Common Admission Test

Last updated

Common Admission Test
AcronymCAT
TypeComputer-based standardized test
Administrator Indian Institutes of Management
Skills testedQuantitative Aptitude, Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning, Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension
PurposeAdmission to post-graduate management programs
Duration2 hours
Score rangevaries annually
Score validity1 year
OfferedOnce a year (usually on the last Sunday of November).
Restrictions on attemptsNo restriction
Regions170+ cities and towns all over India.
Languages English
Annual number of test takersIncrease2.svg 2.88 Lakhs (CAT 2023)
PrerequisitesBachelor's degree (or equivalent) with at least 50 % marks or equivalent GPA (45 % in case of SC, ST, PWD candidates). Final year undergraduate students also eligible
Fee₹2,500 (US$30) for all other candidates. [1]
₹1,250 (US$15) for SC/ST/PWD category candidates
Used byVarious business schools in India
Website iimcat.ac.in

The Common Admission Test (CAT) [2] is a computer based test for admission in graduate management programs. The test consists of three sections: Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension, Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning and Quantitative Ability. The exam is taken online over a period of three hours, with one hour per section. In 2020, due to the COVID precautions, The Indian Institutes of Management Indore decided to conduct the CAT Exam in 2 hours with 40 minutes devoted to each section. [3] The Indian Institutes of Management started this exam and use the test for selecting students for their business administration programs (MBA or PGDM). The test is conducted every year by one of the Indian Institutes of Managements based on a policy of rotation.

Contents

In August 2011, it was announced that Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and Indian Institute of Science (IISc) would also use the CAT scores, instead of the Joint Management Entrance Test (JMET), to select students for their management programmes starting with the 2012-15 batch. [4]

Before 2010, CAT was a paper based test conducted on a single day for all candidates. The pattern, number of questions and duration have seen considerable variations over the years.

On 1 May 2009, it was announced that CAT would be a Computer Based Test starting from 2009. The American firm Prometric was entrusted with the responsibility of conducting the test from 2009 to 2013. [5] The first computer based CAT was marred with technical snags. [6] The issue was so serious that it prompted the Government of India to seek a report from the convenor. [7] The trouble was diagnosed as 'Conficker' and 'W32 Nimda', the two viruses that attacked the system display of the test, causing server slow down. [8] Since 2014 onward, CAT has been conducted by Tata Consultancy Services (TCS). CAT 2015 and CAT 2016 were 180-minute tests consisting of 100 questions (34 from Quantitative Ability, 34 from Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension, and 32 from Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning. [9] CAT 2020 onwards, the exam duration has been reduced to two hours, with 40 minutes allotted per section. [10]

Eligibility for CAT

The candidate must satisfy the below specified criteria: [11]

  1. Hold a bachelor's degree, with not less than 50% or equal CGPA (45% for Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribe (ST) and Persons with Disability (PWD)/Differently Able (DA) classification)
  2. The degree should be granted by any of the universities consolidated by an act of the central or state statutory body in India or other instructive organizations built up by an act of Parliament or pronounced to be considered as a university under Section 3 of the UGC Act, 1956, or possess an equivalent qualification recognized by the Ministry of HRD, Government of India.
  3. Competitors appearing for the final year of bachelor's degree/equivalent qualification examination and the individuals who have finished degree prerequisites and are anticipating results can likewise apply. If selected, such applicants will be permitted to join the program temporarily, only if they present a certificate most recent by June of next year in which the exam is held, from the principal/registrar of their college/institute (issued at the latest 30th June of that year) expressing that the competitor has finished every one of the prerequisites for acquiring four-year or three-year college education/identical capability on the date of the issue of the certificate.

Exam pattern

The Common Admission Test (CAT), like virtually all large-scale exams, utilises multiple forms, or versions, of the test. Hence there are two types of scores involved: a raw score and a scaled score.

The raw score is calculated for each section based on the number of questions one answered correctly, incorrectly, or left unattempted. Candidates are given +3 points for each correct answer and -1 point for each incorrect answer, no negative marking for TITA (Type in the Answer) questions. [12] No points are given for questions that are not answered. The raw scores are then adjusted through a process called equating. Equated raw scores are then placed on a common scale or metric to ensure appropriate interpretation of the scores. This process is called 'scaling'.

The change in the total number of questions and number of questions per section in CAT can vary by year. On the whole, there are 66 number of questions combining each section. The very first section which is the verbal ability and reading comprehension contains 24 questions, further bifurcating 16 questions of reading comprehension and 8 questions of verbal ability, then next section is of data interpretation and logical reasoning which contains 20 questions and the last section is of quantitative ability which contains 22 questions making it to 66 questions in total.

