Does the MBA season come to an end after XAT/TISS-NET? No, besides CMAT and MH-CET, there is still one more exam that MBA aspirants can look at- PGDBA. Post Graduate Diploma in Business Analytics, alias PGDBA is a unique 2 year program offered in the field of Business Analytics in collaboration by IIM Calcutta, IIT Kharagpur and ISI Kolkata. This program is ideal for those seeking a career in the field of analytics. Candidates for this course are selected on the basis of PGDBA written Entrance Exam and PI. If you have written CAT, then clearing the PGDBA cut-off would mean an additional work of 30-40 days, as is the time period between the two entrance exams. The PGDBA Preparation strategy involves diving into the paper pattern which can be summarized as:
PGDBA Paper Pattern:
| Section |
No of Questions |
|---|---|
| Verbal Ability |
15 |
| Logical Reasoning |
5 |
| Data Interpretation & Data Visualization | 5 |
| Quantitative Aptitude |
25 |
With Quantitative Aptitude compromising 50% of the PGDBA paper, your focus should be on types of questions asked and related topics that dominate this section. By analyzing previous years PGDBA papers you would find that 12-13 questions are of the CAT level and CAT topics. That means, these 12-13 questions are based on concepts that you would have studied till class 10. Whereas, 10-12 questions would be from Higher Maths, i.e., based on class 11 & class 12 concepts of Mathematics.
Clearing the PGDBA 2020 Cut-offs
Given that the previous year cut-off for general category student appearing for PGDBA was 105 marks, for clearing PGDBA 2020 cut-off, and marking scheme remaining as +3/-1, you would need to attempt 40 questions with 37-38 correct attempts to be on the safe side for clearing PGDBA 2020 Cutoffs. Now, the question arises, which questions to attempt and which ones to leave out to clear the PGDBA 2020 Cut-offs? Recommended PGDBA Preparation strategy for each section can be summarized as:
PGDBA Quantitative Aptitude:
- Attempt 12-13 questions that are of CAT level or those that you have covered till class 10.
- As 10-12 questions would be from Higher Maths, you cannot leave these questions. Pick selective topics from Higher Maths such as: Calculus, Determinates & Matrices, Application of Derivatives.
- Focus on practice and revision of these topics only for the next 30 days.
- Should target to attempt 18-20 questions with 100% accuracy in this section
PGDBA Verbal Ability:
- 10 questions in Verbal Ability are from RCs. The level of difficulty of these RCs would be somewhere between the IIFT and SNAP level.
- 5 questions would be from Verbal Logic. Para-jumbles, Word Usage etc.
- You should target to attempt all 15 questions with atleast 85% accuracy
PGDBA LR & DI:
- 2 sets of 5 question each. 1 set from LR and 1 set from DI. You should target to attempt all questions with 100% accuracy
- The level of difficulty of these questions would be somewhat similar to as seen in IIFT and SNAP
Thus, for those who have sincerely prepared for CAT/XAT, PGDBA is a lucrative career option in the field of Business Analytics. However, with only 60 seats in the course, this becomes a highly competitive exam. Thus the best way to ensure that you crack this exam is to utilize these 30-40 days to the maximum by practicing topics from Higher Maths, Solving Previous Year PGDBA Papers, Writing PGDBA Mocks. You can also consider enrolling yourselves in online classes or offline classes to cover the important PGDBA topics.
If you are eligible for PGDBA and had prepared well for CAT, you should consider writing this exam. It is a highly reputable course with promising future in the field of Business Analytics.
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All the Best
Team CL