CAT 2019 Exam Dates, Application Form, Syllabus, Pattern, Eligibility, Results, Counselling

January 23, 2019 Ranjan Acharya (Admin) 0 Comments

IIM Calcutta has released CAT 2019 Result on the official website on January 5, 2019 at 10:00 a.m. CAT 2019 Answer Keys are also available on the official website. Along with the keys, question papers with solutions has been published at www.iimcat.ac.in. As per the experts and aspirants, the Quants section was the toughest as compared to the others.

Common Admission Test or CAT is a national-level management exam, conducted by one of the IIM’s on a rotational basis. It is a gateway to all 20 IIMs and other top B-schools in India. More than 2 lac candidates are expected to appear for CAT 2019 Exam.

CAT tests a candidate’s Quantitative, Verbal/reading, Data Interpretation and Reasoning Skills. The paper has 100 MCQ & Non-MCQ questions that are to be completed in 3 hours. As per the analysis for CAT 2019 by Collegedunia team, DILR is expected to be toughest, VARC to be moderate and QA should be the easiest. An attempt of total 63-67 will be considered good. CAT has a success rate of 1 in 200.

About CAT 2020: CAT 2020 Notification is expected to be out in first week of August. The exam will be conducted on fourth Sunday of November in online mode.

What is CAT Exam?

CAT 2019 Conducting Body	IIM Calcutta
CAT 2019 Official Website	iimcat.ac.in
CAT 2019 Syllabus	Quantitative Aptitude, Data Interpretation, Data Sufficiency, Verbal Ability, Reading Comprehension, Logical Reasoning and Analytical Reasoning
CAT 2019 Exam Pattern	3 Hours (180 Minutes- 60 Minutes for Each Section)
CAT Exam Date 2019	November 25, 2019
CAT 2019 Eligibility Criteria	Graduation with 50%
CAT Application Mode	Online
CAT 2019 Participating Institutes	IIMs, IITs, FMS, ISB and Other Management Institutes
Candidates Expected to Appear in CAT 2019	Over 2,00,000
Courses Offered	Admission to MBA/PGDM Courses
CAT Helpdesk	1800-2090-830 \| cathelpdesk@iimcat.ac.in

Geographical Diversity of Candidates in CAT

Going by the statistics of last year, most CAT registrants belonged to the northern part of India (29%). This was followed by southern (27%) and western (24%) regions.

Degree-Wise Student Bifurcation in CAT

Talking about the degree-wise bifurcation of students, most of them hold an engineering degree (62.7%). It is followed by a degree course (25%), Management Course (11.7%) and then the Medicine (0.6%).

CAT 2019 Notification

The official notification for CAT 2019 was released on July 29.
The conducting body announced the schedule for CAT at the official website i.e. iimcat.ac.in.
IIM Calcutta opened CAT 2019 registration window from August 8. The last date for CAT registration 2019 is September 26.

All exam related events and dates are mentioned below. Make sure you do not miss upon any of these.

Event	Date
CAT 2019 Official Notification	July 29, 2019
CAT 2019 Application Form	August 8, 2019
CAT 2019 Form Correction Window	September 27- September 30, 2019
Release of CAT Admit Card 2019	October 24 – November 25, 2019
CAT 2019 Exam Date	November 25, 2019
CAT Result Date 2019	Second Week of January 2020

CAT 2019 Eligibility?

In order to be eligible for CAT Exam, an aspirant must be a graduate degree holder in any stream. Candidates appearing in the final year/semester of their degree program can also apply for CAT 2019.

Candidates with CA/CS/ICWA degree (Gen: 50% & SC/ST/ PWD: 45%) are also eligible.
As for CAT Age Limit, there is no minimum/ maximum limit defined. There is also no restriction on the number of attempts.
The percentage requirement for the exam is different for different categories. It is explained in the table below:

Category	Percentage Required
General and OBC	50%
Scheduled Caste	45%
Scheduled Tribe	45%
Persons with Disabilities	45%

Why is it important to verify eligibility criteria before applying?

