CAT 2021 Eligibility

CAT 2021 Eligibility Criteria

The conducting IIM will prescribe the CAT 2021 eligibility criteria for all candidates appearing for CAT 2021. In order to be eligible, a candidate will be required to have a bachelor’s degree in any stream with a minimum of 50% aggregate marks in aggregate. A 5% relaxation is provided to SC, ST and PwD candidates who are required to have 45% aggregate marks in the qualifying course.

Candidates who are in the final year of graduation are also eligible for provisional admission through CAT 2021, provided that they satisfy the eligibility upon completion of their course. The conducting IIM will release the CAT 2021 Eligibility Criteria along with the official notification for the exam, which is expected to be released in July 2021. Candidates planning to apply for CAT 2021 will be able to check the CAT 2021 eligibility criteria, which will be updated below once the PDF of the official eligibility criteria will be available. Meanwhile, candidates can check CAT 2020 detailed eligibility criteria below.

The Common Admission Test (CAT) is a national-level MBA entrance exam in India, which is expected to be conducted in the online mode in the last week of November 2021. The CAT 2021 Application Process is expected to begin from August 2021 and will tentatively end in September 2021. Every year, CAT is conducted by one of the Indian Institutes of Management (IIM) on a rotational basis.

All those who wish to appear for the exam next year must go through the detailed CAT eligibility criteria before applying for it. The CAT 2021 eligibility rules mentioned above have to be followed strictly, and the candidates who do not comply with them are not allowed to register or appear for the exam. If the candidates apply for the CAT exam without satisfying the mandatory CAT eligibility norms, they are disqualified from the entrance exam. Given below is the category-wise eligibility criteria for CAT and other important information related to the exam.

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Candidates must also note that the MBA eligibility criteria of different MBA colleges in India may differ. It is also important to go through the eligibility criteria specified by a college before applying.

CAT 2021 Eligibility Criteria for General & NC-OBC Category

Given below is the expected CAT 2021 eligibility criteria for candidates belonging to the General and NC-OBC categories for CAT 2021.

• Bachelor’s Degree from a recognized University or educational institution with a minimum of 50% marks or equivalent CGPA for General and NC-OBC candidates

• Must have a score of 50% in graduation or its equivalent in any stream

• Must have professional degrees such as CA/CS/ICWA with at least 50 per cent aggregate

• OR Must be in their final year of graduation degree or awaiting results.

CAT 2021 Eligibility Criteria for SC/ ST/ PwD Category

Candidates interested in applying for CAT 2021 under SC, ST and PwD categories must take note of the following eligibility criteria.

• Those who belong to the SC/ST/PwD categories must have 45 per cent aggregate in graduation (or its equivalent) in any stream.

• They must have professional degrees such as CA/ICWA/CS with at least 45% aggregate.

• OR Must be in the final year of their graduation degree or awaiting result.

CAT 2021 Eligibility Criteria for Equivalent Degrees

The calculation of a CAT applicant's percentage of marks is based on the procedure followed by the respective university or institution. In case there is no provision at the university or institution for converting CGPA into equivalent marks, the equivalence would be established by dividing the candidate’s CGPA by the maximum possible CGPA, and multiplying the result with 100.

Note: During the CAT selection process at IIMs, the authorities may verify a candidate's eligibility at various stages. Another thing that candidates must keep in mind is that meeting the minimum CAT eligibility criteria will not guarantee admission in the IIMs. In addition, throughout the process of selection, candidates must maintain a valid and unique email account as well as a phone number.

CAT 2021 Age Limit

There is no age limit for any category of candidates who are applying for CAT 2021. Candidates of all groups can apply for CAT 2021 if they satisfy the eligibility criteria mentioned above.

CAT 2021 Reservation Policy

Based on the category of the students, a certain percentage of seats will be reserved for them in the IIMs as is required by law. Candidates from the reserved categories must go through the CAT eligibility requirements carefully before applying. The category-wise reservation given to candidates at IIMs can be checked below.

Note: Being eligible for reservation under various categories does not guarantee admission at IIMs. Candidates are shortlisted if they fulfil the prescribed eligibility criteria, score the minimum required percentile in CAT and perform well in subsequent rounds of the admission process.

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Important Information for Reserved Category CAT 2021 Applicants

The cast certificate to be submitted by SC or ST category candidates should be in a format approved by the Government. Also, the caste/tribe that a candidate belongs to must be listed in the Government of India schedule. The caste certificate should clearly state:

(a) Name of the candidate's caste/tribe;

(b) Whether the candidate belongs to SC or ST category;

(c) District and the State or Union Territory of candidate’s ordinary residence; and

(d) the appropriate Government of India schedule under which candidate’s caste/tribe is approved by it as SC or ST.

Candidates must upload a copy of the SC/ST/NC-OBC/PwD certificate(s) at the time of CAT registration. Failure to do so will lead to the rejection of their CAT registration.

At the time of interviews, candidates must show the SC/ST/NC-OBC/PwD certificate(s) and submit a photocopy as well. If a candidate fails to do so during the selection process at IIMs, he/she will not be considered under the reserved category.

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Who is Not Eligible for CAT 2021?

Those candidates will not be eligible for CAT 2021 who:

• Have not completed their Bachelor’s degree or any professional degree such as CS/CA/ICWA 

• Have not completed their graduation but are pursuing a professional course and in the final year of the same

• Belong to the general category and have secured less than 50% aggregate in graduation 

• Belong to SC/ST/PwD category and have secured less than 45% aggregate in graduation

• Have completed their graduation from a college or institution that is not recognised by either of AICTE/UGC/MHRD-Government of India

Procedure to Convert Percentage of Marks into Grades for CAT 2021

Sometimes, a candidate’s mark sheet contains marks in the form of grades or CGPA, which must be converted into percentage marks to help the authorities determine eligibility for CAT. Every University or Institution converts the CGPA or grade scores obtained by the candidates into percentage marks for the determination of the candidates’ eligibility. It must also be noted by the candidates that every University or Institution employs its own formula in converting the grade scores or CGPA into percentage scores. In case any University or Institution does not have a working formula to convert the grade/CGPA scores into percentage scores, then a universal formula will be deployed to calculate the percentile scores of the candidates. The formula is:

Additionally, candidates should refer to the guidelines for converting CGPA to Percentage specified by their university for more information.

Additional CAT 2021 Eligibility Facts

Here are some additional CAT 2021 eligibility facts that the candidates should know:

• Aspirants who have completed their graduation in the old system are eligible to appear for CAT. The degree obtained by the candidates under such system must be approved and recognised by UGC.

• Shortlisting of the candidates in the IIMs is based on various factors and does not depend only on the candidates fulfilling the CAT eligibility criteria.

• The candidates must furnish their valid and working email address and cellular number throughout the entire selection process.

• There is no maximum age limit to appear for the CAT exam.

CAT vs IIM Eligibility Criteria 2021

Many times, candidates ponder over the question if there is any difference in eligibility criteria of CAT and IIM. In order to ensure all the speculations over this question are put to rest, CollegeDekho provides the candidates with the only difference in the CAT and IIM eligibility criteria. Candidates who have graduated from the old two-year graduation system are eligible to take CAT but such candidates cannot pursue their desired management course from IIM. Candidates who want to pursue management at any of the IIMs after qualifying the CAT exam must have completed their graduation from the contemporary three-year graduation system. Except for this, there is no difference in IIM and CAT eligibility criteria.