IIM Sambalpur Admission Process 2026 for MBA: Complete Selection Process for MBA at IIM Sambalpur

24 December, 2025

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The IIM Sambalpur MBA admission process outlines the steps for shortlisting, evaluating, and selecting candidates for the 2026–28 batch. If you’re planning to apply to IIM Sambalpur through CAT 2025, IMS India has explained everything you need to know, from minimum CAT percentiles and work experience weightage to personal interview scores, diversity points, and fee refund rules.

Here’s a detailed breakdown of the IIM Sambalpur MBA admission process for the 2026–28 batch, including CAT cut-offs, shortlisting criteria, work experience weightage, PI process, final selection parameters, and admission rules.

About the IIM Sambalpur Admission Process for MBA 2026

Programmes: MBA | MBA-BA
Batch Size: Approx. 320 students in MBA and 60 in MBA-BA
Admission Mode: CAT 2025 + Personal Interview
Selection Philosophy: Holistic evaluation (not just CAT score)

IIM Sambalpur clearly emphasizes that admissions are not based solely on CAT scores, but on a balanced assessment of academics, work experience, diversity, and interview performance.

The IIM Sambalpur will select MBA aspirants based on multiple parameters, including CAT score, prior academic qualifications and performance, relevant work experience, and personal interview scores. Their aim is to conduct a holistic evaluation of the candidature of potential students.

IIM Sambalpur will follow a 3-stage selection process that will be uniform across all categories.

Stage 1: CAT 2025-Based Shortlisting

Only those candidates will be considered who:

Appeared for CAT 2025
Selected IIM Sambalpur in CAT preferences
Scored positive raw marks in all three sections

Minimum Percentiles Required in CAT 2025 for IIM Sambalpur MBA Program

Category	Overall Percentile
General	90
EWS	80
NC-OBC	75
SC	55
ST	40
DAP	40

Note: For female candidates and male candidates with ≥1 year of work experience, the General category cut-off is reduced to 85 percentile. Meeting these minimum CAT percentile requirements only makes candidates eligible for consideration. It does not guarantee a Personal Interview (PI) call or final admission.

Minimum Percentiles Required in CAT 2025 for IIM Sambalpur MBA-BA Program

Category	Overall Percentile
General	85
EWS	80
NC-OBC	75
SC	55
ST	40
DAP	40

Important Notes for Stage 1:

All the shortlisted candidates in Stage-1 will receive an email in January 2026 with a link to an online application form on the admission portal of IIM Sambalpur. The online application form will have to be completed and submitted by the candidate by a stipulated deadline.
This online application form will have pre-filled details entered by the candidate in the CAT 2025 registration form. The candidate will update the pre-filled information, except the category, to ensure that the data is factually correct and up to date. The candidates will also have to upload the copies of necessary documents such as academic certificates and transcripts, work experience certificates (if applicable), certificate of disability (if applicable), SC / ST / EWS / NC-OBC certificate (if applicable), etc.
Only shortlisted candidates in Stage-1 who successfully complete and submit the online application form will be considered for the subsequent stages.

Also read: CAT Cutoffs | Top IIMs in India | Top MBA Colleges in India

Stage 2: Pre-Personal Interview (Pre-PI) Shortlisting

Only those who complete the form and upload documents will move ahead to PI. Here are the required scores before PI:

Component	Weightage
CAT Score	40
Class X	3
Class XII	3
Graduation	4
Work Experience	20
Gender Diversity	5
Total	75

How CAT Score Is Calculated for IIM Sambalpur MBA Admission

Unlike many IIMs, Sambalpur gives sectional importance. Here is the CAT score calculation formula:

CAT Scores = [0.31 × Overall Percentile + 0.03 × VARC Percentile + 0.03 × QA Percentile + 0.03 × DILR Percentile]

This means balanced performance across sections matters, not just overall percentile.

Academic Performance Weightage: Marks for Class X, XII & Graduation

Percentage	Class X	Class XII	Graduation
< 75%	0	0	0
75–79.9%	0.75	0.75	1
80–84.9%	1.5	1.5	2
85–89.9%	2.25	2.25	3
≥ 90%	3	3	4

Notes:

CGPA is converted to percentage using university norms.
For a candidate with CA/ICWA/CS but without a bachelor’s degree, the average of the percentage marks obtained in the Inter and Final examination in CA/ICWA/CS will be considered as the bachelor’s degree marks percentage.
For candidates yet to complete the Bachelor’s degree, after 12th/HSC, the percentage of marks obtained for the years/semester completed, as entered in the online CAT application form, will be used.
Candidates having completed an integrated Master’s degree or Dual degree after 12th/HSC, the percentage of marks obtained will be considered as equivalent to marks in Bachelor’s degree.
If any board/institute/university awards only letter grades without providing an equivalent percentage of marks on the grade sheet, the candidate should obtain a certificate specifying the equivalent marks which should be used. The original equivalence certificate needs to be submitted at the time of interview if shortlisted for the same.

Work Experience Weightage (Max 20 Marks)

The score for the Work Experience is based on the total months of completed work experience of the candidate as of 31st December 2025. Only full-time, relevant, paid work experience completed after graduation and up to 31 December 2025 is considered for scoring.

