CAT 2023: Common Admission Test is one of the most prominent exams for admission to the top management colleges in India. This test is the national-level exam so its difficulty level is high as compared to the other entrance exam for management admission.
Students seeking admission to MBA programs must pass this exam and meet the cut-offs before being considered for further rounds of selection by the institutions. They will get admission for the batch 2024-26 management program.
The exam is held every year in November, so be prepared for the exam before it is too late. CAT 2023 Preparation Strategies can help you prepare for the exam in a sequential manner.
CAT 2023: Highlights
| Name of Exam | CAT 2023 |
| Official Notification | July 2023 |
| Registration start | August 2023 |
| Last date of registration | September 2023 |
| Admit card | October 2023 |
| Exam date | November 2023 |
| CAT 2023 answer key release | The first week of December 2023 |
| Result declaration | December 2023 |
CAT 2023: Exam Details
Exam Highlights
CAT Exam Eligibility
This year CAT exam will be conducted in the last week of November (tentative). The application will be invited online.
| CAT exam fees | ₹ 2,200 (General category) ₹ 1,100 (Reserved category) |
| Eligibility | 50% marks in graduate |
| Application Mode | Online |
| Website | https://iimcat.ac.in |
| Types of Questions | MCQ’s & TITA |
| Medium of Exam | English |
| Sections in the Exam | 3 sections: Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension (VARC) Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning (DILR) Quantitative Ability (QA) |
Any graduate can apply for the CAT exam after filling out the online application form.
- A bachelor’s degree in any stream with a minimum of 50% marks for graduates and 45% marks for reserved categories from a recognized university.
- Students appearing for the final year exam or whose results are awaiting can also apply for the CAT exam.
- Students having professional degrees such as CA/CS/ICWA can also fill out the online CAT exam form.
Registration process
Registration for the CAT exam usually begins in August. Candidates must register for the CAT 2023 exam online at iimcat.ac.in, the official website. Below, are the steps for completing the CAT application form 2023, along with the fees and documents needed for registration:
- First, visit the official website iimcat.ac.in and register by filling out the basic details and clicking the submit button.
- Once verified, the candidate will get a unique user ID and password in the registered email ID and mobile number.
- Next, the candidate can fill up the CAT exam form with the required details.
- While filling out the application form the candidates are required to fill in the details of the interview city choice.
- At last, the candidate can choose up to 6 cities for the exam choice.
Document required for filling out the application
- Passport size photograph in.jpg/.jpeg format.
- Digital signature in jpg or jpeg format.
- Caste certificate if applicable
- PWD certificate if applicable
Payment of application fee
The application fee for general candidates is ₹ 2,200/- whereas the fee for the reserved category is ₹ 1,100/-. The fee can be paid online using the payment gateway. Once the fee is successfully paid the candidate will get notified in the registered email id.
CAT Exam pattern
The CAT exam is conducted in three slots, and though the exam pattern is the same the difficulty level differs. Below you can find hte overview of the exam:
| No. of questions | 66 |
| Time Allotted | 120 minutes |
| Section | 3 |
| Questions per section | VARC: 24 DILR: 20 QA: 22 |
| Time for each section | 40 minutes |
| Type of questions | MCQs & TITA (Type in the Answer) |
| Marks per question | +3 for every right answer |
| Negative Making | -1 for every wrong answer, TITA has no negative marks |
CAT Exam Syllabus:
The CAT exam consists of three broad sections:
- Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension (VARC): Reading comprehension and verbal ability are the two main components of the VARC section. Reading comprehension is a major component of the VARC, and it includes paragraphs of varying lengths with MCQ and TITA questions. The verbal ability section includes para jumbles, odd sentences, and so on.
- Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning (DILR): Data Interpretation is a collection of questions based on various charts, graphs, and other forms of data presentation. The data for the answers must be extracted directly from the provided charts. The logical reasoning section also includes sets of questions about seating arrangements, blood relations, puzzles, and so on.
- Quantitative Ability (QA): This section focuses on math because school math is the only subject covered in the QA syllabus. LCM and HCF, trigonometry, mensuration, probability, etc. are among the topics covered. The IIMs have recently lessened the difficulty of this section.