Wrong information provided at the time of registration will result in rejection of the application form.
The required set of certificates will be verified at the time of the interview, failure to do so will not be considered for admission.
Mere fulfillment of minimum eligibility criteria will not ensure consideration for short listing by IIMs.

CAT Reservation Criteria 2019

A certain percentage of seats in IIMs are reserved for SC, ST, OBC and PWD candidates. The table given below provides an overview of the same:

Category	Reservation (%)
Scheduled Caste (SC)	15
Scheduled Tribe (ST)	7.5
Non-Creamy – Other Backward Classes (NC-OBC)	27
People with Disability (PWD)	3
Total Percentage of Reserved Seats	52.5

CAT 2019 Online Application

CAT 2019 Application Form has been started from August 8 – September 26. The entire procedure will be conducted in online mode only at iimcat.ac.in.

Quick Facts:

CAT Registration Form: 5-page documents
Registration Window: Minimum for 45 days
CAT Application form is a part of Registration form only.
IIMs sends unique CAT registration ID and Password to login into the online portal of the Common Admission Test.
Applying online will mean that you have to opt for the relevant management programs in all the 20 IIMs mentioned in the registration form.

Documents Required to complete CAT Registration

Academic history
Mark sheets (10th /12th/ Degree/Diploma)
Work experience (if any)
Certificates (if any)
Scanned images of your passport size photo and signature
Debit/Credit cards, Net banking

Steps to Apply for CAT 2019

Registration for the exam is usually a four-step procedure. Read the instructions mentioned at the start before beginning to fill up the form. In case of filling incorrect information not only the candidature will be treated as invalid but CAT registration fee will also be forfeited. The steps are as follows:

Step 1: Registration – Visit the official website of CAT and enter your email id, phone number, and date of birth.

Note: Number and ID must be active and valid, as the entire communication related to the exam will be notified on it.

Step 2: Fill CAT Application Form – Enter your personal details, contact information, academic details, work experience, program preference and exam center preference.

Note: In case, any information is found incorrect, there is a risk of application rejection. A one-time facility to make corrections in the form is also provided.

Step 3: Upload Documents – Scan and Upload your documents (Photograph, Signatures & Required certificated) according to CAT 2019 Photo Size, Dimension, Format and Other Details.

Note: You can resize the documents using MS Paint or MS Office Picture Manager. The steps are available on the link given above.

Step 4: Payment of Application Fee – CAT 2019 Application Fee can be paid online via net banking/credit card/debit card. Mentioned below is the category wise application fee for CAT 2019:

Category	CAT 2019 Application Fee (in INR)
General/OBC	1900
PWD	950
SC/ST	950

CAT Application Form Status

After CAT Application Form is finally submitted, an email, a pop-up message on the screen and a message on the registered mobile number are sent related to the status of the application.
As the process of applying for CAT 2019 is completely online, no delay can occur during final submission.
If the application form is successfully submitted, the application status is “Successfully Submitted” else “Application Rejected”.

CAT Application Form Correction

It may be possible that some of the candidates had entered incorrect details due to lack of proper information or documents.
As CAT Exam is an important exam, the exam authority allows candidates to make corrections in few entries only.

CAT Registration Trend

Candidates can check the number of applicants who applied for CAT and those who actually appeared from 2012-2018. The number of applicants has steadily increased, owing to its massive popularity among management aspirants in India as well as abroad.

CAT Year	Registrations	Test Takers
CAT 2018	2,31,000	1,99,632
CAT 2016	2,32,434	1,95,000
CAT 2015	2,18,664	1,79,602
CAT 2014	1,96,988	1,67,829
CAT 2013	1,94,516	1,73,714
CAT 2012	2,14,000	1,95,000

Registration of Non-IIMs for CAT 2019

There are various institutions or B-schools accepting CAT Scores.
Non-IIM Institutions interested to avail CAT 2019 scores must download the MoU and Application Form available at https://www.iimcal.ac.in/registration-of-non-iim-institutions-for-cat-2019.
This facility is available for the academic session 2020 – 2021 only.

