What is the Purpose of CAT exam? Eligibility, Syllabus, Preparation

The Common Admission Test (CAT), a national-level management aptitude test for candidates seeking admission to MBA programs. The main goal is to assess and select applicants for admission to Master of Business Administration (MBA) programs.

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The purpose of the CAT Exam is to evaluate your readiness for the Master of Business Administration and employment in business and administration. The exam evaluates your quantitative aptitude, verbal ability, logical reasoning, and data interpretation skills.

The Common Admission Test, or CAT, is a national-level exam conducted for applicants seeking admission to postgraduate management programs, Master of Business Administration (MBA).

What is the Purpose of the CAT Exam?

In India, entrance to postgraduate management programs at several Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) and other prestigious business schools is mainly determined by the results of the CAT (Common Entrance Test) exam, a standardised test administered in the nation.

The Purpose of the CAT Exam is:

Admission to MBA Programs: The main goal of the Common Admission Test (CAT) is to assess and select applicants for admission to Master of Business Administration (MBA) programs and other management courses that reputed Indian universities provide.
Candidate Selection for Management Studies: In addition to the IIMs, CAT scores are a crucial factor used by numerous other Indian business schools and institutes when choosing applicants for their management programs. As a result, the CAT is now a commonly used and respected entrance exam for business education.
Evaluation of Aptitude and Skills: The MBA course curriculum checks a candidate's aptitude, analytical thinking, numeric skills, verbal ability, and data interpretation abilities are all evaluated by the CAT exam. These qualities are necessary for success in leadership and management positions.
Common Evaluation Standard: For many management institutes, CAT offers a common evaluation standard. Comparing and evaluating applicants on a uniform scale enables these institutions to expedite the admissions process and guarantee equity.
Improve Professional Prospect in Career: The CAT score can significantly improve one's professional prospects by opening doors to well-paying jobs across a range of industries.
Development of Versatile Skills: Essential skills, including critical thinking, problem-solving, time management, and decision-making abilities, are developed during CAT preparation.

CAT Exam Highlights

The IIM administers the Common Admission Test (CAT), a national-level management aptitude test for candidates seeking admission to MBA programs and offers multiple MBA specialisations. The CAT exam is conducted in three sessions on a single day at roughly 400 test centres spread throughout 155 Indian cities.

CAT Exam Highlights
Parameters	Details
Exam Name	Common Admission Test (CAT)
Exam Duration	2 hours (40 minutes per section)
No. of Sections	3
Total Questions	66 (tentative)
CAT total marks	198 Marks
Examination Mode	Online CBT Based
Language of Exam	English
Types of question	MCQ and TITA (Type in the Answer)

Eligibility Criteria of CAT Exam

The CAT exam eligibility is that you must at least be a graduate of any stream; other specific CAT qualifying requirements are listed below:

To participate in CAT 2025, you must hold a bachelor's degree from an accredited university with a minimum of 50% aggregate or an equivalent CGPA (45% aggregate for SC, ST, and PWD/DA category).
The bachelor's degree program should last three years, regardless of whether it is taught in-person or remotely.
You may also take the CAT if you have earned the necessary percentage in a professional degree (CA, CS, ICWA, or FCAI).
The ones who are waiting for their results or who are in the last year of a bachelor's degree or an equivalent certificate may also take the CAT 2025 exam.

Syllabus of CAT Exam

The CAT exam syllabus comprises three sections, which are Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension, Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning, and Quantitative Aptitude. The sub-topics of each of the sections are tabulated below carefully:

Syllabus of CAT Exam
CAT Syllabus	Topics
Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension (VARC)	Reading Comprehension Para Jumbles Para Summary Odd Sentence Out
Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning (DILR)	Set Theory (Variables) Set Theory Puzzles Puzzles with Additional Data Coding-Decoding Series
Quantitative Aptitude (QA)	Arithmetic Algebra Modern Maths Number System Geometry Mensuration

Also Read: Which IIM is best for CAT 2025 Aspirants?

CAT Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension Syllabus

The detail CAT Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension Syllabus is tabulated below:

CAT Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension Syllabus
Verbal Reasoning Syllabus
English Usage or Grammar	Jumbled Paragraph
Summary Questions	Fill in the blanks
Reading Comprehension	Meaning-Usage Match
Meaning-Usage Match	Analogies or Reverse Analogies
Cloze Passage	Sentence Correction

CAT Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning Syllabus

The detail CAT Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning Syllabus is tabulated below:

CAT Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning Syllabus
Topic	Sub Topics
Data Interpretation	Tables Data Caselets – Reasoning-Based DI Column Graphs Bar Graphs Venn Diagrams Line Charts Pie Charts Scatter Plot Radar Chart Routes and Network Bubble Chart
Logical Reasoning	Binary Logic Games and Tournaments Arrangements Team Formations Order and Ranking

Quantitative Aptitude (QA) Syllabus

The detail CAT Quantitative Aptitude Syllabus is tabulated below:

Quantitative Aptitude (QA) Syllabus
Topic	Sub Topics
Number System	LCM and HCF Divisibility Rules Base Change Finding Units place and tens place of a number Cyclicity Remainders Prime Factorisation Factorials Indices and Surds
Arithmetic	Time, Distance and Speed Time and Work, Pipes and Cisterns Simple Interest and Compound Interest Ratios, Proportions and Variations Percentages and Averages Profit and Loss, Discount Mixtures and Alligations
Geometry and Mensuration	Circles Triangles Polygons Coordinate geometry Lines and Angles Trigonometry Cone Cylinder Sphere Cube/Cuboid Prism Pyramid
Algebra	Inequalities and Modulus Functions and Groups Linear and Quadratic Equations Polynomials Logarithms Algebraic Identities Maxima and Minima
Modern Mathematics	Permutations and Combinations Probability Set Theory & Venn Diagram Binomial Theorem Arithmetic progression, Geometric progression, Harmonic progression

CAT Exam Marking Scheme

The duration of the CAT exam is 120 minutes, and 40 minutes each are restricted to all the sections. The number of questions, including MCQ and non-MCQ types, is mentioned below in the table for each of the sections.

CAT Exam Marking Scheme
Sections of exam	No. of questions	MCQs	Non- MCQs	Details
VARC	24	19	5	16 RC Questions-Four passages with four questions each. Eight Language Proficiency Questions Three Para jumbles Two Odd Sentence Para jumbles Three Para summary Questions.
DILR	20	15	5	4 sets in total - 2 sets of 6 questions each - 2 sets of 4 questions each
QA	22	14	8	Arithmetic Algebra Modern Maths Number System Geometry Mensuration
Total	66	48	18	-

Also Read: What is a good Quant score in CAT? Tips to Score Better

Preparation Resources for CAT Exam

Preparation for the CAT exam can be done via some excellent sources for each of the subjects listed down below and students must practise CAT previous year's paper.

Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension (VARC)

High School Grammar and Composition by Wren and Martin
Word Power Made Easy by Norman Lewis
Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension For The CAT by Nishit Sinha
How to Prepare for Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension for the CAT by Arun Sharma and Meenakshi Upadhyay
McKinsey Insights
The Guardian
Aeon Essays

Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning (DILR)