CAT 2021 Exam Dates, Application Form, Exam Pattern, Eligibility, Syllabus

CAT 2021 Details

• CAT 2021 is a prerequisite for admission to various Post Graduate and Fellow programs of IIMs. CAT 2021 scores are allowed to be used by listed non-IIM member institutions. A list of such institutions is provided on the CAT website.

• IIMs have no role in the selection process of non-IIM institutions

CAT 2021 Programs Offered

The Indian Institutes of Management will conduct a computer-based Common Admission Test (CAT) 2021 in the 4^th week of November 2021 in two sessions. CAT 2021 will be conducted by IIMs as a prerequisite for admission to various management programs of IIMs. These programs are:

A)

Post Graduate Programs in Management (PGP)

Institute/Programs & Website

IIM Ahmedabad

PGP, PGP-FABM, ePGP [www.iima.ac.in]

IIM Amritsar

PGP [www.iimamritsar.ac.in]

IIM Bangalore

 PGP, PGPEM, PGPPM, PGPBA [www.iimb.ac.in]

IIM Bodh Gaya

PGP [www.iimbg.ac.in]

IIM Calcutta

MBA [www.iimcal.ac.in]

IIM Indore

PGP, PGP-HRM [www.iimidr.ac.in]

IIM Jammu

PGP [www.iimj.ac.in]

IIM Kashipur

PGP, EPGP [www.iimkashipur.ac.in]

IIM Kozhikode

PGP, PGP-BL, PGP-F, EPGP (Kochi Campus & IL) [www.iimk.ac.in]

IIM Lucknow

PGP, PGP-ABM, PGP-SM [www.iiml.ac.in]

IIM Nagpur

PGP [www.iimnagpur.ac.in]

IIM Raipur

PGP [www.iimraipur.ac.in]

IIM Ranchi

PGP, PGP-HRM [www.iimranchi.ac.in]

IIM Rohtak

PGP, EPGPX [www.iimrohtak.ac.in]

IIM Sambalpur

MBA [www.iimsambalpur.ac.in]

RGIIM Shillong

PGP, PGPEX [www.iimshillong.ac.in]

IIM Sirmaur

PGP [www.iimsirmaur.ac.in]

IIM Tiruchirappalli

PGPM, PGPBM, PGPM-HR [www.iimtrichy.ac.in]

IIM Udaipur

MBA [www.iimu.ac.in]

IIM Visakhapatnam

PGP [www.iimv.ac.in]

B. Fellow Programs in Management (FPM) [Doctoral]

Institutes & Programs

IIM Ahmedabad

PhD

IIM Amritsar

FPM

IIM Bangalore

FPM

IIM Bodh Gaya

PhD (FPM)

IIM Calcutta

Doctoral

IIM lndore

FPM

IIM Kashipur

FPM, EFPM

IIM Kozhikode

FPM

IIM Lucknow

FPM

IIM Raipur

FPM, EFPM

IIM Ranchi

PhD, EPhD

IIM Rohtak

FPM, EFPM

IIM Sambalpur

PhD

RGIIM Shillong

FPM

IIM Sirmaur

PhD

IIM Tiruchirappalli

FPM

IIM Udaipur

PhD

IIM Visakhapatnam

FPM

CAT 2021 Important Dates

Events

Dates

CAT Exam Notification Date

4^th week of  July 201

Online Registration Opens

1^st week of August 202`

Online Registration Closes

2^nd week of September 2021

Admit Card Download

4^th week of October 2021

CAT 2021 Exam Date

4^th week of November 2021

Result Declaration

2nd week of January 2022

Eligibility Criteria for CAT 2021

• Candidate must hold a Bachelor’s Degree, with at least 50% marks or equivalent CGPA [45% in case of candidates belonging to the SC/ST and PWD categories], awarded by any University or educational institution as incorporated by an Act of Parliament or State legislature in India or declared to be deemed as a University under Section 3 of the UGC Act, 1956, or possess an equivalent qualification recognized by the Ministry of HRD, Govt. of India.

• The percentage of marks obtained by the candidate would be calculated based on the practice as followed by the respective University/Institution

• In the case of grades/CGPA, the conversion to percentage of marks would be based on the procedure as certified by the respective University/Institution

• If any University/institution confirms that there is no scheme for converting CGPA into equivalent marks, the equivalence would be established by dividing the candidate’s CGPA by the maximum possible CGPA and multiplying the result with 100.