CAT Exam Results
The tentative date of the CAT exam result is the last week of December. The cut-off list will be announced by the authority and the students can apply for the MBA course in different colleges across India based on the marks obtained. There is no counseling after the CAT result, as all the IIMs have their own procedure for interviews and further admission rounds.
CAT 2023 Admission Guide
The cut-off of the CAT admission lies in between the 98-100 percentile in the top 6 IIMs across the country. Whereas the other IIM’s cut-off lies above the 95 percentile. However, some institutes other than IIMs also consider CAT score which varies from institute to institute.
Here we are listing the IIMs along with the CAT score cut-off
| Name of Institute | NIRF Ranking | CAT Cut-off |
|---|---|---|
| IIM Ahemdabad | 1 | 99-100 |
| IIM Bangalore | 2 | 99-100 |
| IIM Calcutta | 3 | 99 |
| IIM Lucknow | 6 | 97-98 |
| IIM Indore | 7 | 97-98 |
| IIM Kozhikode | 5 | 97-98 |
| IIM Amritsar | 55 | 95-96 |
| IIM Nagpur | 43 | 95-96 |
| IIM Sambalpur | 66 | 95-96 |
| IIM Trichy | 18 | 94-95 |
| IIM Ranchi | 15 | 94-95 |
| IIM Raipur | 14 | 94-95 |
| IIM Kashipur | 23 | 94-95 |
| IIM Rohtak | 16 | 92-94 |
| IIM Visakhapatnam | 33 | 92-94 |
| IIM Bodhgaya | 73 | 92-94 |
| IIM Udaipur | 22 | 92-94 |
| IIM Jammu | 36 | 90 |
| IIM Shilong | 26 | 90 |
| IIM Sirmaur | 69 | 90 |
TIER:1 MBA colleges in India
These institutes are among the top 15 B-schools in India and are considered the top management school in our country. They have consistently been ranked among the top 15 B-Schools in India and are popular among recruiters in terms of brand value and educational quality. It is very difficult to get admission to these institutes. The top creamy layer (1 or 2%/) of the total candidates gets an admission call from such institute:
- Faculty of Management Studies (FMS)
- IIM Ahemdabad
- Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT)
- IIM Bangalore
- IIM Calcutta
- Indian School of Business (ISB), Hyderabad
- IIM Indore
- IIM Kozhikode
- Management Development Institute, Gurgaon (MDI)
- Xavier School of Management, Jamshedpur (XLRI)
Tier-2 MBA Colleges in India
Tier 2 institutions are next in line because they have a solid reputation and reliable placement rates. According to rankings, these institutions fall into the second category.
- Department of Management Studies, IIT Delhi.
- Department of Management Studies IIT Madras.
- Indian Institute of Management, Kashipur.
- Indian Institute of Management, Raipur.
- Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies, Mumbai (NMIMS).
- Indian Institute of Management, Ranchi.
- Indian Institute of Management, Rohtak.
- IIT Kharagpur.
- Symbiosis Institute of Business Management, Pune (SIBM).
- Vinod Gupta School of Management, IIT Kharagpur (VGSOM).
Tier-3 MBA colleges in India
These institutes lie in the third category, they are also a great place to learn and mark a good career move. Tier 3 institutes should be once looked at if you do not get admission to tier 1 or tier 2 colleges.
- Indian Institute of Management, Trichy
- Indian Institute of Management, Shillong
- Department of Management Studies, IIT Roorkee
- Indian Institute of Management, Amritsar
- Indian Institute of Management, Nagpur
- Institute of Management Technology, Ghaziabad (IMT)
- Indian Institute of Management, Visakhapatnam
- K. J. Somaiya Institute of Management Studies and Research, Mumbai (KJSOM)
- Welingkar Institute of Management, Mumbai (We-B)
- Goa Institute Of Management, Goa (GIM)
Which college one should apply to?
Now the question arises of which college one should apply for the job. So, you should be applying for the 5 colleges above and 5 colleges below your potential. As the MBA course would cost you around 15 lakhs and you be getting ROI very soon as you join the job. So, never restrict yourself before applying for a college by looking at its application and course fee.
So, why wait to apply for the best MBA college? Visit the official website and apply for the course before it’s too late.
College compare lets you be informed about the latest trend in MBA in India. If you are a management aspirant then you must look for our website.
