The VARC section in CAT is not just only about knowing English language – it’s much more about mastering comprehension, decoding logic, critical reasoning and making smart choices under pressure and time constraints. Over the years, the CAT VARC section has evolved significantly not just in terms of difficulty and question types but also in the level of inference, time management and logic it demands from exam takers.
Let’s know more on How to Improve and fix VARC for CAT. Let’s understand the appropriate strategies, reading habit, and art of question selection.
CAT VARC Exam Pattern
The table below outlines the latest exam pattern for the VARC section of CAT exam, highlighting most important details:
| PARTICULARS | DETAILS |
|---|---|
|
Total Number of Questions
|
24
|
|
Time Duration
|
40 Minutes
|
|
No. of MCQs
|
21
|
|
No. of TITA
|
3
|
|
No. of RCs
|
4 Passages
|
Fix VARC – Diagnose the Problematic Area Ones
- Facing trouble in Reading Comprehension due to low accuracy?
- Poor time management in solving verbal ability?
- Vocabulary and grammar related issues?
- Poor reading and retention capacity?
Important topics Non-Negotiable for Mastering Verbal Ability (VA) in CAT By Meenakshi Upadhyay
Meenakshi Upadhyay is a distinguished and renewed author, communication expert and an educator known for her well-known contributions to students for competitive examinations. Being and alumna of IIM Bangalore, as well as having over 15 years of experience in training and teaching students, she has a great expertise in training students in Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension for exams like CAT, XAT, OMETS, UGC NET etc.
VARC Section Overview
- Total questions in VARC section: 24
- RC (Reading Comprehension): 16 Questions
- Verbal Ability: 8 Questions
- RC is non-negotiable- comprises 60-70% of the sections
Non-Negotiable VA Topics
Para Jumbles
- The jumbled sentences need to be arranged in a logical manner
- TITA format (Type in the Answer) is observed
- This tests the coherence, connecters, and flow of the paragraph’s
Odd Sentence Out (Irrelevant Statement) TITA type
- Candidates need to identify the outliner – One sentence that fit with the central theme
- Requires idea recognition skills and logical thinking to match the flow
Paragraph Summary
- Candidates must choose the appropriate summary from the given choices
- This tests comprehension, critical and logical reasoning
- Eliminate the most unrelated options and target identifying the main idea
Important Note
Some question type like the Para jumbles may temporarily disappear for a year or two or few and may suddenly reappear again. This may happen with any of the topics. So, it is advised not to ignore any topic and understand the them well. Preparation of these topics won’t go in vain as this will help you to perform well in OMETS also.
Also read, CAT Preparation Tips for VARC 2025
VARC Question Selection Strategy by Meenakshi Upadhyay
VARC Question selection strategy by Meenakshi Upadhyay prioritize accuracy by attempting those RC’s which are easier and comfortable and to attempt those VA questions to maximize accuracy and score.
Reading Comprehension Strategy
- Attempt the one which you feel easy to comprehend or choose your strongest topic/ topic of interest (Business/ Philosophy/ Science)
- Prioritize attempting factual/shirt RCs if you run out of time
- Avoid RCs with abstract language or extremely dense meaning if you lose the reading stamina or retention capacity.
Verbal Ability Strategy
- Odd-Man Out and Para Summary if done methodically tend to have much higher accuracy
- If para jumbles drop the level of your accuracy, skip them or leave it for last
Important Note
CAT does not demand you to answer each and every question. It gives you the space to think and attempt the questions with which you are comfortable with and attempt with accuracy.
Reading Habits for CAT Students- Step-Wise Guide by Meenakshi Upadhyay
Understand and analyse the nature of CAT RCs
- CAT does not test your knowledge or textbook grammar or school-style English literature
- RCs includes passage from different domains like Psychology, Philosophy, Science, History, Economics etc.
- CAT demands the candidates to interpret and decode the ideas and not just understanding sentences or words
- It completely okay, if you have missed out school-English lectures, you can still build it up in a much more effective way
Step-By-Step Guide for Beginners
- Refer to 5th to 9th class NCERT English books (download it as PDFs or study through books)
- This will help to build basic vocabulary, tone, sentence structure, etc.
