The Common Admission Test (CAT) is an all-India test conducted by the Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) as an entrance exam for the management programs of its seven business schools across India. About 250,000 students took CAT in 2008 [1] for about 1500 seats in the IIMs. This is said to make the IIMs more selective than the Ivy League Universities.[2] CAT is a computer-based, multiple-choice test with roughly one-fourth negative-mark penalties for wrong answers, and it traditionally comprises three sections that span the domains of arithmetical problem solving, geometry, statistics, data interpretation, logical reasoning, puzzles, and English language skills. The test is held on the third Sunday of November each year. The test duration is two and a half hours. The total number of questions on the exam has varied over the years to reflect its evolution from a speed-based test to an exam that evaluates fundamental abilities of candidates in the aforementioned areas. Today, the CAT has 60 questions (20 questions in each section of quantitative analysis, logical reasoning, Data interpretation, and Verbal ability) with increasing complexity of questions. The CAT is the first step for admission to the IIMs. After the test, the IIMs announce the scores by the second week of January in the subsequent year and put up a list of candidates who are eligible for the next stage of a Group Discussion and Personal Interview. The scores on CAT are relative and are calculated on a percentile basis for individual sections as well as for the total. Candidates invited for the next stage usually possess total scores that are in excess of 99 percentile and, more importantly, also possess balanced high scores across all the individual sections. Pattern of the test CAT is a test that demands proficiency in concepts, understanding, analysis, and fundamentals. The CAT paper in 2008 has a fairly simple Math section but it was full of trick questions. DI sections for 2008 was the toughest of the three. The 40 questions in English had been evenly divided for Verbal Ability (VA) and Reading Comprehension (RC). RC was easier as compared to 2007 whereas VA was tough. Other colleges Many other business schools in India, other than the IIMs, also accept the CAT scores for admission. This has contributed to the CAT gaining an extremely high level of popularity. As of 2008, CAT scores are accepted by approximately 120 MBA institutes in India.
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