Steps to Register are given below:

Step 1: Visit the official portal of IIM Calcutta.

Step 2: Click on CAT 2019 link, available on the right side of the screen.

Step 3: Click ‘Downloading of MOU and the Application Form’

Step 4: Payment of Annual Fees and Mode of Payment.

Step 5: Fill up the Application Form and MOU and send the scanned copies duly filled-in, signed and stamped along with the required enclosures (mentioned inside application form) over email.

Note: Program Brochure can be sent separately along with other hard copies as stated above.

Step 6: Send duly filled-in, signed and stamped MOU (two copies), Application Form (single copy) in original and other supporting documents (hard copies) as specified in MOU and Application Form to Admissions Office of IIM Calcutta latest by July 25, 2019 at the following address:

CAT Centre, C/o Admissions Office,
Indian Institute of Management Calcutta,
Diamond Harbour Road, Kolkata 700 104

CAT 2019 Admit Card

Admit Cards for the management exam will be available from October 24 onwards at the official website of CAT 2019.
CAT Hall Ticket contains personal details and exam related details such as test venue, session.
It is a provisional document and must be supported at the test center with a valid photo id issued by Govt of India.

Discrepancy in CAT 2019 Hall Ticket

In case of any discrepancy found in CAT Admit Card, candidates can contact the exam authority for the corrections. They can contact the CAT Helpdesk at the following details-

Toll-Free Number: 1800-2090-830

Helpdesk email address: cathelpdesk@iimcat.ac.in

Documents Required with Admit Card

Aadhaar Card
Voter ID Card
Passport
PAN Card
Driving License
Photo ID issued by current education institute or employer among others.

Check 7 Pointers to check in CAT Admit Card 2019

Reasons for Delay

The previous year trends simple states that there is a possibility that this time also there will be a delay in the release of admit card.

Last year, the official date of release was October 18, but IIM Lucknow issued the document on October 25, 2018.
In 2016 too, the hall ticket was released after 6 days after the scheduled date.
In case, the document is not available on the scheduled time and date then do not worry. Keep checking the official website for latest intimation.

CAT 2019 Exam Centers

CAT is conducted in exam centers spread across around 140 test cities in India.
Candidates are required to provide the preference of their exam centre while registering for CAT 2019.
Preferences for up to 4 CAT test cities can be provided in the form. The time slot for CAT Examination is generally allocated randomly.
CAT Exam Centers are available in all the major cities across India to accommodate the growing number of test-takers. Given below is a list of newly added CAT Exam Cities:

Recently Added CAT Exam Center 2019
Bhatinda in Punjab	Purnea in Bihar	Waknaghat in Himachal Pradesh
Samba in J&K	Dharwad and Gulbarga in Karnataka	Ernakulam in Kerala
Ulhasnagar in Maharashtra	Dhenkanal in Odisha	Bankura in West Bengal

List of Prohibited Items

Do not wear any jewelry that contains metal. In case an aspirant is caught while frisking, they’ll be asked to remove.
Do not wear jackets and footwear inside the exam hall.
Do not bring any mobile phones, electronic gadgets, watches, calculators, stationery items inside the exam center premises.
Do not to wear socks, plain pullovers/ sweaters/cardigans (without any pockets) inside the exam hall.
Candidates with a metal implant, pacemaker, etc. in their body would bring a medical certificate of the same at Test Centre.
All personal belongings would be kept aside at this point and the authorities would not take any responsibility for loss of items.

CAT 2019 Exam Pattern

CAT exam pattern is unpredictable and undergoes some changes each year. For now, no change in the paper pattern has been notified by the IIMs. However, modification in the level of difficulty of the exam is expected.

As per the revised exam pattern of CAT 2019, exam will consist of 3 sections with a total of 100 questions. You need to ensure high score in each of the sections as there is also a sectional score cut off in IIMs for shortlisting.

