CAT 2015 exam paper is quite known for the surprises it gave. However, it was in line with the sample paper given on the official CAT exam website. Held on November 29, 2015, CAT 2015 was conducted in two slots where more than 1.6 lakhs students appeared. The duration of each slot was increased by 10 minutes, making it a 180-minute test.
Following were the sections for the CAT 2015
| Sections | Questions |
| Quantitative Aptitude | 34 |
| Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning | 32 |
| Verbal and Reading Comprehension | 34 |
The candidates were allowed to use the basic on-screen calculator for the purpose of computation which served as an added advantage for the 2015 CAT applicants. On the other hand, the allotment of 60 minutes to answer the questions for each section without the option of swapping between the sections, was tough compared to previous CATs.
This post will provide you with a detailed analysis of the question paper along with important insights from the CAT 2015 paper.
Common admission test (CAT) 2015 paper analysis (slot 1)
Slot 1 exam was held on 29th November at 9:30 AM and slot 2 was at 12:30 PM.
Here is a detailed analysis of the CAT 2015 question paper pattern
| SECTION | QUESTIONS | NONÂ -MCQ QUESTIONS | LEVEL OF HARDNESS | GOOD ATTEMPTS |
| Verbal Ability and Reading comprehension | 34 | 10 | Â Easy | 27-28 |
| Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning | 32 | 8 | Difficult | 16 |
| Quantitative Ability | 34 | 15 | Moderate | 26-27 |
| Net total | 100 | 65+ |
CAT 2015 (section 1) – Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension Analysis
Difficulty Level – Easy to Moderately Difficult
Lengthy – Candidates with practice will have the advantage over other candidates.
The questions were dominated by Reading Comprehension questions as 24 out of 34 questions were from RC.
From the 5 RC passages, 4 were rather straightforward and 1 was complex.
The issues covered in RC passages are as follows:
- Economic inequality arising due to capitalism
- Ways of providing electricity to the world’s poor
- Ways in which young people can use the internet optimally
| Section | Topic | Questions |
| Reading Comprehension(24 Questions) | Reading Comprehension( All MCQ) | 24 |
| Verbal Ability
(10 Questions) |
Para jumble( all fill in the blanks) | 4 |
| Summary (All MCQs) | 3 | |
| Odd sentence out(All fill in the blanks) | 3 |
- In short, in the Verbal Ability Section, an attempt of 27-28 would be considered great and a correct attempt of 19-20 questions would ensure a 97 + percentile in this section.
CAT 2015 (Section 2) – Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning Analysis
- The Data Interpretation Section – one question which was based on set theory was difficult, two were moderate and one was easy.
- Lengthy – Demanded extensive attention in the allotted time.
- Logical Reasoning – moderate and could be solved with some practice.
| Section | Topic | No. of Questions |
| Data Interpretation | Line Chart (Quarters) – Easy | 4 |
| Table chart ( Plants industry ) – Moderate | 4 | |
| Table chart ( Time and work ) – Moderate – NON MCQ | 4 | |
| Set theory – Difficult | 4 | |
| Logical Reasoning | Arrangement- Sudoku set –Easy | 4 |
| Cube based set – Moderate | 4 | |
| Arrangement -9 children –Â Difficult- NON MCQ | 4 | |
| Arrangement – 5 Children- Moderate | 4 |
CAT 2015 (Section 3) – Quantitative Ability Analysis
- The Quantitative Ability Section – Total of 34 questions out of which 15 were of Non-MCQ type and the rest were MCQs.
- Tested – basically, the questions were framed in a way to test the basics and fundamental knowledge of the basics.
- One noticeable change was the absence of questions based on numbers in the paper.
There were some direct questions from BYJU’S study Materials, giving an added advantage to the students who had studied from the study materials and All India Mock Test series.
| Section | Topic | Questions |
| Quantitative Ability | Number System | 0 |
| Algebra | 14 | |
| Arithmetic | 10 | |
| Modern Math | 3 | |
| Trigonometry (Height & Distance) | 2 | |
| Geometry and Mensuration | 5 |
- In short, one can ensure a high percentile in this section if an attempt of 24- 27 questions has been made. The questions in this section were fairly easy.
Here is the list of questions from the Quantitative Aptitude section
- A circle having a diameter of 12 cm is cut by a chord of 6 cm, Find the area of the smaller arc?
- A rhombus has diagonals in the ratio of 4:3, Find the ratio of the side to the shorter diagonal?
- The number of ways of reaching the point (3,2) from (0,0) such that one can move only one step at a time either along the x-axis or along the y-axis are –
- The angles of depression subtended by a tower 10 m tall at the top and at the bottom of a tree are 45 degrees and 70 degrees respectively. Find the height of the tree.
- In a Class, 34 students failed in economics, 42 failed in physics, 28 failed in chemistry and 18 failed in exactly 3 topics. 88 students failed in exactly one topic. What is the number of students that failed in all three subjects?
- The area enclosed by the curve –
- |x| + |z| = Ö3
- Pipe A can fill a cistern in 4 hours while Pipe B can fill it in 3 hours. Pipe A is opened at 2 noon. At 3 pm, a drain pipe that can empty the tank is also opened. At 3 pm, Pipe B is also opened. Find the time at which the cistern will be completely filled.
- A flight starts from Bangalore at 7 am local time and reaches Dubai at 12:30 am local time. Another flight starts from Dubai at 3 pm local time and reaches Bangalore at 8:40 pm local time. Both flights travel at a constant speed of 800 km/hr. Find the distance between Bangalore and Dubai.