CAT is conducted in three slots/sessions (Morning Slot, Afternoon Slot, Evening Slot). [13]

CAT Pattern and Duration

Source: [14]

Three 40-minute sessions will be held to conduct the CAT 2024 exam. A total of 120 minutes will be given. The CAT exam pattern will consist of multiple choice questions (MCQs) and non-multiple-choice questions or TITA {Type In The Answer} questions. The three sections in the exam are as follows:

-> 24 questions are asked in VARC out which 8 questions are of VA (Para jumble - 2 TITA questions , Para summary - 2 MCQ questions , Odd one out - 2 TITA questions , Sentence Placement - 2 MCQ questions) 16 questions of RC are asked by 4 passages with 4 questions in each passage (all questions are of MCQ type).

-> 20 questions are asked in DILR , questions are asked in 4 sets with 6-6-4-4 or 5-5-5-5 pattern.

-> 22 questions are asked in QA , 22 independent questions are asked from topics such as Arithmetic , Algebra , Geometry , Number System & Modern Math.

There will be a maximum score of 198 marks and 66 total questions in the CAT exam pattern.

Candidates cannot jump between the three sections while taking the exam. The order of the sections is fixed: VARC -> DILR -> QA.

CAT registrations in numbers over the years

The number of registrations in the past years are shown in the following chart: [15]

YearNo. of candidates

Registered

No. of candidates

Appeared [16]

2005 [17] 170,000155,000
2006191,000180,000
2007250,000230,000
2008290,000276,000
2009241,000230,000
2010204,000185,000
2011205,000186,000
2012214,000195,000
2013194,516173,714 [18]
2014196,988170,000 [19]
2015218,664179,602 [20]
2016232,434195,679
2017 [21] 231,067 [22] 199,632
2018 [23] 240,338209,405
2019244,169209,926
2020227,835190,144
2021229,969191,660
2022 [24] 255,501222,184
2023328,000 [25] 288,000

Note: Data of candidates registered till 2012 are approximate.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SAT</span> Standardized test widely used for college admissions in the United States

The SAT is a standardized test widely used for college admissions in the United States. Since its debut in 1926, its name and scoring have changed several times. For much of its history, it was called the Scholastic Aptitude Test and had two components, Verbal and Mathematical, each of which was scored on a range from 200 to 800. Later it was called the Scholastic Assessment Test, then the SAT I: Reasoning Test, then the SAT Reasoning Test, then simply the SAT.

The Japanese-Language Proficiency Test, or JLPT, is a standardized criterion-referenced test to evaluate and certify Japanese language proficiency for non-native speakers, covering language knowledge, reading ability, and listening ability. The test is held twice a year in Japan and selected countries, and once a year in other regions. The JLPT is conducted by the Japan Foundation for tests overseas, and Japan Educational Exchanges and Services for tests in Japan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Graduate Management Admission Test</span> Computer adaptive test (CAT)

The Graduate Management Admission Test is a computer adaptive test (CAT) intended to assess certain analytical, quantitative, verbal, and data literacy skills for use in admission to a graduate management program, such as a Master of Business Administration (MBA) program. Answering the test questions requires reading comprehension, and mathematical skills such as arithmetic, and algebra. The Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) owns and operates the test, and states that the GMAT assesses critical thinking and problem-solving abilities while also addressing data analysis skills that it believes to be vital to real-world business and management success. It can be taken up to five times a year but no more than eight times total. Attempts must be at least 16 days apart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Graduate Record Examinations</span> Standardized tests

The Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) is a standardized test that is part of the admissions process for many graduate schools in the United States and Canada and a few other countries. The GRE is owned and administered by Educational Testing Service (ETS). The test was established in 1936 by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.

The Swedish Scholastic Aptitude Test (SweSAT)(Swedish: högskoleprovet) is a standardised test used as one of the means to gain admission to higher education in Sweden. The test itself, which is administered by the Swedish Council for Higher Education, is divided into a mathematical part and a verbal part, which both respectively contain 4 subdivisions, in total 160 multiple-choice questions. All sections are taken in one day, a Saturday in April or a Sunday in October, lasting between 7½ and 8 hours including breaks between each section and a lunch break. Apart from the English language reading comprehension test, all sections are taken in Swedish.

Joint Entrance Examination – Advanced (JEE-Advanced), is an academic examination held annually in India that tests the skills and knowledge of the applicants in physics, chemistry and mathematics. It is organised by one of the seven zonal IITs: IIT Roorkee, IIT Kharagpur, IIT Delhi, IIT Kanpur, IIT Bombay, IIT Madras, and IIT Guwahati, under the guidance of the Joint Admission Board (JAB) on a round-robin rotation pattern for the qualifying candidates of the JEE-Main. It used to be the sole prerequisite for admission to the Indian Institutes of Technology bachelor's programs before the introduction of UCEED, Online B.S. and Olympiad entries, but seats through these new media are very low.

The Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) is an entrance examination conducted in India that primarily tests the comprehensive understanding of undergraduate subjects in engineering and sciences for admission to postgraduate programs. GATE is conducted jointly by the Indian Institute of Science and seven Indian Institutes of Technologies at Roorkee, Delhi, Guwahati, Kanpur, Kharagpur, Chennai (Madras) and Mumbai (Bombay) on behalf of the National Coordination Board – GATE, Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education (MoE), Government of India.

Madhya Pradesh-Pre Engineering Test was a state level examination organised by the Vyapam Board for admission to Engineering Colleges in Madhya Pradesh, India. After 2007 over 1 million students participated in the exam each year It was conducted by Vyapam, the Professional Examination Board of Madhya Pradesh. Vyapam had been conducting the MP-PET since 1981. PET was based on syllabus of subjects Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics of grade 11 and 12.

The Secondary School Admission Test (SSAT) is an admission test administered by The Enrollment Management Association in the United States to students in grades 3–11 to provide a standardized measure that will help professionals in independent or private elementary, middle, and high schools to make decisions regarding student test taking.

West Bengal Joint Entrance Examination (WBJEE) is a state-government controlled centralized test, conducted by the West Bengal Joint Entrance Examinations Board for admission into Undergraduate Courses in Engineering/Technology, Pharmacy and Architecture of different Universities, Government Colleges as well as Self Financing, Private Institutes in the State of West Bengal.

The Psychometric Entrance Test (PET) – commonly known in Hebrew as "ha-Psikhometri" – is a standardized test that serves as an entrance exam for institutions of higher education in Israel. The PET covers three areas: quantitative reasoning, verbal reasoning and English language. It is administered by the National Institute for Testing and Evaluation (NITE) and plays a considerable role in the admissions process. A score combining students' performance on the PET with the average score of their high school matriculation tests has been found to be a highly predictive indicator of students' academic performance in their first year of higher education.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Common Law Admission Test</span> University entrance test in India

The Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) is a centralized national-level entrance test for admissions to the 25 out of 27 National Law Universities (NLU) except NLU Delhi and NLU Meghalaya. CLAT was first introduced in 2008 as a centralized entrance examination for admission to the National Law Schools/Universities in India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joint Admission Test for Masters</span> All India entrance test, jointly conducted by IITs

The Joint Admission Test for Masters (JAM) is a common admission test conducted every year for admission into Master of Science (M.Sc.) and other post-graduate science programs at Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Indian Institutes of Information Technology (IIITs) and National Institutes of Technology (NITs), organized by alternating institutes every year. JAM has been conducted since 2004. The 2021 edition has been organized by Indian Institute of Science. JAM 2022 was Organized by Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee. Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati is the Organizing Institute for JAM 2023. Indian Institute of Technology Madras is the Organizing Institute for JAM 2024.

The Health Professions Admissions Test - Ireland is a university admissions test. It is used by all universities in Ireland for admissions to medicine courses, and by the University of Ulster for some medicine related courses.

The Teacher Eligibility Test, known as TET, is the minimum qualification required in India for a person to be eligible for an appointment as a teacher for Classes I to VIII. The test is mandatory for teaching jobs in Indian government schools. Similarly, UP Government introduced another qualifying after UPTET called Super TET. The 24111143967 is conducted by both the central and state governments of India. Most states conduct their own TET. The test is conducted to meet the objectives of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009. The TET certificate is valid for lifetime.

The National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (Undergraduate) or NEET (UG), formerly the All India Pre-Medical Test (AIPMT), is an Indian nationwide entrance examination conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) for admission in undergraduate medical programs. Being a mandatory exam for admission in medical programs, it is the biggest exam in India in terms of number of applicants.

Common Management Admission Test (CMAT) is an online computer-based test conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA), India. It is a national-level admission test for facilitating institutions to select suitable students for admission in all management programmes approved by AICTE.

The Policy Aptitude Test (PAT) is an offline written test held in India. This test scores a person on the bases of General Knowledge, Numerical Problem Solving, Policy Aptitude, Logical Reasoning, English Language and Policy Analysis Ability. The National Law School of India University, Bengaluru (NLSIU) started this exam and use the test for selecting students for its Public Policy Programme. The test is conducted every year.

