IIM Ahmedabad Reduces CAT Cutoff For Initial and Final Shortlisting
IIM Ahmedabad has revised its admission process from the session of 2019-2020. It has reduced the cutoff of CAT scores for shortlisting candidates from non-engineering backgrounds in the initial and final rounds.
There was a period in which the classrooms of the reputed Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM- A) were massively dominated by engineers. However, this trend witnessed changes in the past few years with many students belonging to nonengineering backgrounds getting admission to the prestigious institute. IIM Ahmedabad will now be providing a level playing field to the students from different backgrounds who are seeking admission in the two-year PGP (Post Graduate Programme) course in management. The business school has reduced the weightage of CAT (Common Admission Test) score to be considered at the time of initial shortlisting as well as for the preparation of the final admission list.
From the academic session of 2019-2020, the minimum CAT score required to be shortlisted for Personal Interview (PI) and Analytical Writing Test (AWT) has been reduced from 70 per cent to 65 per cent. Applicants who have the work experience of at least 3 years will be given an extra 5 per cent. This will ensure that applicants from the non-engineering backgrounds get a chance to proceed further in the admission race for IIM-A. Besides this, the CAT score will account for just 25 per cent of the total marks in the final selection.
The institute issued a notification in which it announced that an applicant has to secure a minimum of 70 percentile each in the sections of Verbal and Reading Comprehension, Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning, and Quantitative Aptitude so as to be considered for the next round of the admission process. The students of the general category need to have a score of 80 percentile overall.
Also Read: The Difference between PGDM and MBA: Duration, Accreditation and Fees
The selection of applicants for admission to the PGP course of IIM-A comprises two steps. The candidates who have a valid CAT score are shortlisted for the AWT and PI rounds in the first step. After this, the calculation of Application Rating (AR) is done based on the scores of the applicant in class 10th, 12th, graduation, and also the work experience.
IIM Ahmedabad will invite applications from candidates of various academic backgrounds directly for PI and AWT for conducting admissions for 5 per cent of the seats. These comprise applicants who come from the backgrounds of Chartered Accountancy (CA), MBBS, Cost and Works Accountancy (ICWA), MD (USA), Company Secretaryship (CS) and other courses that are listed in the notification. A total of 2.1 lakh students appeared for the CAT exam last year. CAT 2019 will be held on 24th November 2019.
Also Read:Total Number of Seats and Fee Structure at IIMs for MBA 2019-20: Find Details Here
Accommodating more students from educational backgrounds different from engineering has proven to be beneficial for these premier business schools as well as for the applicants. There is a huge crowd of students coming from humanities, arts, social science, commerce, etc. who seek admission in the management programmes offered by these institutes. The alterations in the admission process help them get on the same page and in the same race as that of the students from an engineering background.