Over two lakh aspirants will be appearing for the test scheduled between October 11 and November 6, 2012. Illustration: Dominic Xavier
A large-scale exam that is the key to a good b-school, the Common Admission Test begins today.
The CAT, which is conducted by the Indian Institute Management-Kozhikode this year, will help students qualify for the various undergraduate programmes at 13 IIMs and other leading business schools across the country.
More than 2,00,000 aspirants have registered for the test, which is scheduled between October 11 and November 6 at 61 test centres across 36 Indian cities.
The CAT became a computer-based test in 2009, replacing the conventional pencil and paper method.
Since 2011, the exam has also brought down the number of sections from three to two. The first section now contains questions that test students for Quantitative Ability and Data Interpretation skills, while the second section evaluates their Verbal Ability, Reading Comprehension and Logical Reasoning.
The duration of the exam is 140 minutes; students get 70 minutes to solve each section.
The results of this year's CAT will be declared on January 9, 2013.
Once the results are out, students will start receiving calls and e-mails to appear for Group Discussion and Personal Interview rounds with b-schools.
Besides the CAT, the Common Management Admission Test (CMAT) is another important exam for MBA aspirants.
Conducted by the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), India, the CMAT is also an online, computer-based test held twice a year, the scores of which are accepted at all institutes approved by the AICTE.
Dear readers, if you've attempted CAT, please share your experiences for the benefit of youngsters who are appearing for the test this year. What was the first day like? Were you nervous? Did you face any problems at the test centre? Did you manage to crack all the questions? Write in to getahead@rediff.co.in (subject line: My CAT experience) along with your photograph, if possible and we will publish the best entries on rediff.com. Keep watching this space for updates.
