As conversations around CAT 2025 increasingly focus on evolving paper patterns and the rising share of non-engineers among top percentile scorers, a lesser-known group continues to enter CAT examination centres each year. They arrive not as aspirants, but as educators.
Across India’s CAT coaching landscape, several faculty members who prepare thousands of candidates annually still register for and take the Common Admission Test themselves. Their objective is not to secure admission to the IIMs or compete for MBA seats. Instead, the exam functions as a first-hand diagnostic tool—helping them understand shifting trends, evaluate teaching methods, and experience the same pressures their students face.
“Would you eat at a restaurant where the chef has never tasted the food?” asks Hriday GS, a CAT educator and Director (Academics) at AnkGanit Solutions Pvt Ltd, who has been teaching for the exam for nearly a decade. “In the same way, we can guide students on CAT and test-taking only if we go through the process ourselves.”
Now 39, Hriday has appeared for the CAT 12 times since he began teaching in 2015. According to him, one of his colleagues has taken the exam 21 times. The motivation, he explains, has little to do with scores. It is about staying close to the exam—understanding its pressure, pacing, and the overall student experience.
Teaching CAT from the Inside
Over the years, CAT has seen subtle yet meaningful changes—from the way questions are framed to section-wise difficulty levels, time management demands, and occasional surprise elements. While mock tests and post-exam analyses offer valuable insights, many educators believe they cannot fully replicate the experience of the actual exam.
“Each year, there are minor shifts that don’t always show up clearly in memory-based analysis,” says a senior CAT faculty member who has been writing the exam for over a decade. “The countdown clock, question sequencing, and mental fatigue are things you truly grasp only inside the exam hall.”
By appearing for CAT themselves, educators say they are better positioned to fine-tune preparation strategies, particularly for students from non-engineering and humanities backgrounds, who often approach the exam differently from traditional engineering candidates.
CAT as a Reality Check
The increasing presence of non-engineers among top CAT percentilers has also prompted faculty members to re-examine long-standing assumptions about aptitude, speed, and strategy. For many educators, their own performance in the exam serves as a reality check—helping them test whether commonly accepted preparation narratives still hold true in an evolving CAT landscape.