• Candidates appearing for the final year of Bachelor’s the degree/equivalent qualification exam and those who have completed degree requirements and are awaiting results can also apply

• For more details on eligibility, candidates are advised to visit the “CAT 2021 Eligibility” section of the CAT website.

See Full Details - CAT Eligibility Criteria

Reservation

• As per the legal requirements, 15% of the seats are reserved for SC candidates 7.5% for ST candidates 27% for Other Backward Classes candidates belonging to the “Non-Creamy” layer (NC-OBC), up to 10% for Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) candidates and 5% for Persons with Benchmark Disabilities (PwD).

• As defined in the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 (PwD Act 2016), “Person with Benchmark Disability” means a person with not less than forty percent (40%) of a specified disability where the specified disability has not been defined in measurable terms and includes a person with a disability where the specified disability has been defined in measurable terms, as certified by the certifying authority.

• For the purpose of being considered for reservation, the applicable Central Government list as on the last date of CAT registration shall be binding.

• No subsequent changes will be effective for CAT 2021 and any subsequent selection process of the IIMs

How to Apply for CAT 2021 - Application Process

• The CAT 2021 registration window opens on the 1st week of August 2021 and will close at 05:00 pm on the 2nd week of September 2021. The details will be available in the registration guide.

• At the time of registration, the candidates have to select any four test cities, as per their preference, from a drop-down menu. After the last date of registration, candidates will be allotted one among the four preferred cities subject to availability

Also, see - Sudden Increase in CAT Applicants

Instruction to Apply

Candidates can register for the Common Admission Test (CAT) through online mode only. The registration can only be done online on the Official Website www.iimcat.ac.in

CAT registration involves three simple steps:

Step-1

Registration

Step-2

Fill Application Form and Upload Images of required documents, photograph, signature etc.

Step-3

Make Payment

The details will be available in the registration guide on the website www.iimcat.ac.in

Registration Fee

For SC/ST/PWD Category Candidates

Rs.1000/-

For all for Other Category Candidates

Rs.2000/-

• The candidates will have to pay the registration fee in online mode only. The payment can be done by using Debit Card / Credit Card / Net Banking.

• SC/ST & PwD candidates must upload a copy of their SC/ST/PwD certificates at the time of registration. Fees once paid cannot be refunded under any circumstances.

Selection Process

• Please note that IIMs shortlist candidates for the interview stage based on their own criteria, which may be independent of each other.

• The process may include Written Ability Test (WAT), Group Discussion (GD) and Personal Interviews (PI). Performance in the CAT 2021 exam is an important component in the admission process

• Every B-school along with IIMs has its own selection criteria and cut-off list. The first stage for selection includes admission test, academic performance & relevant work experience,

• The second stage of selection includes - Written Ability Test (WAT), Group Discussions (GD) and Personal Interviews (PI).

Written Test

Candidate has to write on one or more topics a brief essay in the time duration of 15-45 minutes.

GD

A round is held where 8-10 candidates are given a particular topic and they have to discuss it. This is to check the candidate’s group dynamics.

PI

In this round candidate has to present himself/herself before the panel of 4-8 interviewers. This is a final round and is held to check the candidate’s educational qualification, hobbies, interests and work experience. Students will be selected for admission on the basis of Entrance test, WAT, GD and PI

CAT 2021 Exam Pattern

Duration of Exam

180 minutes (60 minutes per section)

Total Marks

300

Exam Timing

Slot 1 - 9 am to 12 pm

Slot 2 - 2 pm to 5 pm

Number of Sections in Exam

3

Name of Sections

Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension (VARC)

Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning (DILR)

Quantitative Aptitude (QA)

Language of Question Paper

English

Section-wise No. of Questions

VARC - 34

DILR - 32

QA - 34

Type of Questions

MCQs and Non-MCQs

Answer Choice in MCQs

4

Total Number of Questions

100

Marking Scheme

Right Question - 3 marks

Wrong Question - Negative marking of 1/3

Non-MCQs - No Negative Marking

Section-Wise Difficulty Level

VARC - Easy-Moderate

DILR - Moderate - Difficult

QA - Difficult

Test Centres

CAT will be conducted in test centres spread across around 156 test cities. Candidates will be given the option to select any four test cities in order of their preference.