Months of Experience	Marks
<12	0
12	5
18	10
24	15
30	20
36	15
42	10
48	5
>48	0

Notes:

Only relevant work experience after graduation in terms of completed months. Candidate should ensure that the work experience claimed by the candidate is authentic and professionally significant enough to deserve credit.
No credit for internships during course of study in a programme, or any apprenticeship such as articleship required as part of certain professional courses, or any unpaid work in any organization or institution.
No credit for salary received in cash or through UPI (Pay TM, Google Pay etc.)
In case the candidate is a proprietor or partner of a firm, the candidate must provide the Certificate of registration, Registered partnership deed, GST registration certificate, PAN card of the firm, ITR for the relevant period, and Bank account statement of the firm.

Gender Diversity

Female and transgender candidates receive 5 diversity points during the shortlisting process. Male candidates do not receive additional diversity marks under this criterion.

Finalization of Interview Slots

PI will be conducted in online / hybrid mode
Candidates who fail to appear for the Personal Interview (PI) will be disqualified from the admission process.

A certain number of candidates (based on the requirements of IIM Sambalpur) in each category will be invited to participate in the Personal Interview (PI) process. The candidates will be given a stipulated deadline to finalize the interview slot (date and time) among the options.

Stage-3: Personal Interview and Final Merit List

The PI score, after appropriate normalization, will account for 25 % of the final merit score. The IIM Sambalpur will decide the minimum score at its discretion.

Calculation of the Final Merit Score (Out of 100)

Component	Weightage
CAT Score	40
Class X	3
Class XII	3
Graduation	4
Work Experience	20
Gender Diversity	5
Personal Interview	25
Total	100

IIM Sambalpur MBA Reservation Policy 2026

In accordance with the reservation policy of the Government of India, sufficient candidates will be shortlisted at each stage in each category to meet the reservation requirements. As per Government of India norms, reservations apply across all stages as follows:

Category	Reservation
SC	15%
ST	7.5%
NC-OBC	27%
EWS	10%
DAP	5%

The selection criteria remain uniform, but cut-offs and shortlisting numbers are category-specific.

Offer Acceptance Policy at IIM Sambalpur Admission Process 2026 for MBA

A candidate who receives the admission offer from IIM Sambalpur and if accepts that offer within the given time, has to send an offer acceptance amount of Rs. 50,000/- along with the Offer Acceptance Form on IIM Sambalpur’s admission portal. Failing to do this will make the offer lapsed. If the candidate joins the program, Rs. 50,000 will be adjusted against the Term-1 fees of the MBA program.

If the candidate decides to withdraw from the admission after the payment of acceptance amount, there will be a charge of ₹1,000 processing fee if withdrawn early. The refund process will happen after the deduction of Rs. 1,000 from the acceptance amount, if the withdrawal occurred within the given timeline. There will be no refund once Term-1 classes begin.

Refund Policy After Registration

There won’t be any refund on or after the date on which the MBA Term-1 classes start. For such candidates, only the caution money will be refunded. If a candidate wants to withdraw from the program on or after the program registration date, but before the Term-1 classes start date, the refund requests will be considered only if there are more registered candidates than the planned intake (i.e., 320 for the MBA 2026-28 batch and 60 for the MBA-BA at IIM Sambalpur).

In this case, the amount paid by the student will be refunded after deducting a withdrawal amount of Rs. 50,000/- (which includes the caution money paid).

a. Eligible requests for refund will be processed on a ‘first come, first-serve’ basis.
b. IIM Sambalpur is not responsible for delays in the receipt of requests for withdrawal/refund, for any reason whatsoever.

Dispute Redressal: On any disputes arising out of or in respect of admission to the MBA 2026-28, the decision of
the Director, IIM Sambalpur or his nominee, shall be final.

Legal Jurisdiction: Any dispute related to admissions to the MBA 2026-2028 batch is restricted to the jurisdiction
of competent courts within the territorial jurisdiction of the city of Sambalpur in the State of Odisha in India.

Final Thoughts

The IIM Sambalpur MBA admission process follows a holistic evaluation approach, with CAT performance, academics, work experience, diversity, and the Personal Interview all contributing to the final merit list. Since the institute does not rely solely on CAT scores, applicants should focus on maintaining a strong overall profile and preparing thoroughly for the PI round to maximize their admission chances.

FAQs: IIM Sambalpur MBA Admissions 2026–28

What CAT percentile is required for IIM Sambalpur MBA admission?

General category candidates typically require a minimum overall CAT percentile of 90 to be considered for the MBA programme, while eligible female candidates and male candidates with at least one year of work experience may qualify from an 85 percentile. Meeting the minimum cut-off does not guarantee a PI shortlist.

Is there any sectional CAT cut-off at IIM Sambalpur?

No. IIM Sambalpur does not prescribe sectional percentile cut-offs. However, candidates must secure positive scores in all three CAT sections.

Is work experience compulsory for the IIM Sambalpur MBA?

No. Work experience is optional for the flagship MBA programme, but it contributes significantly to the overall selection score. For the MBA-BA programme, at least 1 year of relevant work experience is generally required, except for candidates holding a 4-year undergraduate degree.

How much weight does the Personal Interview carry?

The Personal Interview contributes 25% of the final merit score after normalization, making it one of the most important stages of the admission process.

Does IIM Sambalpur consider Class 10, 12, and graduation marks?

Yes. Academic performance in Class X, Class XII, and graduation collectively contributes 10 marks toward the final merit score.