IIM CAT 2010 - FAQs

by Gaurav Jain

Q. WHAT CAT STANDS FOR?
A. Common Admission Test is what CAT stands for.

Q. WHO CONDUCT CAT?
A. All Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) jointly conduct CAT.

Q. HOW MANY INSTITUTES FOLLOW CAT SCORES?

A. FOLLOWING ARE THE IIMs AND NON-IIM INSTITUTES LIST :-

IIM INSTITUTES :

IIM AHMEDABAD
IIM BANGALORE
IIM CALCUTTA
IIM INDORE
IIM LUCKNOW
IIM KOZHIKODE
IIM SHILLONG

SOME NON-IIM INSTITUTES : NON - IIM INSTITUTE

Q. WHAT IS THE MINIMUM ELIGIBILITY?
A. Minimum eligibility for taking CAT is : ELIGIBILITY

Q. IS THERE ANY SPECIAL ELIGIBILITY FOR IIMs?
A. Special eligibility for IIMs is : SPECIAL ELIGIBILITY

Q. HOW MANY CANDIDATES APPEAR FOR CAT EVERY YEAR?

A. Almost two lack candidates appear for cat every year. To be factual - 1.91 lack candidates in 2006 and 2.3 lack candidate in 2007 appeared in CAT and 2.11 lack applications are already sold for current year, last date is still a little far.

Q. WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT STEPS OF SELECTION IN CAT?
A. There are three steps in selection procedure :

WRITTEN TEST
GROUP DISCUSSION
PERSONAL INTERVIEW

And broadly the selection is based on various things like :

Q. WHAT IS THE MARKING SCHEME IN CAT?
A. CAT follows negative marking scheme. Each correct answer carries 1 mark and incorrect deducts 1/3 mark.

Q. WHAT ARE THE CAT SCORES AND SCORE DISTRIBUTION?
A. CAT score is evaluated in Percentile form but scorecard is divided in to three parts.

Q. WHAT TYPE OF QUESTIONS CAN WE EXPECT?

A. There are various type of questions from various topics from different sections. To have an idea you can have a look at CAT-2007. For detailed information check out tests and lessons available in the community.

Q. IS THERE ANY INDIVIDUAL SECTION WISE CUT OFF?

A. There is no such fixed cut off for individual sections on written test. Cut off lists are declared every year for respective year as per the difficulty level of test. For example : last year i.e. 2007, verbal section was extra difficult so the cut offs of verbal section was lowest than ever. Some colleges don't give any preference to individual scores as well. So you can say there is no fixed criteria.

Q. HOW MUCH TIME YOU GOT TO PUT IN?

A. This is another question that can't be answered in concrete terms. This is totally based on individual capabilities but still i can say:

for problem solving section: you need a preparation time of 6-8 weeks
for reasoning section: 4-6 weeks are enough
for verbal section: this is the area that has no time limit cause this section is very vast.

Q. HOW TO OBTAIN CAT APPLICATION FORM ?
A. The CAT application form from the selected branches of Axis Bank on payment of Rs. 1300/- (Rs. 650/- for SC/ST candidates). Under exceptional circumstances, CAT 2008 application form and bulletin can also be obtained from any of the IIMs by sending a crossed demand draft of Rs. 1300/- (Rs. 650/- for SC/ST candidates) drawn in favor of the respective IIM.

Request for the bulletin should be accompanied by a cloth lined self-addressed unstamped envelope of 12 X 10 size.

Q. WHAT ALL IS THERE IN THE CAT APPLICATION FORM AND WHERE TO SEND FILLED CAT ADMISSION FORM AND WHAT'S THE LAST DATE?

A. CAT admission form should be sent to the nearest IIMs office possible except IIM-SHILLONG.For detailed info check out:- Mailing Address.

CAT admission form broadly consists 35 inquiry boxes asking details ranging from personal details to academic background of the candidates.

CAF should be received at IIMs office Maximum by 5th September,2008 for 2008's attempt.

Q. ANY GENERAL TIPS TO KEEP IN MIND RELATED TO CAT?

A. You may find following tips useful.

Q. WHAT'S THE SYLLABUS OF CAT-- WRITTEN TEST?

A. Written Test is divided in three sections mainly:-

Problem Section
- Arithmetic and Algebra
- Advanced Maths (Part of Arithmetic and Algebra only but touches a different height)
- Geometry
Reasoning Section
- Data Interpretation
- Data Sufficiency
- Logical Reasoning
Verbal Section
- Verbal Ability
- Reading Comprehension

Q. ANY LAST MINUTE JITTERS?

A. Now that CAT is just round the corner, one must make use of these last minutes for the best. Lots of aspirants take mock tests and sometime even more than one a day. My advice is to - First of all have faith on your preparation and don't rush for so many mock tests.
The purpose of mock test is simply to get adjusted to the environment you gonna face and brush up the topics that are causing trouble by understanding them. So 2-3 tests a week are more than sufficient.
Most important, remain as cool before exam as on any normal day. Life is the biggest test in itself and involves many tests that are even harder and unexpected than CAT is, so chill. Trust your abilities and believe me, your efforts gonna pay you a lot.

Q. WHEN TO EXPECT RESULTS?

A. CAT 2008 results would be available from January 9th 2009. CAT results can be accessed on www.catiim.in and also by using sms facility or by sending a mail.

NOTE : SMS should be sent to 57333 after inserting 'CAT test registration number date of birth (ddmmyy)' or 'CAT test registration number application number'. For getting CAT 2008 results by e-mail, candidates should register themselves between October 17, 2008 and November 30, 2008 by sending an SMS to 57333 with the following text: 'CAT test registration number date of birth (ddmmyy) email id'.

For detailed information about topics that are covered under these sections, have a look at TOPIC WISE INDEX.

Source: CAT official site and IIMs newletters.

Reference Material (PDF): CAT_eligibility_criteria, Special_Eligibility_Requirements, NONIIM_LIST, CAT-2007_Exam

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Written Test	200
Group Discussion	14
Personal Interview	14
Academic background	6
Total	240

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