Indian Institute of Management (IIMs) on an annual basis conducts a common entrance exam for admission in various management programmes offered by them. Through CAT 2023, candidates can enroll themselves in post-graduate programmes in management and fellow programmes in management. The admission process comprises of written test, group discussion and personal interview. The process might vary from IIMs to IIMs.

The application form for CAT 2023 exam is expected to be released in the 2^nd week of August 2023. Candidates must ensure their eligibility criteria before they apply for the exam. The exam will be conducted in online mode and candidates will get a total of 3 hours to complete the test. Candidates can also apply to other B-schools based on their CAT score.

CAT 2023

1. Only online applications will be considered by the authority for submission. No printed forms will be released by the authority in this regard.
2. The registration fee has to be paid only once despite the number of institutions a candidate applies for.
3. It is mandatory for the applicants to hold a valid email id and mobile number. The institutes will communicate with them via these mediums in the future.
4. Mere appearing in the exam or fulfillment of the eligibility criteria is not subjected to the selection of the candidates.
5. Candidates will get interview letters directly from the IIMs. The selection criteria for each IMM may vary accordingly.

CAT 2023 Important dates

Candidates can note down the tentative dates for CAT 2023 examination-

Events	Dates (Expected)
Registration opens from	2nd week of August 2023
Last date to register	4th week of September 2023
Admit card downloading	4th week of October 2023
Exam date	4th week of November 2023
Result declaration	1st week of January 2023

CAT 2023 Exam pattern

The exam pattern for CAT 2023 is as follows-

• Exam mode: Online
• Language: English
• Duration: 3 hours
• Type of questions: objective and numerical type
• Marking scheme: every correct answer will fetch 3 marks
• Negative marking: 1 mark will be deducted as a penalty for incorrect answer. No negative marking for numerical questions.

Subject	Number of questions	Maximum marks	Duration
Quantitative ability	34	102	1 hour
Verbal ability and reading comprehension	34	102	1 hour
Data interpretation and logical reasoning	32	96	1 hour
Total	100	300	3 hours

CAT 2023 Syllabus

Here’s the syllabus for CAT exam that the candidates must go through to score better marks-

• Verbal ability and reading comprehension: English grammar and usage, reading comprehension, fill in the blanks, sentence correction, analogy, vocabulary based questions, cloze test, word-meaning etc.
• Data interpretation and logical reasoning: Clocks, Venn diagrams, cubes, seating arrangement, logical sequence, blood relation, direction sense, caselets, tables, pie chart, line graph, binary logic, calendars etc.
• Quantitative ability: Time and work, simple and compound interest, percentage, profit, loss and discount, average, simplification, set theory and function, LCM and HCF, quadratic equation, sequence and series, inequalities, ration and proportions, etc.

Reference books for CAT 2023 exam

Candidates can note down the recommended books that will help them in gaining good marks in the exam-

• Quantitative ability: Quantitative aptitude by Arun Sharma, R S Aggarwal and Arihant Publications.
• Data interpretation by Arun Sharma
• Verbal ability and reading comprehension for CAT by Meenakshi Upadhyaya
• Word power made easy by Norman Lewis
• Pearson’s book on CAT preparation.

CAT 2023 Application form

To apply for the CAT 2023 examination, candidates need to visit the official website i.e. iimcat.ac.in. After registering for the exam, they will receive a user ID and password which must be used for filling the application form. The application form will ask for details such as- personal details, academics, work experience, programmes, test city, payment among others. These details must be filled correctly as if found incorrect; it may lead to the disqualification of the candidates.

Applicants are also required to upload their scanned documents while filling the form. They must review the form before making the final submission as no correction window will be given to edit the information filled in the form once submitted. The form must be submitted on time along with the application fee to avoid rejection of the application. Candidates need not send the hardcopy of the filled-in application form to the authority.

Application fee

Category	Application fee
SC/ ST and PWD candidates	Rs. 950/-
Others	Rs. 1900/-

Mode of payment: Applicants can pay the stated fee through payment wallets, credit card, debit card, net banking, cash card and other wallets. The application fee once paid will not be refunded back.

CAT 2023 Eligibility criteria

It is necessary for the applicants to fulfill the eligibility conditions laid down by the authority to appear in the exam-

• Qualifying examination: Applicants must have done graduation in any discipline with at least 50% aggregate marks or equivalent from a recognized university. Candidates from SC/ST and PWD category need only secure 45% marks in aggregate. Applicants who are in the final year of their bachelor’s degree program can also appear in the exam.
• Important note: Candidates who have completed the professional courses of CA/CS/ICWA with minimum 50% marks in aggregate can also apply.

CAT 2023 Admit card

• Candidates can download the admit card of CAT 2023 from the official website i.e. ac.in
• Candidates must bring the printed copy of the admit card to the exam hall along with a valid id proof.
• Those who are not found with these documents will not be allowed to appear in the exam.
• Any discrepancy in the admit card must be communicated with the authority without any delay.
• The admit card must be preserved for future purpose.

CAT Result 2023

• The authority will publish the result on its official website. Candidates can check the same by login into the website.
• The scores secured by the candidates will be valid only till December 2023.
• Applicants who qualify the written exam will be called by the IIMs for interview round as per their discretion.
• The process of selection varies from IIM to IIM based on the factors such as experience, performance in the exam, academic diversity, and academic performance of the candidates among others.
• Candidates can also apply to other B-schools based on their CAT scores.