CAT Entrance Exam: Dates, Eligibility, Syllabus, and Pattern

CAT exam, also known as the Common Admission Test is a computer-based common aptitude examination for a 2-year MBA program from 20 IIM colleges and other reputable B-schools in India. The CAT Exam is conducted every year in a rotational pattern. 

The registration for the CAT exam 2023 has started and if you are keen to join IIMs or 1200 other business schools, then it is your chance to ace this examination. As you would want to learn about the CAT entrance exam, this blog will be a complete guide that will help you understand the CAT exam 2023.

What is CAT Exam 2023?

"What is the use of the CAT exam?" you may wonder. The first milestone that an MBA aspirant looks forward to is clearing the CAT exam. The CAT exam is an extremely competitive exam, where only a handful of students get admission into the institute of their dreams!

The Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) conducts the CAT exam as a selection test that serves as an entrance to business administration programs. Every year, 2 lakh candidates appear for this examination, out of which only 5000+ earn their place in one of the prestigious IIMs or top B-schools in India.

Before you appear for the CAT exam 2023, you need to keep some important details in mind. These details are described at length below.

What’s New in the CAT Exam 2023?

As you are going to appear for the CAT exam 2023, here’s what you need to know.

• The fee was increased for applicants in the General category from INR 2,200 to INR 2,300 and for candidates in the Reserved category from INR 1,100 to INR 1,150.
• In the CAT application form, candidates had to state if they had received their COVID-19 vaccination.
• Holders of FCAI degrees now meet expanded CAT eligibility requirements. They are now also qualified to take the CAT exam 2023.

CAT 2023 exam application process

The application process for CAT exam 2023 aspirants is a fully automated, online process and the official website for CAT registrations is iimcat.ac.in.

Aspirants must fill in the relevant and appropriate details properly for the CAT 2023 exam registration. With it, an application fee of ₹ 2,300 (₹ 1,150 for SC/ST/PwD), must also be deposited.

While applying, make sure you have the documents specified in this article close - by for uploading. Make sure the following is followed to avoid rejection of the application.

• The photograph ought not to be over a half year old. The photograph ought to be inside the components of 30mm X 45mm and in .jpg or .jpeg design. The photograph ought not to be under 150 px/inch in goal.
• Filtered Signature: The mark should be inside the elements of 30mm X 35mm and in .jpg or .jpeg. It ought to be clear and on a white foundation.
• NC-OBC/SC/ST Certificate: If you have a place with NC-OBC, SC or ST class, you should download the position testament from the CAT Website, enter the necessary data, self-confirm it and transfer its examined duplicate as a PDF archive.
• PwD Certificate: If you have a place with the PwD class, you are needed to download the PwD authentication from the CAT site, fill it, self-validate it and transfer its filtered duplicate as a PDF record.

CAT registration is a three-step process that includes online registration, filling up the CAT entrance exam application form and payment of fees.

Step 1: To apply candidates must register on the official website by following the steps:

• Open the official CAT exam website in a new window or click: iimcat.ac.in
• Click on 'New Candidate RegistrationBehavioural
• Enter name, DOB, email address, mobile number and nationality
• Click on 'Generate OTP'
• With the successful registration, OTP is generated and sent to the registered mobile.
• Verify the CAT registration process and status by entering the OTP.

Step 2: Fill up the CAT Application Form after verification, a user ID and password will be sent to the mentioned email ID and mobile number. Log in with these credentials for further process

Step 3: Payment and Application Fee depositing

• After filling in the lengthy and true details of the first sections, click on 'save and continue'.
• The fee payment window will appear.
• The CAT exam 2023 Application Fee is as follows
• General and NC-OBC:- ₹ 2,300
• SC, ST and PwD:- ₹ 1,150

CAT Exam 2023 Info

To begin with, you would be required to complete your registration procedure. The registration is a three-step easy process that includes:

• Registering online
• Filling up the CAT exam form
• Paying the CAT exam fees

Following this, you need to pay the CAT exam 2023 fee which is ₹ 2,300 for the general category, and ₹ 1,150 for the reserved category.

Some particulars of the CAT exam are as follows:

CAT Exam Mode	Online
Conducted By	IIM Lucknow
Exam Date (2023)	November 26, 2023
Official Website	iimcat.ac.in
Duration of Exam	2 Hours
Sections in the Exam	a) Quantitative Ability b) Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension c) Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning
Medium of CAT Exam	English
Is calculator provided in CAT	Calculator in CAT exam is not allowed
Help-desk Contact	cathelpdesk@iimcat.ac.in 1-800-210-1088

CAT Exam 2023 Eligibility

To appear for the CAT exam 2023, you have to fulfil the following eligibility criteria:

• Bachelor's degree: You should hold a Bachelor's degree from a recognized board with a minimum of 50% marks. For students belonging to a reserved category, the minimum is 45% marks. 
• The degree must be provided by any of the Universities included by an act of the central or a state legislature in India, or any other educational institutions established by an act of Parliament or are declared to be deemed as a University under Section 3 of the UGC Act, 1956, or hold an equivalent qualification recognized by the MHRD, India.
• Eligibility for the CAT exam 2023 also includes those candidates who are in the final year of their Bachelor's degree, appearing for their final exams or awaiting the results for the same.

