CAT Exam Guide

CAT 2026 at a glance

CAT (Common Admission Test) is the primary entrance exam for IIM MBA/PGP admissions. Treat the official bulletin on iimcat.ac.in as law; coaching blogs are secondary. CAT 2026 is on Sunday, 29 November 2026, in three sessions, convened by IIM Indore. Admit cards open on 4 November and results are likely by the first week of January 2027 (CAT 2026 Information Bulletin). Question counts below use the completed CAT 2025 cycle, the latest fully documented paper. For the final month, see the CAT 2026 exam day guide.

Data as of: September 2026.

What CAT is

CAT is conducted by one of the IIMs each year on behalf of the IIM system. Scores may also be used by listed non-IIM institutions; IIMs do not control those schools’ selection processes (CAT 2025 notification, IIM Kozhikode).

CAT is a common test. Each IIM (or CAP cluster) still shortlists and admits separately. See selection criteria explained.

Eligibility (high level)

From the CAT information bulletin lineage used for CAT 2025:

• Bachelor’s degree with at least 50% marks or equivalent CGPA (45% for SC/ST/PwD), or
• Specified professional qualifications (for example CA/CS/ICWA(CMA)/FIAI) with the same percentage floors, or
• Final-year / result-awaited candidates who can meet documentation rules at joining

There is no CAT age limit in the standard bulletin framing. Full text: CAT 2025 Information Bulletin (IIMA-hosted PDF).

Meeting eligibility does not guarantee shortlisting.

Exam pattern (CAT 2025 reference)

Per the CAT 2025 media release (1 Dec 2025):

PwD candidates received extended section timing (53 minutes 20 seconds per section; 160 minutes overall) in that release. The test ran in three sessions across India.

Marking conventions in recent CAT cycles: +3 for a correct answer, −1 for a wrong MCQ, and no negative marking for non-MCQ (TITA) items. Confirm the live bulletin if the conducting IIM adjusts rules.

Typical annual timeline

Always verify dates on iimcat.ac.in for your year.

How institutes use your score

• Overall and sectional percentiles matter for floors
• Some campuses reweight sections inside composites (for example IIMB’s published CAT point splits across VARC/DILR/QA)
• Academics, gender diversity, and work experience can move the needle after CAT

Pathway guide: How to get into an IIM.

Households often read a single overall percentile as a personality score. Institutes read a vector: sectionals for floors, then a composite that may shrink CAT’s weight once WAT/PI arrives. Bangalore’s published post-PI mix, for example, still prices CAT at 25 beside heavy PI/WAT weights (IIMB admission process). Calcutta’s domestic finals keep CAT at 30 beside PI 48 (IIMC domestic admission procedure).

Practical consequence for mocks: protect the weakest section every week. A spiky overall that collapses DILR can clear coaching leaderboards and still miss Stage I floors. After results, download each shortlisted campus policy the same week; do not wait for a recycled cutoff blog to tell you whether you have a call.

Prep priorities that actually transfer

1. Sectional timing discipline (you cannot borrow minutes across sections)
2. DILR set selection under time pressure
3. Accurate QA over heroic attempts
4. RC stamina for VARC
5. Mocks that mimic section locks, not open-timer home tests

After CAT

1. Calculate your raw score from the response sheet (answer key guide), then download the scorecard and note sectional percentiles (score vs percentile)
2. Freeze a shortlist with how to shortlist IIMs
3. Track each institute’s shortlist mailer and CAP portal if applicable
4. Shift energy to WAT/PI. Month-by-month sequence: after the CAT 2026 result

The week after results

Scorecard week is when strong CAT takers lose seats to process laziness. Download sectional percentiles the same day, freeze a 4–6 campus shortlist you would actually join, and open each institute’s shortlist mailer or CAP portal calendar. Re-rank with real numbers rather than mock hearsay. Then shift energy to WAT/PI and fee PDFs; overall percentile is an input to those stages, not a finish line.

If a section sits under a campus floor you care about, stop arguing with the scorecard and widen the shortlist toward policies your profile can clear. Coverage across dream, realistic, and protection campuses is risk management when one composite formula will not save a collapsed section.

Where to go next

• IPMAT exam guide for integrated programme paths
• IIM Ahmedabad review for how one campus frames fees and outcomes
• Methodology

Sectional strategy that survives IIM filters

Many institutes impose sectional floors or award CAT points by section. A strategy that maximises overall while gambling a section can pass coaching mocks and fail Stage I. Build weekly sectional floors for yourself before you chase overall percentile bragging rights.

Calendar discipline

Map registration, admit card, exam day, result day, and the first week of institute shortlist PDFs. The week after results is when aspirants lose offers by delaying downloads and form fills.

After CAT: what changes

Your job switches from mocks to institute PDFs, cutoffs layers, and WAT/PI. CAT percentile is an input, not a personality.

Related pathway pages

Programmes CAT hub, how to get into an IIM, glossary: CAT.

Mocks versus section floors

Chase mock percentiles, but also track the worst section each week. IIM shortlists punish collapsed sections. A balanced 98 can beat a spiky 99 for some composites.

Closing note

Primary documents beat hearsay. If a claim in this page disagrees with a newer institute PDF or official notice, trust the primary source and email corrections to anchal@iimhq.com via the contact page.

Additional practical notes

Write it down. Brands stick in memory; EMI does not. Keep a one-page note with total fee, how they define median salary, the kind of job you want, and why this campus helps.

If you hold multiple offers, decline cleanly and early enough that waitlists can move. Ghosting campuses helps no one and can burn alumni goodwill in narrow functions.

For corrections when institute PDFs change after we stamp a page, use the contact channel with the URL and primary source. We update factual errors promptly under the disclosure policy.

Finally, remember that shortlists are personal. Two strong candidates can correctly choose opposite campuses when city, debt, and pedagogy differ. Our job is evidence and clear recommendations for your constraints.

Frequently asked questions