What is the CAT Exam?

The Common Admission Test (CAT) is conducted by the Indian Institutes of Management every year for students seeking to take admission into the top management programmes in the country. CAT serves as an entrance exam for MBA and PGDM courses at some of the best B-Schools of the country. It consists of three sections, namely, Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension; Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning; and Quantitative Ability.

Purpose of the CAT Exam

The CAT exam is conducted every year in the month of November to provide a single entrance exam for all the management courses in the country. It replaces the need for conducting separate entrance exams for each b-schools and helps colleges find the most suitable students for their management courses.

Highlights & Exam Pattern of the CAT

Name of the Exam	Common Admission Test (CAT) 2023
Conducting Body	Indian Institutes of Management
Exam Level	Postgraduate
Exam Frequency	Once Every Year
Mode of Exam	Computer Based Test
Sections	Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning Quantitative Ability
Types of Questions	Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension- 26 Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning- 20 Quantitative Ability- 20
Marking Scheme	3 marks for each correct answer -1 mark for each wrong answer
Exam Duration	3 Hours
Total Questions	66
Total Marks	198
Medium of Exam	English
Official Website	iimcat.ac.in

Eligibility Criteria

The detailed eligibility criteria for taking the CAT examination is as follows:

• The candidate must have a graduation degree in any field with a minimum of 50% (45% for SC, ST & PwD categories) marks in aggregate from a recognised university.

• Candidates appearing for the final year examination of their graduation can also apply. However, if they qualify, they will need to produce an official document signed by the Principal of their college stating that they have successfully completed their graduation.

• Candidates who have completed a professional degree course such as CA/ CS/ ICWA/ Fellow of the Institute of Actuaries of India (FIAI)) are also eligible for the exam.

CAT Exam Date 2023

Event	Tentative Dates
Registration Process Start Date	First week of August, 2023
Registration Process Ending Date	Third week of September, 2023
Mock Tests Release Date	Fourth week of October, 2022
Admit Card Release Date	Last week of October, 2023
Exam Date	26-Nov-2023
Announcement of the Result	First week of January 2024

Registration Process & Fee

To register for the CAT exam, follow the below-mentioned steps:

• Visit the official website of CAT and click on the “Register” button
• Fill in the requisite details and register yourself at the portal
• After this, log in using your user id and password
• Fill out the detailed application form which consists of six sections, that is, personal details, academic details, work experience, programmes, test city and payment
• While filling out the form, you will be required to upload the photograph, signature and category certificate in the prescribed format

Application Fee

The category-wise registration fee for the CAT exam is as follows:

Category	Registration Fee
General/ EWS/ NC-OBC	INR 2,300
SC/ST/PwD	INR 1,150

A candidate has two options to make the payment of the registration fee- PayU and CCAvenue. You can pay with your credit card, debit card, net banking, UPI or through the Scan & Pay option.

CAT Admit Card

The admit card for the CAT is expected to release in the last week of October 2023. It can be downloaded from the official website of the CAT.

CAT 2023 Exam Syllabus

Quantitative Ability (QA)	Data Interpretations & Logical Reasoning	Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension
Geometry	Team Formation	Para-jumbles
Number System	Seating Arrangement	Para-Summary
Modern Maths	Clocks and Calendars	Long & Short Passages
Arithmetic	Venn Diagrams
Mensuration	Bar Graphs
Algebra

CAT 2023: Section-Wise Distribution of Question Paper

Section	Total Questions	Total Marks
Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension	24	72
Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning	20	60
Quantitative Ability	22	60
Total	66	198

Colleges that Accept the CAT Exam  Score

Almost all B-Schools in India accept the CAT exam for offering admission into their various management programmes. Some of the top colleges that accept the CAT scores are:

• IIM Ahmedabad
• IIM Indore
• IIM Jammu
• IIM Ranchi
• IIM Amritsar
• IIM Bodh Gaya
• IIM Sambalpur
• BIMTECH
• IMS Ghaziabad
• SRM Institute of Science and Technology

CAT 2023: Expected Exam Cut off

The cut-off of the CAT exam is calculated taking into consideration a number of factors. These are:

• Previous years’ cut-off
• Difficulty level of the exam
• Number of students appearing for the exam
• Total number of seats

Generally, the cut-off for IIMs goes around 99 to 100 percentile for the general category and 97 to 98 percentile for the reserved categories. For other top B-Schools goes around 95 percentile.

CAT Important Exam Guidelines

There are certain things that you must keep a note of while appearing for the exam. These are:

• Affix a photo on your admit card in the space provided and carry it to the examination hall along with a photo identity proof.
• Since CAT is a computer-based test, use your mouse to select the right answer.
• You will be provided with a pen and scribble pad for the rough work. Leave your admit card, pen and scribble pad at the examination centre after the completion of the exam.
• All electronic gadgets are strictly prohibited inside the examination centre. Do not carry them with you.
• No candidate will be allowed to leave the examination hall before the completion of the examination.
• Do not use the keyboard during the test as it will result in the locking of the computer system.
• No printed or other textual material is allowed inside the examination hall.
• You must make sure that you are not wearing any jewellery on the day of the exam. Furthermore, avoid wearing footwear with thick soles, and garments with large buttons.