- There are 8 pieces of different values to be given to 4 people who secured 1st, 3rd and 4th ranks respectively. What is the number of ways in which these prizes could be distributed to the three people such that the 3rd prize winner gets a prize of higher value than the 3d prize winner and the 2nd prize winner gets a higher prize than the third?
Common admission test (CAT) 2015 paper analysis (slot 2)
CAT 2nd slot exam was held on 29th November between 2:30 PM and 5:30 PM across 650+ centres in India.
Here is a detailed analysis of the CAT 2015 question paper pattern – slot 2.
| SECTION | QUESTIONS | NONÂ -MCQ QUESTIONS | LEVEL OF HARDNESS | GOOD ATTEMPTS for a 98 percentile* |
| Verbal Ability and Reading comprehension | 34 | 10 | Very Easy | 27-28 |
| Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning | 32 | 8 | Hard | 16 |
| Quantitative Ability | 34 | 15 | Easy | 26-27 |
| Net total | 100 | 65+ |
*Assuming a 70% accuracy
CAT 2015 (section 1) – Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension Analysis
- This time the questions which appeared in the Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension sections were easy if compared to the CAT 2014 question paper.
- Like the previous slot, the question paper for this slot was Reading Comprehension dominated. 24 out of 34 questions were RC based. Here too, 4 passages were straightforward and 1 was complex.
The topics of the passages were mostly based on social issues, such as:
The upbringing of Congo writers and their history.
The water problems in Uttar Pradesh.
The Information and Communication Technology revolution.
The attire of women in the office.
The rising house prices resulted in the shifting from major cities to counties.
- In the Verbal Ability section, sub-sections like Para jumbles, Odd one out and Summary had Non-MCQ type questions, with no negative marking, making them easier to score in.
- One can easily score a 98+ percentile in this section if the candidate attempted 27-28 questions with 19-20 correct responses.
CAT 2015 (Section 2) – Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning Analysis
- In Data Interpretation Section, two sets out of four were easy. Since the other two sets involved lots of calculation, it made them extremely difficult to cope with the time allotted.
- The Logical Reasoning section was also easy but time taking. candidates who had enough practice could have easily solved the questions.
More than 16 and 20 attempts in this section should be considered as good and excellent.
| Section | Topic | No. of Questions |
| Data Interpretation | Line Chart (Names of People) – Easy | 4 |
| Table ( Cartridges ) – Moderate | 4 | |
| Table ( Assets ) – Difficult – NON MCQ | 4 | |
| Drugs ( Table ) – Difficult | 4 | |
| Logical Reasoning | Exam Scores – 5 student Scores – Easy | 4 |
| Project Management teams – Moderate | 4 | |
| Auction – Difficult- Non MCQ | 4 | |
| Scheduling – Professors, Courses – Difficult | 4 |
CAT 2015 (Section 3) – Quantitative Ability Analysis
This year the Quantitative Aptitude section consisted of a total of 34 questions. 15 questions were of Direct Answer type question.
- With clear observation, it could be seen that they were framed to test how good is the candidate in the foundation and basics.
- Students preparing from BYJU’S CAT Study Materials and taking the All India Mock Test Series had an extra edge over the questions as CAT 2015 consisted of questions that were predicted in the study materials.
| SECTION | TOPIC | QUESTIONS |
| Quantitative Ability | Number System | 3 |
| Algebra | 10 | |
| Arithmetic | 10 | |
| Modern Math | 3 | |
| Trigonometry (Height & Distance) | 1 | |
| Geometry and Mensuration | 7 |
Candidate having an attempt of 26-28 questions, with correct response of 19-20 questions will be considered great as that would ensure a high percentile in this section.
Some of the questions from the Quantitative Ability Section :
- Find the number of integral positive solutions for m in m=n where n can be any integer.
- In how many ways can you give 3 rupee coins and 7 rupee coins to make a sum of Rs 100?
- = = . What would be the value of  + =?
- PQ and RS are 2 parallel chords of a circle such that PQ = 8 cm & RS = 6 cm. If the chords are on the opposite sides of the centre and the distance between them is 4 cm. find the radius of the circle.
- In the figure, MNOP is a square of area 2. Q and R are the mid-points of MN and NO. What is the ratio of the area of the square to that of the triangle PQR?
Area of rectangle = Area of the square and the perimeter of rectangle = 3(Perimeter of the square). Find the ratio of the longest side of the rectangle to the side of the square.
- Ram cut a cake in the ratio 1:3:5 and gave the biggest of the pieces to Shyam and Shyam redistributed his share in the ratio 1:1:3 and Shyam gave the smallest piece to Jadu. Jadu weighed his share and it turned out to be 10 gms. What was the weight of the initial cake?
- In a class of 100 students, 50 failed in Mathematics, 43 failed in Physics, 20 failed in Biology, 22 failed in exactly 3 subjects and only 1 student passed in all the subjects, the number of students who failed in all subjects is?
- In a circle with centre (0,0) and the point (P,Q) lying on the circle which of the following would hold true
- P + Q > 1
- P3 + Q3 > 1
- P4 + Q4 > 1
- P6 + Q6 > 1
Stay tuned to BYJU’S for the latest CAT exam updates,  also get CAT exam study materials and interactive videos for complete CAT exam preparation. Also, check the CAT question paper to understand the level and pattern of the questions.
