CAT 2006 Changes
for Academic Year 2007-08

New eligibility criteria for CAT 2006 announced

In a move aimed at arresting the number of candidates appearing for entrance tests for elite business schools, the Indian Institutes of Management announced on Sunday that they should have secured at least 50 per cent marks during graduation to be eligible for the Common Admission Test (CAT) 2006.

The new eligibility criteria for this year's CAT, to be held on November 19, was announced by the IIMs.

The announcement stipulates that candidates must hold a Bachelor's Degree with at least 50 per cent marks to be eligible this year as against only "successful completion" of their graduation hitherto.

It has been fixed at 45 per cent marks this year for students belonging to SC, ST or persons with disability category, it said.

TIME DURATION

The duration of the examination is also set to increase by 30 minutes to two-and-a-half hours.

Making a special reference to government's proposed move to reserve seats for OBC candidates during academic year 2007-08 in elite educational institutions, IIMs said "the details of the reservation for candidates belonging to OBCs would be notified by the IIMs on their websites and through a an advertisement in national newspapers on receipt of an official communication from the approprite authority".

Observing that no student should be denied opportunity to pursue the management course for want of adequate financial resources, the IIMs said substantial need-based scholarships were available for students belonging to economically disadvantaged families.

Over 1.5 lakh students appeared last year in the CAT examination for admission to six IIMs at Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Kolkata, Indore, Kozhikode and Lucknow.

CAT 2006 - SECTIONS

There was a talk that CAT 2006 may have Four Sections instead of 3 Sections. However CAT notification as well as the CAT 2006 bulletin, you will find CAT is a three-section paper this year too. CAT is divided into three sections: English Usage, Quantitative Ability (Maths) and Data Interpretation & Logical Ability.

Cutt off for CAT 2006

The CAT 2006 bulletin states "Please note that the cut-off for shortlisting SC/ST/PWD (persons with disabilities) candidates for group discussion and personal interviews would not be less than 17 per cent score in each of the three sections of CAT 2006, and no less than 25 per cent score in aggregate.”

“For other categories, it would be no less than 25 per cent in each of the three sections and no less than 33 per cent in aggregate.”

Source: Press Trust of India News
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B-schools seek 27% quota in phases
Panel submits interim report to Moily

 It’s official now. The group for management institutions headed by the former director of Indian Institute of Management- Ahmedabad, Samuel Paul, has unequivocally recommended that B-school reserve 27% of seats in a phased manner “over at least a few years”. The group was constituted to look into the implementation of the quota for other backward classes in centrally funded management institutes.

In its interim recommendations submitted to M Veerappa Moily, chairman of the Oversight Committee set up by the government, the group has stated that implementing the 27% quota within one year was an “unrealistic goal”. It should, therefore, be staggered. The group comprises directors of IIM-A, IIM Kozhikode, IIM Kolkata, IIM Lucknow, NITIE and a joint secretary of the human resources development ministry.

Source: Financial Express

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Reservation for Other Backward Classes (OBCs)

The standard reservation for SCs (15%), STs (7 ½%), and PWD (3%) is there this year too. In addition to this, there could also be reservations for OBCs as per the new policy of the Government of India. The IIMs have stated that they have not yet received any official communication on this and they will implement reservations based on the communication they receive from the central government in this regard.

However, students belonging to OBC category are advised to attach the caste certificate along with the CAT application form to be eligible for any reservation that may be implemented later. If you belong to any of the specified categories, then do not forget to indicate it appropriately in the CAT application form.

Three additional issues of interest

There are three additional issues that should be considered. One is the number of sections in the test paper; the second is the cut-offs in each section, and the third is the selection process.

Number of sections : In the past, the CAT did not specify the number of sections in the paper – either in the notification or in the bulletin. Students would know about the number of sections only when they would receive the CAT paper. The only statement that would be made in the bulletin was that the paper would consist of “several sections ”.

This year, however, it has been mentioned both in the notification and the bulletin that there will be three sections in the CAT paper. Though there is no direct mention of the number of sections, the indirect mention of there being three sections in the paper is categorical. Also, there will not be any time limit for each section.

Cut-off : Historically, the IIMs have never confirmed that a minimum cut-off in each section is required for selection and that the cut-off could be different for each IIM. All they said was, “You are expected to show your competence in all the sections”.

For the first time ever, there is a mention in the CAT bulletin of the minimum score required in each section of the CAT paper. IIM Ahmedabad has clearly mentioned, under the head ‘selection criteria', that test takers have to score a minimum of 25% in each section and 33% overall in the paper to be called for Group Discussions (GD) and Interviews. The actual cut-offs could be higher than these figures depending on the performance of the students in the CAT.

To understand this a little better, let us look at the cut-offs that the IIMs may have considered for CAT 2005. The cut-offs for the three sections – Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension, Quantitative Analysis and Data Interpretation-Reasoning were 12-13, 10-11, and 9-10 respectively. The maximum mark possible in each of the three sections was 50. Now, with IIM-A specifying that the cut-off will be at least 25% of the marks in the section; it will be 12.5 out of 50 marks.

If one looks at the cut-offs for last year and then considers the fact that another 30 minutes will be available to the test takers this year, the cut-offs could well go up to the 25% level. Same is the case with the 33% overall cut-off that IIM-A specified for this year, which works out to 49.5 out of 150 compared to the cut-off of 44-45 in CAT 2005. So, one need not harbour any apprehensions about the cut-offs being high. This is in line with what has been happening over the last few years.

So, when you look at all the issues associated with CAT 2006, there is almost nothing new while everything appears to be new. Go right ahead and concentrate on your preparation and practicing the All India Mock CATs (AIMCATs). And yes, do not forget that there could be something new in the test, some nasty surprise. All it requires is to be mentally prepared for it!

Source moneycontrol.com

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