If a candidate can meet these CAT exam requirements, they qualify to appear for the exam.

CAT Exam 2023 Syllabus

As mentioned above the CAT exam paper is divided into 3 sections:

• Quantitative Ability
• Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension
• Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning

A common factor linking these sections, in terms of the syllabus for the CAT exam 2023, is that they require a clear understanding of topics included within a school curriculum till Class 12. These topics include lessons from English and Maths along with logical reasoning.

While there is no particular CAT exam syllabus, here are some pointers for you to prepare yourself well for the CAT exam 2023:

CAT Syllabus sections	CAT Syllabus topics
Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension (VARC)	Reading Comprehension, Para Jumbles, Para Summary and Odd Sentence Out
Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning (DILR)	Set Theory (Variables), Set Theory + Puzzles, Puzzles with Additional Data, Coding-Decoding and Series
Quantitative Aptitude (QA)	Number System, Algebra, Arithmetic, Geometry and Mensuration

Preparation is the avenue to success in all walks of life. So, all you have to do is prepare with your heart and mind till you reap the results you look forward to!

CAT Exam 2023 Dates

Here are some important details you need to remember with regard to the CAT exam 2023 date:

Online Registration (Start Date)	First week of August
Online Registration (Close Date)	Third week of September
Admit Card	Last week of October
Exam Date	November 26, 2023
Slots Available	Morning slot: 8:30 AM to 10:30 AM Afternoon slot: 12:30 PM to 2:30 PM Evening slot: 4:30 PM to 6:30 PM
Result Declaration	Last week of December 2023

CAT Exam Pattern

The CAT entrance exam question paper is divided into three main segments: Quantitative Ability, Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension, and Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning.

For an easier understanding of the exam pattern, read below:

Number of sections	3
Number of questions	66
Total marks	198
CAT exam time duration	120 mins 40 minutes each section
Question type	MCQ & Non-MCQs
Marking pattern	+3 for correct entry -1 for incorrect entry No negative marking for non-MCQs

Documents required for the CAT entrance exam

Before starting the CAT exam Registration 2023 process, remember to keep handy these 10 key documents required to complete the registration process:

1. Documents related to your Educational history from class 10 onwards
2. Mark sheets – Class-10
3. Mark Sheet – Class 12th
4. Mark sheet – Bachelor’s Degree/Diploma
5. Final Year Certificate from the HoD/Principal (If in the final year of bachelor’s degree) also previous year mark sheet
6. Work experience Document, if any
7. Applicable Certificates to Upload (Category/Affidavits)
8. Scanned images of your passport-size photo and signature. See detail below.
9. Keep ready the list of the IIM programs one wishes to apply to before filling in the application form.
10. Keep ready the Registration fee payment instruments like Debit/Credit cards, Net banking. 

CAT Exam 2023 Preparation

The CAT exam is one of the most competitive entrance tests. You could miss out on clearing it by the slightest margin.

To ensure that you have a robust preparation, you need a minimum of six months to prepare. So, if you are appearing for it this year, your preparation for the CAT 2023 exam should have ideally started around May. However, even if it hasn't, here are some important CAT exam 2023 preparation tips that are sure to help you:

• Over 50% of your preparation for the CAT exam should entail solving CAT mock papers and previous years' question papers. You need to confront your weak areas and work on them.
• Refer to important texts for the three different sections in the paper.
• Based on your strengths and weaknesses, make a list of topics and address the weak areas.
• Make good use of social media platforms such as Facebook, Telegram, and YouTube by joining online study groups.
• Devote an equal amount of time to the three different sections of the paper. Cover a topic from each section every day.
• Make sure to prepare for quantitative questions since the use of calculator in CAT exam is not allowed.

CAT Exam 2023 cutoff

The CAT exam cut-off for IIM is typically up to 99 to 100 percentile for general category candidates. For the reserved category students (SC/ ST/ PwD), the CAT cutoff marks are slightly lower at the 97 to 98 percentile.

CAT Test Centres

CAT exam 2023 will be held in 150 centres across India - in all states. You can find out the test centre nearest to you by visiting the official website of IIM-CAT. We have given the process of checking the nearest CAT exam centre below.

