If you’re an HSC candidate and you're wondering whether you should prepare for IBA, here are my two cents on what you can do right now.

You should first evaluate your current situation and figure out the best choices you have. Play by your strengths so that you have the best chance of getting a positive outcome out of the admission season. For that, you need to research a bit about what units there are and which ones align with what you want to do in your life. And also, which ones you’ll realistically have a good chance of getting into.

If you’re considering IBA preparation, start by learning about IBA itself. Use Google, YouTube, and social media. Go to the alumni tab of “Institute of Business Administration, University of Dhaka” on LinkedIn and see what IBA graduates are doing with their lives. If that life fits you, then check whether you’ll be able to get in.

You might be wondering whether you should start now or wait until HSC. Or which books you should start with. Honestly, there’s no one right time or right method that fits everyone. Some people prepare for two years and don’t get in. Some people don’t prepare at all and do.

It’s a highly competitive aptitude test after all. Nothing can guarantee you a seat. The acceptance rate is around one percent. But if someone is good at math, has good intuition in English, and is comfortable with puzzles or reasoning, they have a good shot at passing the test.

And I believe being good at math or having a good intuition in English aren’t qualities we’re born with. If people try, they can improve their "aptitude". That’s where the admission preparation comes in.

If you learn the concepts that are tested in this exam and practice enough, you obviously have a better chance of passing compared to when you don’t do anything. There might still be people who somehow score better than you without any preparation, and that’s fine. These are the random factors you have to accept when you decide what you’ll do in your admission season. Because no matter what you decide, admission tests in this country are very competitive.

Learn what this exam actually tests. It’s an aptitude test that measures how fast and accurately you can think. The MCQ test has three sections—English, Math, and Analytical—followed by an essay writing part. Everything is timed, and there’s negative marking. So it’s not about how much you know but about how well you can apply what you know under pressure.

Since you're an HSC candidate right now, you don’t need to go all in. Just assess yourself before you plan everything out. You can even take the open-for-all assessment test on this website, just to see what the exam feels like and evaluate whether you have a good chance of getting in if you prepare. Check which areas feel comfortable and which ones don’t.

If you realize you’re weak in math, brush up on the basics of percentages, ratios, averages, profit and loss, time and distance, equations, etc. For English, you can start reading regularly. Anything that interests you, be it articles, blogs, or essays. For Analytical, try solving a few puzzles or logical reasoning questions just for fun.

But don’t overdo it. At this point, you’re not supposed to study like you’re sitting for the exam next month. Your goal right now should be to build habits that help you grow in life, regardless of what you do later. Read articles in English every day. Learn new words from Word Smart or vocabulary.com. Practice a few math problems every week. Try some mental math.

And when your HSC exams are over, you can start your practice. You first need to develop the ability to think clearly, stay calm under pressure, and solve problems fast. That’s what aptitude really means.

Hope it helped. Read the other blogs for a better understanding of the test and preparation. Best of luck!!