Port Blair

Hamirpur

Mumbai

Guntur

Jammu

Nashik

Nellore

Bokaro

Satara

Vijayawada

Dhanbad

Palghar

Kakinada

Hazaribagh

Ulhasnagar

Rajahmundry

Jamshedpur

Shillong

Visakhapatnam

Ranchi

Aizawl

Kurnool

Belagavi(Belgaum)

Kohima

Tirupathi

Bengaluru

Balasore

Vizianagaram

Hubballi (Hubli)

Cuttack

Itanagar

Mysuru (Mysore)

Sambalpur

Dibrugarh

Kalaburagi (Gulbarga)

Berhampur

Silchar

Shivamogga(Shimoga)

Dhenkanal

Guwahati

Dharwad

Bhubaneswar

Tezpur

Mangaluru (Mangalore)

Rourkela

Jorhat

Udupi

Puducherry

Aurangabad-Bihar

Kannur

Pathankot

Darbhanga

Ernakulam

Ludhiana

Arrah

Kollam

Amritsar

Muzaffarpur

Kottayam

Bhatinda

Bhagalpur

Kozhikode

Patiala

Patna

Thrissur

Jalandhar

Mohali

Trivandrum

Sangrur

Chandigarh

Bhopal

Ajmer

Bhilai Nagar

Jabalpur

Jaipur

Bilaspur

Ujjain

Sikar

Raipur

Gwalior

Alwar

Delhi

Sagar

Jodhpur

Faridabad

Indore

Udaipur

Gurugram

Satna

Bikaner

Ghaziabad

Bhopal

Kota

New Delhi

Jabalpur

Madurai

Greater Noida

Ujjain

Chennai

Noida

Gwalior

Salem

Meerut

Sagar

Trichy

Panaji

Indore

Coimbatore

Ahmedabad

Satna

Vellore

Mehsana

Amravati

Tirunelveli

Vadodara

Jalgaon

Hyderabad

Anand

Nagpur

Karimnagar

Rajkot

Pune

Warangal

Gandhinagar

Solapur

Allahabad

Surat

Navi Mumbai

Bareilly

Ambala

Ahmednagar

Kanpur

Hisar

Kolhapur

Muzaffarnagar

Karnal

Nanded

Agra

Kurushetra

Raigad

Gorakhpur

Panipat

Thane

Lucknow

Rohtak

Vasai

Varanasi

Shimla

Aurangabad

Aligarh

Jhansi

Moradabad

Dehradun

Haldwani

Roorkee

Asansol

Durgapur

Bankura

Burdwan

Kolkata

Hooghly

Kalyani

Siliguri

CAT 2021 Score

• Candidates' CAT 2021 scorecards will be made accessible on the CAT website. Candidates may also be intimated individually by SMS. The CAT results are likely to be declared by the second week of January, 2022.

• The CAT 2021 score is valid only till December 31, 2022 and will accordingly be accessible on the website. Thereafter, no queries related to the issuance of CAT 2021 scorecards will be entertained

Results & Shortlisting

• Information related to the CAT 2021 results will be tentatively available starting from the second week of January 2022 on this website

• The list of candidates shortlisted for the next level of selection will be made available on the website of the respective IIMs

Also, see - CAT Result Declared, Check now

CAT 2021 Admit Card

• Admit cards for CAT 2021 will be available in the 4^th week of October 2021. Exact dates will be available after the release of official notification.

• Admit Card contains Personal Details, Test Venue, Exam Session, etc. Candidates need to carry a valid photo ID issued by the Government of India along with an Admit Card.

Also, see - CAT Admit Card

CAT 2021 Exam Syllabus

For the CAT exam, there is no predefined syllabus. The syllabus is mainly from the middle school topics of Maths, and English with some generic logical reasoning questions. A few of the details of the CAT syllabus are:

Check out - CAT 2021 Syllabus, Latest CAT Exam Syllabus

CAT Quantitative Aptitude

The syllabus for CAT quantitative aptitude mainly includes topics from class 8-10 like geometry, algebra, number system, etc.

CAT Logical Reasoning & Data Interpretation

The logical reasoning section is very generic and a wide variety of questions based on seating arrangement, direction sense test, etc. are included. The data interpretation section includes questions mostly based on data caselets and graphs.

CAT Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension

In this section, comprehension passages are given followed by a few questions. Apart from that, few of the grammar-based questions like sentence completion, jumbled sentences, etc. are asked.

To know the detailed syllabus for all these sections, visit CAT syllabus where the section wise important topics are also given along with PDF.