Quick Highlights of CAT Exam Pattern are discussed below:

Mode of Exam: Computer-based test
Total Questions: 100
No. of Sections: Quantitative Ability, Verbal and Reading Comprehension, and Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning
Exam duration: 3-hour duration exam, where one hour is assigned to each section.
Ques. with negative marking (MCQs): 75
Ques. w/o negative marking (non-MCQs): 25
Marking Scheme: +3 marks for correct answer; -1 mark for wrong answers.

Is CAT an online test?
Most candidates deal with this query. Although CAT exam pattern is computer-based, the IIMs do not regard CAT as an online test. They call it a ‘Digital or Computer-based exam’, rather than an ‘Internet-based exam’. This means that a candidate will read the questions on a computer terminal and choose an answer by clicking on the correct option. Additionally, the timer on the computer screen tells you the remaining time to complete the current section.

CAT 2018 Paper Analysis

The level of difficulty CAT 2018 was moderate. The order of the sections was fixed with a time limit of 60 minutes each. The following table represents the distribution of questions in each section of CAT 2018 exam-

Section	No. of Questions	No. of non-MCQ questions	Difficulty Level	Good Attempts
Verbal Ability and Reading comprehension	34	7	Easy-moderate	26-27
Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning	32	8	Difficult	12-14
Quantitative Ability	34	8	Easy-Moderate	25-26
Total	100	23	–	63-67

CAT 2019 Detailed Syllabus

IIM’s do not release an official CAT Syllabus. However, based on previous year question papers, we have curated below the most frequently occuring topics. An in-depth knowledge of CAT 2019 Syllabus forms the basis of your preparation journey. It is designed to assess the prospective admission-seekers’ suitability for MBA education.

Check below the most important topics for CAT Exam Preparation:

Quantitative Ability	Data Analysis & Sufficiency	Logical Reasoning	Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension
Geometry	Graphs	Critical Reasoning	Verbal Reasoning
Arithmetic Progression	Column Graphs	Visual Reasoning	Syllogisms
Installment Payments	Bar Graphs	Assumption-Premise-Conclusion	Contextual usage
Ratios and Proportions	Line Charts	Assertion and reasons	Analogies
Arithmetic Mean	Pie Charts	Statements and assumptions	Sentence completion
Logarithm	Graphs representing Area	Matrix arrangements	Idioms
Work and Time	Venn Diagram	Coding and Decoding	Sentence Correction

How to Prepare for CAT 2019?

CAT is one exam that requires a rigorous practice. The key to ace CAT Exam is to refer the most recommended and reliable books in the market. This is so because they are the best source to revise whole of the CAT syllabus, as well as include sets of most important questions.

Candidates often get confused in regard to which CAT Books or study material to refer to. They look for the material which all toppers have sworn by. This is bound to happen since their no dearth of CAT Preparation Books in the market.

Section	Book Name	Author Name/Publisher
Quantitative Ability	How to Prepare for Quantitative Aptitude for the CAT	Arun Sharma
	Quantitative Aptitude Quantum CAT Common Admission Tests for Admission into IIMs	Sarvesh K. Verma
	Quantitative Aptitude for the CAT	Nishit K. Sinha
Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning	CAT 2019 Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning	Gautam Puri
	Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation for the CAT	Nishit K. Sinha
	Data Interpretation & Data Sufficiency	Ananta Ashisha
	How to Prepare for Data Interpretation for CAT	Arun Sharma
Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension	How to Prepare for Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension for CAT	Arun Sharma and Meenakshi Upadhyay/Arihant
	30 Days to a More Powerful Vocabulary Mass Market Paperback	Wilfred Funk & Norman Lewis/ Simon & Schuster
	How to Prepare for Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension for the CAT	Sharma and Upadhyay
	PSC for VA for CAT Exam	Nishit Sinha

CAT Result 2019

CAT 2019 Result is expected in the 2nd week of January 2020. The conducting body of CAT 2019 will release the scorecards at the official website. An SMS will also be sent to all test-takers, informing them about their CAT Percentile. CAT Score is valid for 1 year.

