Registration for CAT 2018 starts today: All details here
Registration for the Common Admission Test (CAT) 2018 begins today on the official website. The deadline is September 19. Admit cards will be available for download from October 24 till up to the test on November 25. Tutorials will be released on the official website from October 17. The test will be conducted in two sessions across 147 cities. More details here.
The CAT will be held in two sessions of three hours. There will be three sections: verbal ability and reading comprehension (Section I); data interpretation and logical reasoning (Section II) and quantitative ability (Section III). Candidates will get 60 minutes for each section. They'll have to complete one before proceeding to the next. There will be both subjective and objective questions.
CAT scores are accepted by the 20 IIMs for admission to management programs, apart from another 100 colleges, including the IITs, IISc's, SPJIMR Mumbai, FMS Delhi etc. JNU will also start accepting them this year for admission in the School and Management and Entrepreneurship program.
Candidates can select four cities in order of preference. Cities and centres will be assigned only after the last date of registration, hence candidates need not rush to block slots, said Sumanta Basu, professor of IIM-Calcutta and convener of the exam. However, there's no guarantee they will be alloted their chosen location. All payments have to be made online.
In case of any confusion, check out the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) on the official website at www.iimcat.ac.in to find answers to common queries. You can also contact the CAT helpdesk over email or phone. Contact details are available on the website. Based on CAT scores, previous academic performance and work experience, IIMs shortlist candidates for a writing test, group discussion and personal interview.
In December, the Rajya Sabha passed the IIM Bill that allowed the institutes to award degrees and make appointments themselves, among other changes. Earlier, Masters students got a PGDM, a diploma. Doctoral researchers were called 'Fellows.' Indecision on the administration's part meant some students got degrees this time, while others got diplomas. But all IIMs are likely to start awarding degrees from 2019.
