Elite Institutes

Elite Students have a significant edge when it comes to getting final admits from the IIMs and other top institutes. Batch profile analyses across IIMs Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Calcutta, Lucknow, Kozhikode, and Indore have shown presence of more than 70% students from the identified Elite Institutes. The edge is because of the pedigree that these students possess – they would have appeared and cleared competitive tests, would have a consistent academic record and would have good exposure in terms of communication skills and extra-curriculars.

Having said that, it is best to have a sounding board throughout so that you don’t prepare in isolation and lost marks owing to overconfidence or a lack of knowledge

The Common Admission Test (CAT) is a national level management aptitude test for aspirants who wish to make a career in management and business administration. Students who have completed the graduation with at least 50% or students who are in the final year of graduation are eligible to take the CAT. CAT is conducted by the Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) once a year on the last Sunday of November in 3 slots. CAT results are usually announced around the end of December or the first week of January.

The CAT consists of three sections: Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension, Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning, and Quantitative Ability. Each section has a time limit for 40 minutes and the sections appear in the same order. On the basis of CAT percentile, past academic performance and profile, candidates are shortlisted for subsequent rounds. Shortlisted candidates are generally required to go through Group Discussion (GD), Written Ability Test (WAT), and Personal Interview (PI). The final results are declared sometime around April and the academic session begins around June.

The CAT is accepted by over 1,000 management institutes across India, including the prestigious Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs). A good CAT score opens up many career opportunities for candidates, such as admission to top B-schools, and subsequently, high-paying jobs in management, and leadership roles in organisations.