The Common University Entrance Test (CUET), formerly Central Universities Common Entrance Test (CUCET) is a standardised test in India conducted by the National Testing Agency at various levels—CUET (UG), CUET (PG), and CUET (PhD), for admission to undergraduate, postgraduate, and doctorate programmes in Central Universities and other participating institutes. It is also accepted by number of other State Universities and Deemed universities in India.

The National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (Postgraduate), abbreviated as NEET (PG) is an entrance examination in India conducted by the National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences (NBEMS) for determining eligibility of candidates for admission to postgraduate medical programmes in government or private medical colleges, such as Doctor of Medicine (MD), Master of Surgery (MS), PG diploma, Diplomate of National Board (DNB), Doctorate of National Board (DrNB), and NBEMS diploma. This exam replaced All India Post Graduate Medical Entrance Examination (AIPGMEE). The counselling and seat allotment is conducted by Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).

References

  1. ↑ "Common Admission Test (CAT) 2021 Information Bulletin" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 5 August 2022. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
  2. ↑ "CAT 2015". iimcat.ac.in. Archived from the original on 28 July 2014. Retrieved 9 December 2015.
  3. ↑ "CAT 2020 Media Release" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 28 September 2020. Retrieved 8 January 2021.
  4. ↑ "CAT replaces JMET in IIT, IISc". Deccan Chronicle. 27 August 2011. Archived from the original on 27 August 2011. Retrieved 10 February 2012.
  5. ↑ "CAT to go online from this year". Business Line. 1 May 2009. Archived from the original on 2 January 2021. Retrieved 10 February 2012.
  6. ↑ "Snags hit 7,000 candidates at CAT". The Hindu. 1 December 2009. Archived from the original on 26 June 2012. Retrieved 10 February 2012.
  7. ↑ "Govt seeks report from CAT convener on exam disruption". The Times of India . 30 November 2009. Archived from the original on 23 September 2012. Retrieved 10 February 2012.
  8. ↑ "IIM-A names two viruses that caused CAT chaos". The Economic Times. 1 December 2009. Retrieved 10 February 2012.
  9. ↑ "CAT 2015" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 22 May 2022. Retrieved 7 April 2016.
  10. ↑ "CAT Exam Pattern 2021: Check Here - New Section Wise Pattern and Marking Scheme". www.mbauniverse.com. Retrieved 17 September 2021.
  11. ↑ "CAT Eligibility - IIM Ahmedabad". Archived from the original on 13 June 2021. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
  12. ↑ "MBA Entrance Exams in India - Check Exam Dates, Fees & Pattern".
  13. ↑ "All You Need to Know About Common Aptitude Test". Hindustan Times.
  14. ↑ "CAT 2023 Mock Test Navigation Guide" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 26 May 2024. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
  15. ↑ "CAT Registration 2022, Start Date, Last Date and How to Apply". bschool.careers360.com. 29 March 2017. Archived from the original on 16 July 2018. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
  16. ↑ "No Change in Percentage of CAT 2021 Test Takers: 1.92 Lakh including 35% Women took CAT 2021". www.mbauniverse.com. Archived from the original on 2 June 2021. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
  17. ↑ "CAT Registration Trends, Facts and Figures over the Years". bschool.careers360.com. 10 August 2013. Retrieved 28 July 2022.
  18. ↑ "CAT 2013: Even with a blank sheet you can score in 55th percentile". Firstpost. 15 January 2014. Archived from the original on 28 July 2022. Retrieved 28 July 2022.
  19. ↑ "CAT 2014 results to be declared on December 27; 1.7 lakh candidates eyeing outcome". The Economic Times. Archived from the original on 6 July 2022. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
  20. ↑ "CAT 2015: 179602 candidates appeared in the exam; 58,270 comprising girls". www.mbauniverse.com. Archived from the original on 29 September 2023. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
  21. ↑ "CAT 2017: About 2.31 lakh candidates register for exam this year". India Today. 26 September 2017. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
  22. ↑ "Over 1.99 lakh candidates appear for CAT conducted by IIM-Lucknow". Hindustan Times. 26 November 2017. Archived from the original on 10 July 2022. Retrieved 10 July 2022.
  23. ↑ "CAT 2018: Number of test takers touches 2 lakh mark after a decade, 13 per cent skip the test". bschool.careers360.com. 29 November 2018. Archived from the original on 2 June 2021. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
  24. ↑ "CAT 2022 Media Release 01 Dec 2022" (PDF). 2 December 2022. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 December 2022. Retrieved 24 December 2022.
  25. ↑ "2.88 lakh candidates appeared for CAT 2023 | What's next? Details here". India Today. 28 November 2023. Archived from the original on 7 January 2024. Retrieved 25 June 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.