1. Visit the official website
2. On the top right corner click on ‘Exam Cities’
3. From a top-down menu, you need to select your state
4. You will be shown a list of centres in your state

CAT Exam 2023 Result

CAT entrance exam results will be announced on the official website of IIM-CAT. Candidates can log in using their User ID and Password. The result will only be available online, and you can download and save a digital copy or print-out. During admission into colleges, a copy of the result is usually required.

CAT Exam Selection Process

There are 20 Indian Institute of Management colleges and are considered the most prestigious set of institutions across India. The various IIMs are -Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Bangalore, Bodh Gaya, Calcutta, Indore, Kashipur, Kozhikode, Lucknow, Nagpur, Raipur, Ranchi, Rohtak, Sambalpur, Shillong, Sirmaur, Tiruchirappalli, Udaipur, Jammu and Visakhapatnam.

The overall selection procedure for the CAT entrance exam 2021 is more or less the same across all IIMs, however, the weightage of each component varies. The admission criteria for IIMs is an elaborate process.

Note: Each B-school follows its individual admission and student screening process. Make sure to check the admission process on the individual websites of the college you are interested in.

Step 1: CAT 2023 Entrance Test

1. Students will write the CAT 2023 entrance test in November 2023, after which the IIMs will announce the cutoffs – sectional and overall
2. Based on their performance, candidates will be selected for further rounds
3. Each IIM will take out their individual CAT exam 2023 cutoff and call students.

Step 2: GD and/or WAT

Candidates who clear the individual cutoff for respective IIMs will be called for Writing Ability Test and a Group Discussion

Step 3: Personal Interview (PI)

The final round is the personal interview where candidates are judged on - knowledge, communication skills, overall academic performance, performance in previous rounds and common sense.

Step 4: Individual Final Merit List

• Each IIM releases its individual admission criteria on their website.
• Based on the below factors the IIMs release their final merit list
• CAT exam score
• Overall performance in WAT, GD and PI rounds
• Class 10th and 12th Marks
• Gender Diversity Factor
• Work Experience
• Reservations

Exam Day Guidelines

There are certain guidelines that candidates need to follow. In this section, we will discuss about the documents to carry and the items prohibited in the exam hall.

Documents to Carry:

• Two printouts of admit cards with photos affixed on them.
• Photo identity proof like PAN, Aadhar card, Passport, Voter ID card, etc.
• If you have changed the name, then name change document as well.
• PwD or Scribe certificate if you belong to the PwD category.

Items Prohibited:

• Phone, calculator, iPad, watch or any other electronic item.
• Bags or purses
• Jewellery or accessories that contain metal
• Closed footwear
• Jackets or clothes with pockets
• Eatables or beverages

CAT Exam 2023 Answer Key

• Visit the official website of CAT 2023 (iimcat.ac.in)
• Click on the 'login' tab
• Enter CAT login ID and password
• Click on 'CAT 2023 answer key' will appear on the screen
• Click on 'download' icon to save it as PDF

CAT Analysis

To ace this competitive exam, it is very important to understand and analyze the question papers from previous years.

From 2015 to 2018, the exam pattern has remained unchanged. There were 34 questions from the QA section, 32 from LR & DI, and 34 from VARC.

You may be wondering about the significance of this analysis, so, here are some of its uses:

• It helps you understand the pattern of the exam. This aids you in applying strategic plans to solve these papers.
• It helps you understand the level of difficulty. You can figure out which sections are more difficult and tailor your study plan accordingly.
• It helps you figure out the important topics so that you can identify them and focus on preparing them better.

About Sunstone

Sunstone is a higher education service provider through which you can apply for a BBA course in reputed colleges. Not only that, with Sunstone by your side, you can become job-ready as there are various advantages provided. Some of the benefits to take into consideration are:

• A capstone project to work on every semester
• 70+ training and development sessions by top recruiters and industry experts
• 50+ guaranteed job interviews with Placement Protection Plan
• Learn from expert guest faculty who are ex-IIMs and IITs
• Helps in building a professional portfolio that improves your chances of getting hired.
• 0-cost EMI option available according to course duration
• If you appear in the Sunstone scholarship test, you can get a scholarship worth ₹10 Cr.

FAQs - CAT Exam 2023

What is CAT Exam's full form?

CAT stands for Common Admission Test, which is a computer-based test for admission to a graduate management program.

How many times is the CAT Exam conducted in a year?

The CAT entrance exam is conducted once a year, usually in November or December.

What is the CAT Exam for?

The CAT entrance exam is meant for a 2-year MBA program. However, you can also apply for an MBA program based on other management exams like XAT, MAT, CMAT, etc. You can get a list of MBA colleges with low CAT scores with our Sunstone blog.

How many attempts for the CAT exam are allowed?

There is no limit to the number of times that a candidate can take the CAT entrance exam.

Can we use the calculator in CAT exam?

No, a calculator in CAT exam is not allowed.