The step-wise process to obtain CAT result is given below:

Visit the official website of CAT
Click on ‘Download CAT Score Card’.
You will be redirected to the login page.
Enter your User Id and Password.
You will be redirected to your candidate’s account page.
Click on Download Scorecard link and download it for future correspondence.

Highlights of CAT Result 2018

Total candidates who appeared	1.99 lacs
Perfect scorers	20
Total non-engineers in top 20	3
Total women in top 20	2
Total women candidates	78,009
Total seats offered in IIMs	4,000

CAT 2019 Rank Predictor

CAT Result will be declared in January and candidates can check their score on the official website.
However, candidates can use the CAT Percentile Predictor on Collegedunia.com to determine the ranks based on their respective percentiles.
All the participating institutes release cut-offs for next rounds.
They shortlist the candidates on the basis CAT percentile scores.
Candidates can predict their scores using the Collegedunia percentile predictor provided below. It is an easy way to predict your scores beforehand, and choose a college accordingly

Expected CAT Cut off 2019

After the results are declared, each IIM will declare a separate cut off list for shortlisting candidates for the selection procedure. The cut off comprises an overall cut off and a sectional cut off.

Sectional cut off is the percentile score a candidate must score in each section to qualify the exam.
The overall cut off for the IIMs generally falls in the bracket of 90-99 percentile.

CAT 2019 Expected Cut Off for IIMs

IIM	CAT Cut off in Percentile
IIM, Ahmedabad	99.6
IIM, Bangalore	99.5
IIM, Calcutta	99.5
IIM, Lucknow	99.5
IIM, Rohtak	97.11
IIM, Kozhikode	96.3
IIM, Indore	94.7
IIM, Trichy	94.0
IIM, Raipur	90.0

The following table enlists the institutes based on CAT Cut off where we have classified IIMs and B-schools on the basis of the level of cutoffs from previous years’ trends-

Rating	Level (Approx. CAT cut-off Percentiles for General)	Institutes
A+	I (CAT Percentile 98.5+)	IIM-A, IIM-B, IIM-C, IIM-L, IIM-I, IIM-K, IIM-S, FMS, MDI-PGPM, IIT- B, JBIMS
	II (CAT Percentile 96.5+)	SPJIMR, IIT-D, NITIE-PGDIM, MDI-PGP HR/IM, IIM-RH, IIM-RN, IIM-RP, IIM-KS, IIM-UP, IIM-T
	III (CAT Percentile 94.5+)	IIT-KH, IIT-KN, IIT-M, IIT-R, IISc-B, IIM-BG, IIM-N, IIM-V, IIM-Asr, IIM-Sam, IIM-Srm, MDI-M, IIM-A (ABM), IIM-L (ABM)
A	I (CAT Percentile 90+)	MICA, IMT-G/N, IMI-D, FSM, IRMA, TAPMI, KJSIMSR, UBS-CHD, SPJAIN-D/S, BIM, NIRMA, PUMBA
	II (CAT Percentile 87+)	WIMDR-M, LBSIM, LIBA, IMI-K/B, GLIM, BIMTECH-PGDM/IB, IBS-ICFAI, MFC-DU, IFMR, MIB-DU, MHROD-DU, IMT-H
	III(CAT Percentile 85+)	MISB, ISBM-P, AJKMCRC, WIMDR-B, BIMTECH-Retail/Insurance, IIFM, MBE-DU

CAT 2019 Selection Procedure

The selection process of CAT is a two-step process. Candidates who qualify the cutoff marks are invited by CAT Colleges for GD or WAT and Personal Interview round. CAT Selection Process is carried out individually by each college, except for the new IIMs. The ratio for admission in IIMs and candidates shortlisted for selection is generally 1:4, but it varies for different IIMs.

It must be noted that there is no common Common Counselling Process for CAT. The process for form-filling for IIMs is done while preliminary registration for the exam.

Shorlisting Candidates for PI & WAT- Candidates are shortlisted with a weightage system, as given below:

Components	Weightage
CAT 2019 Score	28
Class X Marks	10
Class XII Marks	10
TOTAL	50 (48 + 2 Gender Diversity Factor)

Final Selection- For final selection, weightage of all the stages in selection process with work experience is calculated.

