The Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree is a prominent postgraduate degree that offers an insight into the main business processes and is greatly valued by top organisations. Students should take MBA entrance exams to get a chance to study in top MBA colleges in India. Top MBA exams in India include CAT, SNAP, XAT, NMAT, IIFT, CMAT, MAT, MAH CET, IBSAT, etc. There are national-level and state-level exams for MBA entrance. Students should make sure which exam they are going to take and prepare accordingly. The IIM conducts CAT examination. Over 1,200 MBA colleges in India use the CAT to select students for admission. The CMAT, administered by the National Testing Agency, is the second most common MBA entry exam after CAT. 1,000 MBA institutions in India recognise the CMAT score. XAT, administered by XLRI Jamshedpur, is the third most popular MBA entrance exam. Approximately 8,00 Management institutes throughout India recognize the XAT result.
CAT Overview
India’s most popular entrance exam, CAT, is conducted by the Indian Institutes of Management (IIM). For MBA entrance, the CAT score is used by 20 IIMs and over 1,000 other business schools across the country. Every year, more than two lakh candidates take the exam. Students of any age could register for the CAT exam 2022 if they have a Bachelor’s degree in any discipline from a recognised university/institute with a minimum of 50% aggregate marks or equivalent CGPA (45% for SC/ ST/ PwD). IIM CAT 2022 is also open to students who are in their last year. Students should start preparing at the earliest to perform well in the exam.
MBA Admission through CAT
Each IIM specifies a minimum CAT cut-off percentile in order to shortlist students for the next session of MBA/PGDM admissions. An outline of the selection procedure for IIMs and non-IIMs is provided below:
The admissions procedure at IIM
- Students are screened based on their CAT scores.
- WAT (Written Ability Test)/GD (Group Discussion)/PI (Personal Interview).
- Following the computation of the Composite Score, the final selection is made.
The admission procedure at Non-IIM
Besides IIMs, institutes that accept CAT 2022 scores conduct Group Discussions/Personal Interviews for admission to their MBA/PGDM programmes. Nevertheless, there are a few universities that only admit candidates based on their CAT results.
Understanding the Syllabus
It is critical to have a clear understanding of the CAT exam syllabus in order to determine your strategy during the CAT journey. While you have a decent knowledge of the CAT syllabus, knowing how much time you should spend on each section will be considerably easier. VARC, DILR, and QA are the three sections of the CAT question paper. Students must answer both multiple-choice and non-multiple-choice questions. The questions on the paper are normally of moderate to high complexity.
CAT Preparation Tips
The best period to begin studying for an exam is 12 months ahead of the exam. Given the heightened competition and peer pressure, it is suggested that CAT candidates begin their preparation at least 11-12 months before the exam. You can go through the basics again in the last 1-2 months if you have a lot of free time.
- Determine your own strengths and weaknesses: Go over the CAT Syllabus in its entirety and begin categorising topics based on their strengths and weaknesses.
- Emphasise the most crucial topics: While the CAT surprises practically every year, there is some stability in the topics tested.
- Mock simulation: It is critical that you continue to take mocks and maintain track of your progress while preparing. Understanding how to solve a problem is one thing; solving a problem under the time limits of an exam is quite another.
- Make a timetable: CAT Preparation is something that all serious applicants must prioritise. To correctly select how to prepare for the CAT, the individual must create a timetable. This timetable must include not just all of the topics but also the time spent on tests and reviews. Once a timetable is created, the candidate must keep to it completely in order to make sure thorough CAT preparation.
This is how your CAT Preparation plan should look. Stay tuned for more in-depth exam strategy pages so you can optimise your ability and stick to the plan to ace the CAT 2022 exam.
