CAT Topper Ashna's 98.48 Percentile Strategy: A Non-Engineer's Plan for VARC, Quant and DILR

 

CATKing is a Mumbai-based MBA entrance exam coaching company founded by Sumit Singh, offering preparation for CAT, XAT, NMAT, SNAP, CET, GMAT, and GRE through online and offline classes. Can a non-engineer in the middle of a hectic college schedule score 98 percentile in CAT? Ashna did. A general non-engineer female and a final-year IPM student, she scored 98.48 percentile, and she shared her strategy with Sumit Singh in a live session. CAT 2026 is on November 29, 2026. Here is how she prepared for DILR, Quant and VARC and how she found time.

Who Is Ashna and What Did She Score in CAT?

 

Sumit Singh pointed out that her DILR was her highest section, and links it to the idea of taking one section to the moon. Read more in our 5 CAT topper mantras.

How Did Ashna Score 98 Percentile in DILR?

Ashna started her self-study in November, a year before the exam. She attempted a previous-year paper and could not solve even one set. Then she followed these steps.

Step 1: Why did she start with Sudokus?

She learned somewhere that she should start with Sudokus. For about 4 months she solved Sudokus diligently, at any time of the day. In her words, you would find her on her phone doing the same thing every day.

Step 2: Which practice ladder did she follow?

• LOD 1: she began with the LOD 1 book.

• LOD 2: then moved to LOD 2.

• Previous-year papers: she then solved previous-year papers, which you can get through the portal. They let you gauge where you actually stand, because the actual difficulty is different.

Step 3: What happened in the exam?

Ashna solved three sets in the exam, in 40 minutes. That placed her in the top 2% of the country. Read more in our last minute DILR guide.

How Did a Non-Engineer Score 96 Percentile in Quant?

Arithmetic was her strong area, and she managed Arithmetic and Algebra well. Where she lacked was higher-level Algebra and Modern Maths, such as Permutation and Combination and Probability, and higher-level Mixtures.

 

• Weightage: CATKing's Quant faculty told her about the weightage of the different parts in the question paper, and she realised Modern Maths is not that important. The major part is Arithmetic and Algebra.

• Focus on what will come: it is also her strength, so she put her effort there.

• From scratch: she solved everything from the e-books on the portal from scratch.

• Faculty approach: she watched how the faculty solved a question and solved it the same way, which helped her get the hang of doing a particular question in a particular way.

See our CAT 2026 Quant plan for non-engineers for more.

How Did Ashna Prepare for VARC?

How did she use Aeon essays and vocabulary?

Ashna had prepared for IPMAT, and her Verbal was weak, so she gave it special focus so as not to fall behind.

• Aeon essays: she read them between classes, whenever she got time.

• Verbal Wednesdays and Verbal Fridays: she attended these live sessions and diligently noted down the 10 words Sumit Singh gives at the start of each session.

• Previous years: she practised previous-year questions.

She also said that by October and November, there is a voice behind you whenever you read a question. It tells you not to go for specific words and not to go by matching everything. It gets stored once you hear it twice a week. Read our guide on how to solve Aeon essays.

What was her RC routine?

• Volume: she started with one RC a day. After 3 to 4 months she did two RCs every day, with three to four Verbal Ability questions.

• Question first: she read the questions first, so that when she got to the passage, it was easier to navigate. She read the question first and then navigated.

How Did Ashna Balance CAT Preparation with College?

Her college was hectic, with two exams a day, consecutively. She found it tough at first, but she got the hang of it. She was still in her academic block, with class at 9:30, so she had to find the 25th hour of the day. She got two to three hours, and divided everything from her college academics to CAT in that time.

 

Which CATKing Resources Worked for Ashna?

The dashboard e-books worked very well for her, because her class schedule always clashed with the live classes. She watched the recordings late at night, but it was majorly the e-books. She calls the dashboard material more than enough, if you are able to do it diligently. She also found the shortcut sessions and the previous-year question sessions helpful for DILR.

What Were Ashna's Interview Experiences?

• IIM Rohtak: very lenient and welcoming people.

• IIFT: a little grilling. The panel did not ask any standard question, such as why MBA, or even an introduction. They started directly with international business: why international business, and then how you raise funds. It was very practical.

• Her takeaway: you expect something and end up getting something completely different.

Ashna's Strategy: Quick-Reference

 

What Should CAT 2026 Aspirants Do Now?

• If DILR scares you: begin with Sudokus and then move to LOD 1 and LOD 2 practice.

• In Quant: build Arithmetic and Algebra first, and keep Modern Maths to the basics.

• In RC: read the questions before the passage.

• Every day: read an Aeon essay and note down new words.

• Find your 25th hour: divide two to three hours around your schedule.

• Stay on track: join CATKing's mentor-led preparation, including the dashboard e-books and recordings.

Related reading: CAT 99.23 percentile topper strategy for a non-engineer and CAT 2026 last 30 days checklist.

Frequently Asked Questions About Ashna's CAT Strategy

What was Ashna's CAT percentile?

Ashna scored 98.48 percentile overall. Her sectional percentiles were about 94 in VARC, 96 in Quant and 98 in DILR. She said she did not remember them exactly.

Which calls did Ashna receive?

She had calls from IIM Lucknow, IIM Indore, IIM Mumbai and IIM Shillong, and she has been through interviews at IIM Rohtak and IIFT.

Can a non-engineer score 96 percentile in CAT Quant?

Yes. Ashna, a non-engineer, did it by working Arithmetic and Algebra up to LOD 2 and LOD 3, and covering Modern Maths, such as Permutation and Combination and Probability, only up to LOD 1.

How did Ashna prepare for DILR?

She started self-study in November. In her first previous-year paper she could not solve even one set. She then did Sudokus for about 4 months, moved to LOD 1, LOD 2 and previous-year papers from the portal, and solved three sets in the exam in 40 minutes.

How does Sudoku help in CAT DILR preparation?

Ashna started with Sudokus after learning that they are a good first step. She solved them for about 4 months at any time of the day before moving on to LOD practice questions.

What is the question-first RC strategy?

Ashna read the questions before the passage, so that when she got to the passage it was easier to navigate. She read the questions first and then navigated.

How many RCs did Ashna solve every day?

She started with one RC a day. After 3 to 4 months she did two RCs every day, along with three to four Verbal Ability questions.

How did Ashna improve her vocabulary?

She attended the Verbal Wednesdays and Verbal Fridays sessions and diligently noted down the 10 words given at the start of each session. She also read Aeon essays and practised previous-year questions.

How did Ashna prepare for CAT along with college?

She found the 25th hour of the day, getting two to three hours daily. She gave 20 to 30 minutes to Aeon, 1 to 2 hours to the class and the rest to practising Quant or DILR. Saturdays were for Quant, and DILR was done on weekends.

Which CATKing resources did Ashna use?

The dashboard e-books and recordings. Her class schedule clashed with the live classes, so she watched recordings late at night, and the e-books were her main resource. She calls the dashboard material more than enough if you do it diligently.

What was her IIFT interview like?

A little grilling. The panel did not ask standard questions such as why MBA, or even an introduction. They started directly with international business: why international business, and then how you raise funds. It was very practical.