information on filling up the application form.

Oliveboard offers 10 mocks to prepare for MHCET. Click here to prepare for MHCET 2015 Online now.