New Delhi: In a bid to apprise the first timers with some guidance for the online Common Admission Test (CAT), the Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) have taken an initiative to introduce a 'Practical Guide to the CAT 2009' for their benefit.

The guide can be downloaded from the official CAT website in addition to the YouTube video which is available by CLICKING HERE.

The guide also prepares the students to overcome the anxiety related to the exams by offering some helpful tips. It asks the student to take a tutorial prior to attempting the test.

The page will demonstrate the key areas like question number, on-screen timer, Next-Previous-Review mark, how to attempt or review questions, highlighting text for easy reference with the help of a mouse which will navigate all around the screen.

The top right corner will comprise of an on-screen timer while the left corner of the screen will show the question number.

The experts suggest the students to keep a tab on the timer and devote their time judiciously for the questions. The test duration is of two hours and fifteen minutes and the timer will show the time remaining for the test.

All the test centres have been carefully selected, keeping in mind the Prometric's standard for computer hardware and software, generators and power supply requirements. Proctor will monitor the security and identity checks and an audio-video will be recorded.

The online drill has an option to 'mark' certain questions which the student is unsure of. Marking the questions will turn their colour into red and the student can get back to the question later on by 'unmarking' it.

The test is scheduled to be conducted in two sessions, the first session's reporting time is 8:30 a.m. in which the exam commences at 10 in the morning and the second session's reporting time is 1:30 p.m. where the exam commences at 3:30 p.m.

The results of CAT will be available on the website from January 22, 2010 along with those shortlisted for the interview. The candidates are required to print a copy of their score card for future reference.