CAT Preparation Tips

• The first thing that you must do while preparing for CAT is to go through the syllabus and previous years’ question papers to familiarise yourself with the format of the exam.
• Once you are aware of the syllabus, prepare a timetable for yourself. Divide each section into short goals and assign a deadline for finishing each of these goals.
• Since the very beginning, make it a habit to practise mock tests. The more you practise, the more you improve.
• During the exam, do not panic. Skip the questions that you find difficult to understand and come back to them later. This will prevent you from wasting your time over trick questions.
• Do not neglect your health. Engage in exercises and other physical activities. Maintain an active lifestyle.

 

Related: The Ultimate Guide On How To Prepare For Exams For Success

CAT 2023 Exam Centres

• Andaman and Nicobar Islands: Port Blair
• Andhra Pradesh: Guntur, Kakinada, Kurnool, Nellore, Rajahmundry, Tirupathi, Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram
• Arunachal Pradesh: Itanagar/ Naharlagun
• Assam: Dibrugarh, Guwahati, Jorhat, Silchar, Tezpur
• Bihar: Arrah, Bhagalpur, Darbhanga, Gaya, Muzaffarpur, Patna
• Chandigarh: Chandigarh
• Chattisgarh: Bhilai Nagar, Bilaspur, Raipur
• Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu: Silvassa
• Goa: Madgaon, Panaji
• Gujarat: Ahmedabad, Anand, Gandhinagar, Mehsana, Rajkot, Surat, Vadodara
• Haryana: Ambala, Faridabad, Gurugram
• Himachal Pradesh: Bilaspur, Hamirpur, Shimla
• Jammu & Kashmir Jammu: Srinagar
• Jharkhand: Dhanbad, Hazaribagh, Jamshedpur, Ranchi
• Karnataka: Belagavi (Belgaum), Bengaluru, Hubli-Dharwad, Kalaburagi, Mangaluru, Mysuru, Shivamogga, Udupi
• Kerala: Ernakulam, Kannur, Kollam, Kottayam, Kozhikode, Thrissur, Trivandrum
• Ladakh: Leh
• Lakshadweep: Kavaratti
• Madhya Pradesh: Indore, Bhopal, Gwalior, Jabalpur, Sagar, Satna, Ujjain
• Maharashtra: Ahmednagar, Amravati, Aurangabad, Bhiwandi, Boisar, Jalgaon, Kolhapur, Mumbai, Nagpur, Nanded, Nashik, Pune, Raigad, Satara, Solapur, Thane, Vasai
• Manipur: Imphal, Ukhrul
• Meghalaya: Shillong
• Mizoram: Aizawl
• Nagaland: Kohima
• Delhi: New Delhi
• Odisha: Berhampur, Balasore, Dhenkanal, Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Rourkela, Sambalpur
• Punjab: Amritsar, Jalandhar, Bhatinda, Ludhiana, Mohali, Patiala
• Puducherry: Puducherry
• Rajasthan: Ajmer, Bikaner, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Kota, Sikar, Udaipur
• Tamil Nadu: Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai, Salem, Tiruchirapalli, Tirunelveli, Vellore
• Telangana: Hyderabad, Karimnagar, Warangal
• Tripura: Agartala
• Uttar Pradesh: Agra, Aligarh, Bareilly, Ghaziabad, Gorakhpur, Greater Noida – Noida, Jhansi, Kanpur, Lucknow, Mathura, Meerut, Moradabad, Muzaffarnagar, Prayagraj, Varanasi
• Uttarakhand: Dehradun, Haldwani, Roorkee
• West Bengal: Asansol, Bankura, Burdwan, Durgapur, Hooghly, Kalyani, Kolkata, Siliguri

Mock Tests

You can access the mock tests here: CAT Mock Tests

FAQs

Q1. What is the CAT exam for?

The CAT exam is conducted for providing admission into various top management institutes in India.

Q2. Who conducts the CAT exam

The CAT exam is conducted by the Indian Institutes of Management

Q3. Is the CAT exam necessary for an MBA?

While most top B-Schools require a valid CAT score for admission into various courses, candidates can also seek admission through other national, state or university entrance tests.

Q4. How many CAT attempts are allowed?

A candidate can appear in the CAT exam a maximum of 8 times in a lifetime and once every year.

Q5. How many seats are there in CAT?

Every year, more than 2 lakh students appear for the CAT exam with over 5,000 seats being offered by the 20 IIMs.

Q6. Does the CAT exam have a negative marking?

Yes, one mark will be deducted for each wrong answer.

Q7. How many CAT exams happen in a year?

CAT occurs once every year.

Q8. Is the CAT exam online or offline?

CAT is an online computer-based test.

Q9. Is a calculator allowed in the CAT exam?

No, calculators are not allowed in the CAT exam. However, an on-screen calculator is provided to students by the conducting authority for intensive calculations.

Q10. Is the CAT exam only for MBA?

CAT is the most popular MBA entrance exam. The exam is also used for offering admission into other management courses such as PGDM, PGDBA, etc.

Q11. Is the CAT exam MCQ based?

Most of the questions in the CAT exam are MCQ based.

Tags: cat, cat exam, management exams, mba entrance exam, mba exam, pgdm exam