- The books written for 14–15-year-old, they will feel highly encouraging and easy when you are 20+ and building you foundation
- This activity will help to erase fear and hesitation and eventually build confidence
Begin with Easy set of readings
- Read shirt articles, stories of your interest
- Make yourself comfortable with reading
- Make sure to build the ability to comprehend the sentences when you read
Level Up your reading
- Start reading much more advanced materials like editorials form The Hindu, Indian Express
- Editorial helps to build up skills to identify tone, reasoning inference, opinion, and facts
- Strat with the topics of you like (politics, sports, lifestyle, environment) to build interests
Explore Resources like Articles, Magazines, stories, Essays
- Explore and read form Aeon, The Atlantic, The Economists etc.
- Keep in mind the areas of your interest rather than choosing any random topic
Move to CAT Level Essays
- After being comfortable and habituated with reading and comprehension part,
- Gradually begun with CAT level RC questions after 1-2 months or religious reading
- Refer to previous year papers, mocks, practice sets
Important Point
- Do not aim to complete reading fast- focus more on understanding
- Do not translate the paragraphs- comprehend them in English only
Evolution of CAT VARC Section – Late 90s to Present by Meenakshi Upadhyay
Meenakshi Upadhyay point of view regarding CAT has shifted over the years from emphasizing grammar and vocabulary in the period of late 90s to now on reading comprehension based on main idea, inference skills, tone and understanding of the content in context.
Late 1990s – Early 2000s
Heavy focus on vocabulary and grammar
Questions included:
- Antonyms/ Synonyms
- Sentence Correction
- Sentence Completion
- Fill in the blanks
- Reading Comprehension exited but was not a major component
From 2025-2007 – The Shift Begins
- A gradual shift was observed from grammar and vocabulary
- Introduction and increasing the importance of:
- Paragraph Completion/ Fill in the blanks
- Para Jumbles
- Critical Reasoning Based Questions (inference/ Assumptions)
- Focus moved from word-level knowledge to paragraph level reasoning
From 2009 - 2011 – CAT goes online
- CAT became a computer-based exam
- Number of questions in the exam got reduced (total 60 questions)
- Focus much more RC and there was an increase in logical comprehension
- VARC became easier and less grammar focussed
- Grammar/ Vocabulary almost phased out
From 2012-2014: A stabilization was observed
- More emphasis on para-based reading and reading comprehension
- Vocabular – based questions and grammar removed
- RCs became more diverse in terms of topics (philosophy, Science, History, Psychology etc)
From 2015 Onwards – Modern CAT Format
- Around 24 questions in VARC, with 60-70% weightage to RCs
- 4-5 RC passages (16 questions)
- 6 questions in VA section (Odd Sentence Out, Para Summaries, Para Jumbles)
- Introduction of TITA type questions in VA
- RC became the main component testing tone, inference, and comprehension
Recent Years – 2019 – 2024
- VARC section of CAT has remained relatively constant
- Dominated by VA with TITA and Inference based RCs
- No direct grammar or vocabulary questions observed
- Emphasis more on logic over rote memory, speed, accuracy
Important Point to be Noted
It is very crucial for the aspirants to understand the exam pattern and type especially the VARC section, as it is highly unpredictable. A topic that consistently appear for a few years may suddenly be absent in another year, only to return the next. Therefore, candidates must develop a well-rounded understanding of all the topics appeared in the previous years to avoid any surprises on the exam day. Moreover, the efforts won’t go waste, as the preparation will be valuable for other management entrance tests (OMETS).
FAQs How to Improve and fix VARC for CAT
To fix VARC section of CAT most importantly read all the questions attentively and attempt those which you are comfortable with find easy. Since both the VA portion and RC portion demands different things, they should be considered as different entities while attempting, practicing and approaching the questions.
Yes, the VARC section of CAT is considered to be tough among all the other management entrance exams because it is much more based on inference-based questions rather than fact based found in OMETS like MAT or CMAT.
To increase speed in VARC section, develop habit if reading daily even if its just for 20-25 minutes. Most importantly do read considering it as a task, read what you love with full understanding. Be smart n solving RC qu3stions and practice more VA topics.
