Cracking CAT isn’t just about intelligence, it’s about going above and beyond intelligence. The rewards of an IIM seat come at the cost of hard work, discipline, determination, and relentless consistency, traits not everyone can sustain. For a college student targeting CAT 2025 or 2026, time management becomes the game changer. While many get distracted by parties, trips, or even just college exams, a rare few still manage to score 99+ percentile.
How do they do it? By mastering the art of balance, juggling college, CAT prep, and life without dropping the ball. They stay consistent, focused, and cut out distractions.
If you’re a college student dreaming of a top B school, you don’t just need motivation—you need a daily routine. Here’s the exact schedule followed by iQuanta CAT toppers who cracked 99+ percentile while excelling in college too.
Daily Schedule of a College Student Who’s Just Preparing for CAT
Before you build your ideal CAT routine, you must know what not to do. Sometimes, it’s the smallest distractions—memes, hangouts, casual delays—that quietly steal your CAT dream. We’re not here to offend, but to show why 90% of college students don’t crack CAT. If your routine looks like this, it’s time to choose: aim for 99+ percentile or risk wasting another year.
A Day in the Life of Bunty: The “Just Preparing” CAT Aspirant
Bunty wakes up an hour before class, scrolls through reels while eating, and ends up late to his lecture. He misses key lessons but doesn’t mind, there’s meme talk with friends.
He manages to focus in one or two lectures, but just before lunch, plans change. A friend invites him to explore a “hidden gem” in the city. Lectures skipped, fun ensues.
Evening arrives. Bunty returns home, happy but tired. Another friend calls leads to an hour of chit-chat. After dinner, he watches his favorite show. Around 11 PM, reality hits—CAT prep. He watches one concept video, then sleeps, planning to “do more” on the weekend.
Conclusion: Bunty’s daily prep? Barely an hour. Unless he’s a prodigy, this pattern won’t get him to 99+ percentile. If this feels familiar, it’s time for a reset.
Daily Schedule of a College Student Determined to Crack 99+ Percentile in CAT 2025
Munna, a student determined to crack CAT with a 99+ percentile. Inspired by his seniors in IIMs, he believed he could do it too. The initial days were tough, but on his seniors’ advice, Munna joined the iQuanta Facebook group, where aspirants shared tips, resources, and motivation. After several discussions with peers about the challenges in understanding LRDI, reading RCs, and solving Quant questions, many aspirants suggested that he join the iQuanta CAT 2025 course. They offer live and recorded classes, strategy videos, doubt-solving secret groups, quality questions, CAT prep books, and a dedicated online community of aspirants aiming for 99+ percentiles.
Encouraged by their advice, Munna enrolled in the course and gained access to the resources he needed. Realizing the value of this opportunity, he decided to cut a few distractions for now in pursuit of a bigger reward later. His dream and determination to secure a seat in his dream B-school grew stronger.
Then, he reset his routine. Munna woke up early, started with daily RC passages from iQuanta’s secret group, and tackled his weak area, Quants, for an hour. After breakfast, he attended college lectures on time. Post classes at 2 PM, he grabbed lunch and then practiced LRDI sets in the quiet college library.
At 4 PM, he headed home, accepted a casual hangout invite as a reward for his progress, then revised topics before his 7 PM iQuanta concept class. After dinner and family time, Munna joined the 10 PM iQuanta application class, attempting CAT-level timed questions with peers, simulating exam pressure.
The result? No unnecessary delays, no wasted time. Munna balanced prep, college, and life, staying consistent and distraction-free — making one step closer to his 99+ goal.
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The Ultimate Daily Schedule to score 99+ percentile in CAT as a College Student
Observe your daily routine. Be mindful of where you’re spending your time throughout the day. Do this for two days. After that, take out a sheet of paper and note down your actual daily routine. Then, keep your smartphone aside and sit quietly for an hour, thinking about how you can better manage your time for studies.
For example, if your college classes start at 9 AM and you have an hour-long commute, plan to wake up around 6 AM. Use that time to read a few RC passages, solve them, and analyze your performance. If you genuinely want to dedicate time for study, list down all the distractions you usually engage in on the back of the same paper. Now, mark every distraction you believe you can cut down on, and make a firm decision to stick with it. For instance, you might choose to hang out with your friends for an hour instead of scrolling Instagram for the same amount of time.
Once you’ve done this, set a deadline for your weekly goals. Deadlines create a sense of urgency and help suppress unnecessary distractions because your focus stays fixed on your bigger goal — scoring a 99+ percentile in CAT.
Now, the only thing left is execution. The first week may feel exhausting — no parties, no random fun. The second week might feel tiring too, filled with constant practice and little rest. But by the third week, you’ll start feeling lighter and satisfied with your progress. You’ll also become more comfortable managing your time and studies without any major problems.
What should your daily routine look like?
This is a genuine question many aspirants ask. But the truth is, no one has a perfect master plan for you. You have to figure out how to fit CAT preparation into your own 24 hours. No one can tell you exactly what to do, because your daily routine is different from every other CAT aspirant out there.
The approach is simple. Take a sheet of paper and follow the steps mentioned above.
This isn’t clickbait, but sincere advice from 500+ iQuanta CAT toppers who’ve proved it. Their daily routines were different, their schedules unique, but one thing stayed constant — their commitment to CAT prep and the hunger to hit that 99+ percentile. And that made all the difference.