Component	Weightage
CAT Score	15
Personal Interview	24
Written Ability Test	5
Academic Diversity Factor for Bachelor’s Degree (ADFB)*	2
Work Experience	4

*Points awarded for Academic Diversity at Bachelor’s degree level (Academic Diversity Factor for Bachelor’s degree (ADFB)): Candidates with any of the following bachelor’s degree in the list below are eligible for ADFB:
List X: BA, BA(H), B.Sc, B.Sc.(H), BS, B.Com, B.Com(H), BCA, BBA, B.Pharma, LL.B, MBBS, BDS or any other Non-Engineering subject areas at the Bachelor’s level not mentioned above.

More About CAT 2019

CAT 2019 Convening Body

Each year, one of the IIM’s convene the CAT Exam. It is interesting to see the new changes they introduce with its structure and pattern. CAT 2018 was conducted by IIM Lucknow. It was after a gap of 6 years that IIM Lucknow was given this responsibility.

For CAT 2019, the convening body is yet to be disclosed. We will update you as soon as it gets official. For now, you can check below the CAT convening IIMs from the year 2013:

Year	Convening IIM
2019	Ye to be announced
2018	IIM Lucknow
2016	IIM Bangalore
2015	IIM Ahmedabad
2014	IIM Indore
2013	IIM Indore

Scholarships after CAT 2019

Don’t want to fund your MBA with an education loan? Get MBA admission through CAT and escape from the ever-rising MBA fees. Scholarships through CAT for MBA studies are categorized in Merit Based Scholarship and Need-Based Scholarship.

Merit-Based Scholarship

Amity Business School- a) 100% Fees Waiver for candidates having 93% in 10th, Above 80% in 12th and Above 80% in Graduation. b) 5% Seat for 25% Candidates Securing more than 85 Percentile in CAT
BIMTECH- 85% Percentile in CAT Scorecard
IIM Ahmedabad- Scholarship worth One Lac on merit basis (selected after interview)

Need-Based Scholarships

IIM Ahmedabad Need-Based Scholarship for candidates having family income less than 200000
GOI Merit Cum Means Scholarship for First Year and Second year top 10% rankers

Top Colleges Accepting CAT

CAT is conducted mainly for admission to MBA/PGDM programs offered at 20 IIMs. Apart from IIMs, other top management institutes like FMS, MDI, NTIE, SP Jain, Department of Management Studies at IITs, Manipal University, ITM Delhi, Chandigarh University and over 115 management B-schools also accept CAT score as qualifying criteria for their management programs. The cut off percentile for IIMs and other top institutes may be above 90 percentile.

IIM Bangalore
IIM Ahmedabad
IIM Calcutta
Department of Management Studies, IIT Madras
IIM Lucknow
IIM Kozhikode
IIM Indore
Vinod Gupta school of Management, IIT Kharagpur
FMS Delhi

Courses Offered through CAT

On the basis of CAT score, candidates can take admission to the following courses offered by 20 IIMs and other top B-schools in India:

Different Courses Offered by IIMs
PGPEM (Post Graduate Programme in Enterprise Management)	PGP-UAE (Post Graduate Programme at UAE)
PGPBM (Post Graduate Programme in Business Management)	PGP-ABM (Post Graduate Programme in Agri-Business Management)
PGP (Post Graduate Programme)	PGP-Mumbai (Post Graduate Programme at Mumbai)
PGPWE (Post Graduate Programme for Working Executive)	PGPEX (Post Graduate Programme for Executives)
PGPPM (Post Graduate Programme in Public Policy and Management)	PGDM (Post Graduate Diploma in Management)
EPGPM (Executive Post Graduate Programme)	PGDHRM (Post Graduate Diploma in Human Resource Management)
PGPSM (Post Graduate Programme in Securities Markets)	–

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CAT 2019 Exam Dates, Application Form, Syllabus, Pattern, Eligibility, Results, Counselling